Wednesday May 3rd, 2023

Cortez Masto Cosponsors Bipartisan Legislation to Crack Down on Illegal Fentanyl Supply Chains

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) cosponsored the bipartisan Fentanyl Eradication and Narcotics Deterrence (FEND) Off Fentanyl Act, along with Senators Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Tim Scott (S.C.), to tackle the country’s fentanyl epidemic by cracking down on transnational drug trafficking schemes.

This bipartisan bill would strengthen current law by directing the Treasury Department to target, sanction, and block the financial assets of transnational criminal organizations, and those that launder money to facilitate illicit opioid trafficking. It would also help stop the flow of deadly fentanyl into Nevada communities by deterring traffickers and manufacturers ability to fund their criminal enterprises.

“I have spent my career fighting against the illegal drug trafficking that hurts people in Nevada and across the country,” said Senator Cortez Masto, “That is why I am proud to support this legislation that will set up sanctions to crack down on illicit supply chains and keep deadly drugs out of our communities.”  

“The addiction crisis has taken too many lives and caused too much devastation in Ohio and around the country — and so often illicit fentanyl is the culprit. In roundtables and conversations with Ohio communities on the frontlines of this fight, I hear over and over that we need new, more powerful tools to prevent the flow of fentanyl into our neighborhoods. This bipartisan bill will add effective new sanctions to target the illicit fentanyl supply chain, from China through Mexico, to help stop increasingly dangerous forms of this drug before they ever reach our communities,” said Senator Brown.

“Fentanyl takes the lives of far too many young Americans, stripping a whole generation of the opportunity to contribute to their communities and achieve their dreams. This legislation takes decisive action to cut off the deadly flow of fentanyl at the source. By using the full weight of America’s economic power and directing the Treasury Department to make addressing this crisis a priority, this bill will restore hope for communities suffering from this deadly drug,” said Senator Scott.

The bipartisan FEND Off Fentanyl Act will enhance current law so U.S. government agencies can more effectively disrupt illicit opioid supply chains and penalize those facilitating the trafficking of fentanyl. The bill also ensures that sanctions are imposed not only on the illicit drug trade, but also on the money laundering that makes it profitable.

Senator Cortez Masto has been working to crack down on illicit drugs since she was first elected Attorney General, when she worked with Nevada’s Republican governor, law enforcement, and Mexican officials to combat the rise of methamphetamine manufacturing and cross-border drug trafficking. In the Senate, she has introduced bipartisan, bicameral legislation to combat the illicit use of xylazine and has authored legislation to combat drug trafficking online that was signed into law, as well as critical legislation to address the opioid epidemic.

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