Halt All Lethal Trafficking of Fentanyl Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Virginia, who is the original sponsor, along with Representative Latta from the great State of Ohio. This is a very important bill, and I strongly urge that the House pass this particular bill.

For far too long, our communities have been plagued by poisonings from fentanyl and fentanyl-related substances. Every one of our congressional districts have been affected by this crisis. Kids are dying. They are dying, and Congress has got to make this permanent.

Illicit drugs have poured across the border, made it onto the streets, and affected our communities, every one of our communities. They are often mixed with other illicit drugs, and users are often unaware of the presence and potent effects, which makes the danger even harder to stop.

People hear stories on a regular basis where kids go out and party. They shouldn't be using recreational drugs, but they don't deserve to die. I heard the example just today by our chairman with regard to some of these drugs, say marijuana, what have you, and other drugs. The kids should not be using these drugs, but they don't deserve to die. They are laced with fentanyl, and it is just awful. It is awful for the kids, but also for the families and the friends of the kids.

We must ensure that law enforcement has the tools it needs to address these threats, and that is what we are doing today. The HALT Fentanyl Act will permanently schedule fentanyl-related substances as a class I drug. This is long overdue.

I know my good friend, Mr. Griffith, and also Mr. Latta, have been working on this for years. This must pass the United States Senate after we get it out of the House today. We need to save lives. That is the bottom line.

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