Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), who chairs the congressional panel that oversees global health issues, today introduced legislation, HR 7091, to help stop illicit fentanyl trafficking to the U.S. from China, and hold both government officials in China and Chinese private citizens accountable. Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) is the lead Democrat on the bipartisan bill.
“Synthetic fentanyl produced in China and exported to the U.S. is ravaging our communities,” said Smith, who recently chaired a Subcommittee hearing on potent, deadly Chinese-produced fentanyl entering the U.S. “Although China would like to shirk responsibility and call this a purely a demand-driven phenomenon, the fact is Beijing is not doing enough to stop the supply.”
“The recent proliferation of synthetic opioids like fentanyl has driven a sharp increase in overdose deaths, impacting Americans of all walks of life. In New Jersey, we have the highest opioid overdose death rate among all states for individuals 35 or younger. And fentanyl produced in China is helping drive the epidemic,” Smith stated.
To help stop the production of fentanyl and its trafficking into the United States from the People’s Republic of China, the Smith-Suozzi bill mandates the creation of a joint effort by the Secretaries of State and of the Treasury to identify each person and government official in China involved in fentanyl production and trafficking into the U.S. Once identified, those persons can be sanctioned by the U.S. under such policies as the Global Magnitsky Act—which Smith helped shepherd into law last Congress.
The idea for the new Smith-Suozzi bill came from expert testimony offered at a hearing Smith chaired on September 6th, entitled “Tackling Fentanyl: The China Connection.” Officials from the State Department and Drug Enforcement Administration along with the prosecutor from Ocean County, NJ, in Smith’s congressional district, all provided information highlighting the deadly effects of fentanyl on U.S. communities, and new strategies the U.S. can and must employ to counter this illicit drug trade.
“Whereas China has gone to war with other drugs that have a demand in China—such as methamphetamine—it has conspicuously failed to launch a similar crackdown on fentanyl, which has no demand in China,” Smith said.
“I applaud the efforts of our law enforcement agencies to counter the spread of fentanyl, but China must do more. This bill will hold China accountable for its bad behavior and sanction those responsible for this global health crisis.”
“In order to effectively combat this epidemic, we need Congress and the Administration working together to hold accountable those who promote and profit off of drug addiction. With this bill, we will do just that,” Smith said
