Crime Subcommittee to Hold Legislative Hearing on Bill to Combat Synthetic Drugs

Washington, D.C. – On Tuesday, June 27, 2017 at 11:00 a.m., the Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations Subcommittee will hold a legislative hearing on a bill to combat the synthetic drug epidemic, the Stop the Importation and Trafficking of Synthetic Analogues Act of 2017 (H.R. 2851). In 2015, over 52,000 Americans died from drug overdoses. Nearly 20 percent of these deaths resulted from an overdose of synthetic opioids like fentanyl, which can be as much as 100 times more powerful than painkillers such as morphine. Additionally, synthetic analogues with street names like K2, Spice, Bath Salts, or Molly are designed to mimic other street drugs like marijuana, LSD, and Ecstasy and can be more potent than the real thing and just as deadly. Criminal drug manufacturers, largely from China, work continuously to stay ahead of U.S. drug laws by altering the molecular structure of their drugs as soon as the government bans them. The Controlled Substances Act (CSA), which was signed into law over 40 years ago, was designed to protect the public from the dangers associated with drugs and drug use. However, the CSA was not designed to handle the magnitude and speed in which these new psychoactive substances have emerged in our communities. The Stop the Importation and Trafficking of Synthetic Analogues Act, introduced by Representative John Katko (R-N.Y.), is a bipartisan, bicameral approach that will update the CSA to provide swifter action to stop the unlawful importation and distribution of synthetic drugs, and give law enforcement effective tools to help keep our communities safe. Witnesses for the hearing are: Panel I:

• The Honorable John Katko, Representative, New York’s 24^th Congressional District
• Ms. Demetra Ashley, Deputy Assistant Administrator, Drug Enforcement Administration
• Mr. Robert E. Perez, Acting Executive Assistant Commissioner, U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Panel II:

• Ms. Marcia Lee Taylor, President and CEO, Partnership for Drug-Free Kids
• Ms. Reta Newman, Special Advisor to Drug Free America Foundation; Chief Chemist and Laboratory Director of the Pinellas County Forensic Laboratory
• Ms. Angela Pacheco, Former District Attorney, First Judicial District of Santa Fe, New Mexico

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) issued the statement below in advance of this hearing. Chairman Goodlatte: “The drug epidemic currently plaguing the United States is destroying lives, families, and communities across the United States. It affects rural and urban areas and grandparents, parents, and kids alike. While Congress has taken action to combat the opioid epidemic through the historic Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act, it’s clear that we need more tools to combat the ever-growing problem of synthetic drug abuse. Synthetic drugs have no legitimate industrial or medical use, and their misuse and abuse represents an ongoing public health and safety crisis in the United States. “The Stop the Importation and Trafficking of Synthetic Analogues Act combats the synthetic drug crisis by ensuring our laws keep pace with the creation of new, chemically-altered drugs and by providing law enforcement with the tools needed to keep these drugs off of our streets. At next week’s hearing, we will hear from experts on the merits of this legislation and other ways that we can end this national crisis.” This hearing will take place in 2141 Rayburn House Office Building and will be webcast live at judiciary.house.gov.  Camera crews wishing to cover must be congressionally credentialed and RSVP with the House Radio-TV Gallery at (202) 225-5214.