Buckeye Reporter

COLUMBUS, OH – On June 1, 2023, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) joined local leaders and law enforcement personnel at the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office to discuss his Fentanyl Eradication and Narcotics Deterrence (FEND) Off Fentanyl Act, a sanctions and anti-money laundering bill aimed at combatting the country’s fentanyl crisis and saving lives in Ohio.  The bill targets the illicit fentanyl supply chain, from the chemical suppliers in China to the cartels that transport the drugs from Mexico. Brown was joined by Sheriff Dallas Baldwin, Chief Deputy Rick Minerd, and Sue Villilo, Vice President and Assistant System Chief Clinical Officer of the Alcohol, Drug, and Mental Health Board of Franklin County (ADAMH).

“I hear over and over from Ohioans that we need new, more powerful tools to prevent the flow of fentanyl into our communities,” said Brown. “Our bipartisan bill targets fentanyl at the source. We are going after the illicit fentanyl supply chain, from China through Mexico, to help stop this drug before it ever reaches our communities.”

“The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office continues to be committed to fighting the opioid epidemic that is devastating our country, virtually leaving no community untouched. I fully support all federal actions and sanctions to disrupt the flow of international trafficking of fentanyl from China through Mexico and the money laundering that the drug cartels are greatly profiting from. The FEND Act targets these dangerous drugs at the source, thus saving lives in Ohio,” said Franklin County Sheriff Dallas Baldwin.

“Cartels in Mexico and transnational criminal organizations in China alike are capitalizing on the deep roots of addiction among Americans across the country. Their thirst for money comes at the expense of real lives. Law enforcement agencies are on the front lines of intercepting the supply of fentanyl and other deadly drugs before they seep into our communities, while clinicians work tirelessly to curb the demand from those suffering with substance abuse disorders. I applaud Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown and his bipartisan colleagues who stand in support, with legislation such as the FEND and POWER Acts to monetarily sanction these criminal organizations, while also providing much needed tools to law enforcement for early detection,” said Chief Deputy Rick Minerd.

“We applaud Senator Brown for introducing the FEND Off Fentanyl Act because any effort to help get fentanyl off the streets is a win for the community. Reducing availability of fentanyl decreases the possibility of overdoses, ultimately providing more Franklin County residents struggling with substance use and misuse with the possibility of recovery,” said Sue Villilo, Vice President and Assistant System Chief Clinical Officer of the Alcohol, Drug, and Mental Health Board of Franklin County (ADAMH).

The prevalence of increasingly-dangerous forms of fentanyl, often mixed with other substances, is a serious and increasing public health threat to Ohio communities. In 2021, fentanyl was involved in 80% of Ohio unintentional drug overdose deaths. The DEA and law enforcement partners seized more than 87,000 fentanyl-laced pills in Ohio in a period of less than four months last year. By strengthening current law and directing the Treasury Department to target, sanction, and block the financial assets of transnational criminal organizations, and target those that launder money to facilitate illicit opioid trafficking, the FEND Off Fentanyl Act aims to stop the flow of deadly fentanyl into Ohio communities by penalizing those that traffic in synthetic opioids.

Brown – who chairs the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee – introduced the Fentanyl Eradication and Narcotics Deterrence (FEND) Off Fentanyl Act with Ranking Member Tim Scott (R-SC) and the leaders of the Senate Committee on Armed Services, Chairman Jack Reed (D-RI) and Ranking Member Roger Wicker (R-MS). The bill has 40 bipartisan cosponsors.

Brown also recently reintroduced bipartisan, bicameral legislation to provide state and local law enforcement with high-tech devices to detect and identify dangerous drugs like fentanyl. The Providing Officers with Electronic Resources (POWER) Act would establish a new grant program through the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to help state and local law enforcement organizations secure these high-tech, portable screening devices.

The legislation builds on Senator Brown’s leadership in fighting to stop the flow of fentanyl into Ohio’s communities, and to expand treatment options for Ohioans. Senator Brown worked with former Senator Toomey (R-PA) to pass the Meeting the China Challenge Act of 2021, which implemented tough new fentanyl sanctions to help stem the flow of illegal opioids, including fentanyl from China and Mexico.

Brown helped pass the bipartisan Protecting First Responders from Secondary Exposure (PREVENT) Act which allows state and local governments to purchase containment devices to safely store dangerous drugs and preserve them for evidentiary use and provide first responders training to reduce their risk of secondary exposure to lethal substances. This legislation builds off Brown’s INTERDICT Act, which provides U.S. Customs and Border Protection with additional high-tech screening equipment and lab resources to detect fentanyl before it enters the U.S.

Brown and former Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) worked together to make more treatment beds available to Ohioans struggling with addiction, and to provide greater support to treat newborns exposed to opioids, and their families. He also helped passed the Mainstreaming Addiction Treatment Act which increases access to medication assisted treatment options for Ohioans struggling with opioid use disorder. And his bipartisan bill to support grandparents now raising children in light of the opioid epidemic, the Supporting Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Act, was signed into law by President Trump. Brown has also urged major drug companies to make the opioid overdose medication, naloxone, be available over the counter.

Read the Fentanyl Eradication and Narcotics Deterrence (FEND) Off Fentanyl Act one-pager HERE, and the full bill text HERE.

Original source can be found here.