Senator Young applauds Senate passage of bill to combat fentanyl epidemic

Friday, U.S. Senator Todd Young (R-Ind.) voted for the Halt All Lethal Trafficking of (HALT) Fentanyl Act, legislation that would permanently list fentanyl-related substances as Schedule I substances under the Controlled Substances Act. This permanent classification would provide law enforcement with the necessary tools to better combat the impact of this deadly drug. The legislation passed the Senate 84-16. 

“Illegally-created fentanyl derivatives are pouring across the southern border and devastating communities in Indiana and across the country. The HALT Fentanyl Act would permanently classify these deadly drugs as Schedule I substances to ensure their sale and distribution can be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Today’s passage puts us one step closer to empowering law enforcement with a critical tool in the fight against opioids,” said Senator Young.

Fentanyl is a scheduled substance, but Mexican drug cartels make small chemical tweaks to fentanyl to produce drugs—fentanyl-related substances—with similar dangerous effects that are not controlled. In 2023, drug overdoses, largely due to fentanyl, were the leading cause of death among young adults 18 to 45 years old. 

In response to this crisis, the Drug Enforcement Administration exercised its authority to temporarily classify fentanyl-related substances as Schedule I under the Controlled Substances Act. That temporary scheduling order is set to expire on March 31, 2025.

Under the HALT Fentanyl Act, fentanyl-related substances would remain Schedule I. In addition, the bill clarifies that the mandatory minimum penalties that apply to fentanyl also apply to the trafficking of fentanyl-related substances. 

Young helped introduce the legislation earlier this year and in 2023.  

In addition to Young, Senators Bill Cassidy (R-La.), John Kennedy (R-La.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) also introduced the legislation.