House Energy and Commerce Committee Democrats voted this week against the legislation that would permanently classify fentanyl-related substances (FRS) as Schedule 1 drugs.
In the legislation, the trafficking and possession of the aforementioned substances carry the toughest penalties.
Following the proposal of the said legislation, the Democrats voted against it on Wednesday despite the increasing crime rates related to the said substances.
This comes as Republicans complained about the growing problem of fentanyl in the United States. Amid the crisis, the GOP addressed the need to permanently treat the drugs as Schedule 1 substances in the United States as part of the government’s efforts to stop the drugs from spreading across the country.
The US Congress has been extending the temporary scheduling of FRS as a Schedule 1 drug which began under the Trump administration in response to the growing number of fentanyl-related deaths.
According to the House Republicans, now is the time to permanently reclassify FRS.
On Wednesday, the GOP lawmakers called up a bill that would do so to stop the poisoning of tens of thousands of American citizens.
In an exclusive report published by Fox News, it was revealed that the “subcommittee approved the bill in a 17-10 vote in which every Democrat voted against it except for Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn. Other Democrats rejected the bill after arguing that the change should be coupled with an end to mandatory minimum sentences for FRS charges.”
“Specifically, Democrats said FRS cases that don’t lead to death or serious bodily harm should not carry mandatory minimum sentences, and they broadly argued that Republicans need to treat the matter more like a health crisis and less like a criminal crisis,” the report added.
In a statement, Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif argued that “mandatory minimums should take into account whether the cases involve overdoses or serious bodily harm.”
In 2021, both the ACLU and Human Rights Watch, argued that maintaining tough penalties for fentanyl trafficking and possession would “exacerbate pretrial detention, mass incarceration and racial disparities in the prison system, doubling down on a fear-based, enforcement-first response to a public health challenge.”
However, law enforcement groups have called for tougher penalties, with the National Fraternal Order of Police, calling on the government to solve the “growing illicit fentanyl overdose epidemic that has gripped this country.”
On Wednesday, Republicans claimed that the “deaths of tens of thousands of people due to fentanyl mean Congress must take swift action to ensure tough penalties against fentanyl and FRS,” Fox News reported.
According to Rep. Bob Latta, R-Ohio, fentanyl and FRS have become “weapons of mass destruction” that must be policed.
“This should not be a political issue. It’s about addressing the largest poisoning of Americans in the history of our country and taking steps to end the scourge.” Latta said.
