Bipartisan bill promotes the research and development of new technologies to detect opioids in the field
WASHINGTON – Arizona senior Senator Kyrsten Sinema cosponsored bipartisan legislation requiring the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate to research and develop technologies for law enforcement officers to better identify and detect drugs, such as fentanyl and xylazine, especially in low volumes, which is a struggle for existing technologies.
“Over half of the fentanyl coming into the U.S. comes through Arizona. Our bipartisan bill will help stop this dangerous flow of drugs by supplying law enforcement with new tools to detect opioids and crack down on the trafficking of fentanyl,” said Sinema, a member of the Senate Homeland Security Committee.
According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, over half of the fentanyl coming into the U.S. comes through Arizona.
The Sinema-backed bill requires the DHS Science and Technology Directorate to research and develop technologies for the detection and identification of drugs. The technologies include portable equipment that can detect and identify illicit substances in the field with minimal handling, as well as those that use AI and other techniques to predict the presence of opioids.
In December 2023, Sinema cosponsored three bills fighting the fentanyl crisis by increasing access to evidence-based harm mitigation tools, like fentanyl test strips, to prevent overdoses and deaths.