Senator’s FEND Off Fentanyl Act strengthens America’s response to the fentanyl crisis by deploying federal resources to target cartels’ criminal funding
WASHINGTON – Arizona senior Senator Kyrsten Sinema cosponsored the FEND Off Fentanyl Act – bipartisan legislation introduced by Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Ranking Member Tim Scott (R-S.C.) to strengthen America’s response to the fentanyl crisis and stop the flow of fentanyl into Arizona.
“Arizonans across our state understand fentanyl’s devastating effects in our communities. That is why we are working to stop the illegal flow of fentanyl to Arizona by enhancing law enforcement’s ability to cut off funding to drug cartels to keep Arizona families safe and secure,” said Sinema, Chair of the Senate Border Management Subcommittee.
The FEND Off Fentanyl Act was the result of bipartisan negotiations between Chairman Brown and Ranking Member Scott that Sinema supported. This legislation requires the U.S. Treasury Department to prioritize the fentanyl epidemic and deploy its sanctions and anti-money laundering authorities to target the illicit funds of criminal cartels.
The bill would declare the international trafficking of opioids to be a national emergency, requires the President to sanction a drug cartel’s key members engaged in the international opioid trade, allows the President to confiscate and deposit drug traffickers’ assets into the Treasury’s forfeiture fund, and extend the statute of limitations from 5 years to 8 years for sanctions violations to increase chances to catch these criminals. Additionally, Sinema’s FEND Off Fentanyl Act would follow the money trail and make it harder for opioid traffickers to engage in money laundering to hide their crimes.
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