Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas) introduced the Preventing the Financing of Illegal Synthetic Drugs Act, which would help the federal government financially target organizations trafficking synthetic drugs like fentanyl and methamphetamines into the United States.
“Fentanyl, methamphetamines and other synthetic drugs are continuing to devastate Nevada communities, and we need to be able to go after the transnational criminal organizations profiting by bringing these drugs into our country,” said Senator Cortez Masto. “Our bipartisan bill will prevent drug trafficking by getting us the information we need to crack down on the drug cartels financing these operations. I will always put Nevadans’ safety first and will keep working across the aisle to protect our communities.”
“Fentanyl is an unprecedented crisis that continues to take the lives of innocent children and adults across our country, and we must combat it at all levels,” said Senator Cornyn. “This bill would help law enforcement better understand narcotrafficking organizations’ illegal financing and business models, which will increase our chances of defeating them and help save American lives.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 108,000 people in the United States died from drug overdoses or drug poisonings in the 12-month period ending January 2022, with 67% of those deaths involving synthetic opioids like fentanyl.
The Preventing the Financing of Illegal Synthetic Drugs Act would direct the Comptroller General of the United States (GAO) to study the illicit financing associated with synthetic drug trafficking and detail for Congress the business model of these organizations, how they move and hide their illicit earnings, and what the U.S. government can do to better prevent fentanyl money laundering.
Senator Cortez Masto has been working to crack down on illicit drugs since she served as Nevada’s Attorney General, when she worked with law enforcement, and Mexican officials to combat the rise of methamphetamine manufacturing and cross-border drug trafficking. In the Senate, she has introduced bipartisan, bicameral legislation to combat the illicit use of xylazine and has authored legislation to combat drug trafficking online that was signed into law, as well as critical legislation to address the opioid epidemic.
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