House Foreign Affairs Committee advances Stop Chinese Fentanyl Act to target Chinese producers
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Summary
The committee voted to include HR 747, the Stop Chinese Fentanyl Act, in an unblocked package and ordered it favorably reported; sponsors said the measure would expand sanctions to target Chinese entities and officials tied to precursor production.
The House Foreign Affairs Committee on May 20 ordered HR 747, the Stop Chinese Fentanyl Act, favorably reported as part of an unblocked package of bills. Representative Andy Barr, sponsor of HR 747, told the committee the measure expands the definition of "foreign opioid trafficker" to include certain Chinese entities and officials tied to production of synthetic opioids and precursor chemicals.
Committee supporters described the bill as addressing the supply chain for illicit fentanyl by enabling sanctions on individuals and entities in China who, the bill asserts, fail to take steps to prevent opioid trafficking. "We must attack the production of fentanyl by targeting the source of precursors in China," Representative Barr said during his remarks. He cited OFAC activity sanctioning more than 300 targets for drug trafficking in recent years and argued the bill helps the United States "look at every step of fentanyl's deadly supply chain."
Ranking Member Gregory Meeks and other Democrats expressed support for the en bloc package that included HR 747. Representative Dean also spoke in support and framed the opioid crisis as a continuing national emergency, noting overdose trends and the importance of Medicaid and treatment access while backing measures to address supply.
The committee considered HR 747 as part of an unblocked package and voted by voice to approve the package; the chair announced the "ayes have it" and the measures were agreed to. The committee also directed staff to make technical and conforming changes before reporting.
The bill text referenced by sponsors would require a presidential determination on whether certain Chinese agency heads meet the statutory definition of foreign opioid traffickers and would subject them to sanctions if so. The committee record does not include a roll-call tally specifically for HR 747; committee action on the en bloc package was taken by voice vote during the markup.
The measure will now proceed to be reported to the House as ordered by the committee.