SCHUMER ANNOUNCES MAJOR PUSH TO UPEND FLOW OF FENTANYL IN NORTH COUNTRY – REVEALING NEW FEDERAL EFFORTS TO SANCTION CHINA FOR ITS ROLE IN SPREADING FENTANYL & DELIVER RESOURCES TO COMBAT OVERDOSE EPIDEMIC, WHICH HAS TRAGICALLY IMPACTED PLATTSBURGH & CLINTON COUNTY
After Several Recent Drug Busts In Plattsburgh, Where Law Enforcement Seized $24K Worth Of Illegal Drugs, And Over 2,500 Bags Of Fentanyl, Schumer Reveals A Bipartisan Push To Use National Defense Bill To Address Fentanyl & Opioid Crisis By Attacking Its Source Overseas, Far Before The Deadly Drug Reaches The North Country
Schumer Says FEND Off Fentanyl Act, Which He included In Senate Passed Defense Bill, Would Place New Sanctions On China For Its Growing Role In America’s Fentanyl Epidemic And Declare International Fentanyl Trafficking A National Emergency
Schumer: It Is Time Beat Back Deadly Fentanyl In The North Country By Attacking The Overseas Source Of This Drug
Following several recent major fentanyl busts in Plattsburgh, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer today launched a major new push to upend the flow of fentanyl in Clinton County and the North Country. Schumer detailed the new bipartisan legislation, the FEND Off Fentanyl Act, he included in the Senate-passed National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would not only allow President Biden to place sanctions on China for its role in contributing to our nation’s fentanyl epidemic and declare international fentanyl trafficking a national emergency. Schumer is now demanding that the House pass the measure to combat the flow of fentanyl from China and Mexico before it reaches places like Clinton County and Upstate NY.
“From Albany to Buffalo to right here in Plattsburgh, fentanyl continues to take the lives of far too many New Yorkers each and every day. We must make getting this deadly drug off of our streets and out of the U.S. a top priority, and the just passed Senate defense bill provides a rare window of opportunity to do just that,” said Senator Schumer. “That’s why I’m calling on the U.S. House of Representatives to quickly pass this measure and help upend the flow of fentanyl overseas, far before it reaches places like Clinton County and the North Country. With the FEND Off Fentanyl Act we can ensure tough sanctions on places like China for turning a blind eye to this issue and giving these deadly exports the green light. Too many lives have been lost, and too many others are at stake, especially here in Upstate New York.”
“I commend United States Senator Schumer in his support to stop the flow of fentanyl into upstate New York through the FEND Off Fentanyl Act,” said Clinton County District Attorney Andrew J. Wylie. “The primary root of crime in Clinton County evolves around our community’s addiction to cocaine, heroin and fentanyl. Whether the crimes are petit larceny, assault, domestic violence, burglary, robbery or murder, the primary factor is generally drugs. Every effort to stop the flow of cocaine, heroin or fentanyl into the North Country will assist in preventing crime here in Clinton County. We continue to see the uptick of narcotics cases within the County, including drug overdoses that involve fentanyl. The Clinton County District Attorney’s Office will continue to work with our local, state and federal agencies to assist fighting the ongoing war against the illegal possession and distribution of narcotics in Clinton County.”
Schumer said the Senate passage of the NDAA bill just days ago included a bipartisan plan to officially declare international fentanyl trafficking a national emergency and give the president special powers to impose tough sanctions on China, Mexico, or any other relevant fentanyl supply chain hub. The House passed its own version of the National Defense Authorization Act earlier in July, but now that Schumer has passed NDAA in the Senate, lawmakers will need to reconcile the Senate bill and the House bill by negotiating a compromise version that can pass both chambers. Fentanyl is trafficked into the United States primarily from China and Mexico, and is responsible for the ongoing fentanyl epidemic in Upstate NY and across the country. China is the world’s largest producer of illicit fentanyl, fentanyl analogues, and their immediate precursors. From China, those substances are shipped primarily through express consignment carriers or international mail directly to the United States, or, alternatively, shipped directly to transnational criminal organizations in Mexico, Canada, and the Caribbean. Some officials estimate that China is responsible for over 90 percent of the illicit fentanyl found in the U.S.
Schumer explained to disrupt the flow of illicit opioids into the United States, he pushed to include the FEND Off Fentanyl Act in to the just passed Senate defense bill. The bill does the following:
- Declares that the international trafficking of fentanyl is a national emergency.
- Requires the President to sanction transnational criminal organizations and drug cartels’ key members engaged in international fentanyl trafficking.
- Enables the President to use proceeds of forfeited, sanctioned property of fentanyl traffickers to further law enforcement efforts.
- Enhances the ability to enforce sanctions violations thereby making it more likely that people who defy U.S. law will be caught and prosecuted.
- Requires the administration to report to Congress on actions the U.S. government is taking to reduce the international trafficking of fentanyl and related opioids.
- Allows the Treasury Department to utilize special measures to combat fentanyl-related money laundering.
- Requires the Treasury Department to prioritize fentanyl-related suspicious transactions and include descriptions of drug cartels’ financing actions in Suspicious Activity Reports.
Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opioid that is 30 to 50 times more potent than heroin. It is short acting and cannot be seen, tasted or smelled when mixed into other drugs. While pharmaceutical fentanyl is prescribed for severe pain and end of life care, non-pharmaceutical fentanyl is produced illicitly and is now common in the illicit drug supply. The presence of non-pharmaceutical fentanyl in Plattsburgh, Clinton County, and the North Country has dramatically increased the number of overdose deaths, and fentanyl is now the “leading cause of death for Americans 18 to 45 years old.”
Over the past two years, Clinton County has seen 29 deaths from opioid overdoses, 44 outpatient emergency department visits, and 1,017 admissions to OASAS-certified substance abuse disorder treatment programs. Several recent examples have underscored the prevalence and danger of fentanyl in Clinton County. In October 2022, five individuals were arrested in a Plattsburgh narcotics bust connected to an ongoing investigation into drug transportation and sales in Plattsburgh, where law enforcement seized 1,398 bags containing fentanyl, 58 grams of fentanyl ready to be packaged for resale, 6 grams of crack-cocaine and $3,765. Similarly, officials arrested a Plattsburgh man this past May with about 1,200 bags of fentanyl worth approximately $24,000.
Looking at the broader region, in 2022 alone, the North Country saw 15 deaths from opioid overdoses, 6 outpatient emergency department visits, and 319 admissions to OASAS-certified substance abuse disorder treatment programs. Aside from Clinton county, the opioid crisis has grown worse in Franklin, where the county saw 6 deaths from opioid overdoses, 6 outpatient emergency department visits, and 223 admissions to OASAS-certified substance abuse disorder treatment programs in 2022. In 2021, nearly 107,000 Americans died from an overdose, and 65% of overdose deaths were caused by fentanyl. Last year alone, the Drug Enforcement Administration seized over 379 million deadly doses of fentanyl - enough to supply a lethal dose to every American.
Schumer has a long history of fighting for additional resources to support law enforcement and boost addiction recovery services. Most recently, he secured $445 million for Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA) grants, an increase of $30 million from FY22. He secured $16 million for the COPS anti-methamphetamine program and $35 million for the COPS anti-heroin task force that help ensure the safety of local communities. He also secured $302 million for the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) program in this year’s budget. In addition, Schumer led the fight to secure $44.9 billion to address opioid abuse in the most recent Omnibus, an increase of over $345 million over the previous year. That includes nearly $1.6 billion in State Opioid Response grants, $100 million more for the Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment program, $111 million for medication assisted treatment programs, $145 million for programs targeted towards rural communities and more.
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