The Stop Fentanyl at the Border Act would increase staffing capacity and technology to bolster security and detect illicit drugs and other contraband being smuggled through ports along the border to the United States.
U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner of Virginia joined U.S. Sens. Bob Casey and Mark Kelly of Arizona in introducing the legislation.
“Families and communities across the Commonwealth have been devastated by the spread of fentanyl,” Warner said. “This legislation will help our law enforcement officers at the border stop the flow of fentanyl into this country by providing personnel and equipment needed secure our border.”
The legislation would enable U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to hire more Officers and Border Patrol Agents to increase capacity to stop illicit smuggling over the border. The bill also provides funding to purchase Non-Intrusive Inspection systems, which scan vehicles and cargo at the border to provide detailed images of their interiors, which leads to the detection of fentanyl and other illicit drugs. The bill would create an inspection program to increase seizure of firearms being exported from the U.S. to Mexico, which criminal organizations frequently purchase in the United States and smuggle into Mexico to support their fentanyl production operations and other violent criminal enterprises.
The legislation comes following the senators’ call to President Biden to prioritize additional resources to strengthen security at the Southwest border in order to stop the flow of illicit drugs like fentanyl through ports of entry. Warner has led numerous efforts to curb fentanyl trafficking, and last week participated in a Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee hearing on the topic.
Joining Sens. Warner, Casey, and Kelly in introducing the legislation are U.S. Sens. Ben Ray Lujan of New Mexico, Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada, Jacky Rosen of Nevada, Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Sherrod Brown of Ohio.
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Rebecca Barnabi
