WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Jon Tester (D-MT), Ed Markey (D-MA), and Gary Peters (D-MI) introduced the bipartisan Prevent Exposure to Narcotics and Toxins (PREVENT) Act of 2022, that will provide drug containment devices to frontline border patrol agents and provide training on their proper use.

This legislation ensures that Congress is properly protecting the frontline federal employees and helping prevent secondary exposure to dangerous drugs including synthetic opioids. This legislation also builds off Brown’s INTERDICT Act, which was signed into law in 2018, and provides U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) with additional high-tech screening equipment and lab resources to detect fentanyl before it enters the U.S 

“Border patrol officers are on the frontlines of our efforts to combat illegal and dangerous drugs at our southern border,” said Senator Brown. “Following our success in securing new screening devices for federal law enforcement agents, we need to do more to protect border patrol agents from these dangerous drugs during transit.”

“Dangerous and deadly drugs like fentanyl are coming across the southern border, poisoning our streets and causing a spike in overdose deaths. Curbing this alarming trend begins at the border with our brave border patrol officers, who form the first line of defense. We must ensure they have the protection and training needed to stay safe,” said Senator Grassley. 

“As the opioid crisis continues to harm communities and families across the country, we must use the proper resources to stop of the flow of fentanyl. We’re seeing record levels of the drug enter the U.S. through our ports of entry, and without the proper equipment to contain and store it, CBP officers tasked with seizing fentanyl are at risk of secondary-exposure from the drug,” said Senator Durbin. “In introducing the PREVENTS Act today, we are giving CBP officers the tools necessary to safely confiscate these dangerous narcotics from drug traffickers.” 

“There is a crisis at the southern border and we need to defend those who defend us,” said Senator Cassidy. “Border patrol officers are the first line of defense. We must give border patrol the tools to protect themselves from harm. We must combat the flow of deadly drugs.”

“No one should be faced with involuntary and harmful exposure to dangerous drugs while on the job,” said Senator Padilla. “This critical legislation will properly equip frontline agents with drug containment devices as they work to prevent fentanyl and other drugs from entering our communities. By ensuring their safety, we will give agents the tools they need to more effectively prevent illegal drugs from entering our country.”

“Synthetic opioids are wreaking havoc nationwide, and it is vital that Congress equip our law enforcement officers with the tools and training to help bring this crisis under control,” said Senator Wicker. “Better preparing our border patrol agents to handle these deadly drugs will help to keep them safe so they can keep working to stop narcotics at the source.”

“Fentanyl trafficking is the cause of rapidly increasing overdoses and deaths in communities in Montana and across the country, and our Border Patrol agents are on the front lines of the fight to stop it,” said Senator Tester. “I’m proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with law enforcement and support this bipartisan bill, because we need to give officers every tool available to do their jobs safely and protect our communities.”

“The vast majority of the 91,799 opioid deaths in the United States in 2020 involved synthetic opioids. U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agents are standing between the trafficking of these drugs and the next family grieving the loss of their loved one to fentanyl,” said Senator Markey. “We owe these agents the highest level of safety and protection from the harm and even death that exposure to synthetic opioids can cause. I am proud to support the PREVENT Act, which will provide the resources and training these law enforcement officers need and deserve to remain safe while protecting others.” 

The PREVENT Act:

  • Directs the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Secretary and the Commissioner of Customs and Border Protection to purchase containment devices, a critical tool in safely storing illicit narcotics, for all frontline border patrol agents and provide training for their effective use.
  • Trains officers on how to use containment devices to prevent potential synthetic opioid exposure.

Last year, nearly 108,000 people died of drug overdoses; 71,000 of those deaths were due to fentanyl or fentanyl-related substances. As record levels of fentanyl enter the United States through the border and ports of entry, Border Protection and other federal law enforcement agents have been tasked with the monumental challenge of intercepting these drugs before they enter our communities. This work is particularly dangerous because of the risk of first responders being accidentally exposed to narcotics and toxins.

In September, Brown reintroduced his bipartisan, bicameral Providing Officers with Electronic Resources (POWER) Act to provide state and local law enforcement with high-tech devices to detect and identify dangerous drugs like fentanyl. This legislation would establish a new grant program through the U.S. Department of Justice to help state and local law enforcement organizations secure these high-tech, portable screening devices.

The PREVENT Act is supported by the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association (FLEOA).

“Our front-line border patrol agents are working diligently to halt these illicit packages from entering the United States. Unfortunately, the more we learn about fentanyl, the more we learn about its dangers and the risks mere exposure to the substance poses to law enforcement,” FLEOA President Cosme said. “This legislation is critical to ensuring law enforcement agents at the Border have adequate protection against accidental exposure. We thank Senators Brown, Grassley, Durbin, Cassidy, Padilla, Tester, Markey and Wicker for taking this important step to protect the officers that protect our communities.”

The bill text is available HERE.

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