WASHINGTON — Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) introduced a bill Friday to classify fentanyl trafficking as attempted murder as the administration cracks down on the illicit synthetic opioid that caused drug overdose deaths to spike nationwide over the past decade.
Lawler’s legislation, the Fentanyl Kills Act, targets producers, transporters and dealers of the deadly drug that killed more than 250,000 Americans during former President Joe Biden’s term alone.
“Any individual who has been found to have trafficked fentanyl shall be deemed to have attempted to perpetrate murder,” the bill’s text states.
If passed, those convicted under the law could face up to a life sentence in federal prison.
The bill’s introduction comes a day after National Fentanyl Prevention and Awareness Day, established under Biden to remember Americans who died due to fentanyl-caused overdoses.
“Those who traffic fentanyl know exactly what harm is done by the drug and the priceless cost of lives taken by the deadly substance,” said Lawler in a statement.
“Too many families in New York and across America have suffered the unimaginable loss of a loved one to fentanyl,” added the Rockland County Republican.
“The Fentanyl Kills Act is about accountability. It’s about making sure that those who profit off the destruction of our children, our neighbors, and our communities pay a price equal to the devastation they cause.”
Lawler is also one of 321 House lawmakers who voted to pass the HALT Fentanyl Act in February, which also toughened penalties for trafficking fentanyl-related substances — including a provision triggering a 10-year mandatory minimum prison sentence for trafficking 100 grams or more of the synthetic opioid.
Earlier this month, President Trump greenlit the use of military force against many Latin American drug cartels spreading fentanyl that had been classified by his administration as foreign terrorist organizations.
The State Department has listed Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua and Cartel de Los Soles, as well as El Salvador-rooted Mara Salvatrucha, known as MS-13, as the primary trafficking groups.
The move followed actions by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to seize assets and blacklist banks laundering money for some of the drug cartels, including in Mexico.
The Trump administration also pushed the fentanyl issue in tariff negotiations with Canada and Mexico, threatening higher import duties if the supply wasn’t cut off.
