EXCLUSIVE — A group of House Republicans led by Rep. Andy Ogles (R-TN) is introducing legislation aimed at crippling fentanyl trafficking by imposing financial sanctions.
The bill permits the Treasury Department secretary to take action if financial institutions outside the United States are suspected of facilitating money laundering for narcotics purposes. The legislation would also allow the Treasury to strengthen law enforcement knowledge on suspicious financial moves.
Overdosing on fentanyl is the leading cause of death for Americans ages 18 to 45.
“The fentanyl crisis has claimed thousands of American lives,” Ogles told the Washington Examiner.
“Drug cartels and transnational criminal organizations are using complex financial networks to launder their profits and protect their billion-dollar industry. The United States must take action to strengthen its anti-money laundering efforts and further the fight against illicit fentanyl trafficking. I’m leading the Stop Fentanyl Money Laundering Act to crack down on criminal drug traffickers and stop them from profiting off the deaths of Americans,” he added.
Reps. Zach Nunn (R-IA), Monica De La Cruz (R-TX), Dan Meuser (R-PA), Young Kim (R-CA), and Pete Sessions (R-TX) are co-sponsoring the bill.
President Donald Trump issued an executive order earlier this month levying 25% tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico while adding a 10% tariff on imports from China in an effort to get them to stop “poisonous fentanyl and other drugs from flowing into our country.”
The tariff has since been temporarily paused on Canada and Mexico while the United States works out a deal with them. The tariff on China, however, has remained in place, though the country has said it has “conducted counternarcotics cooperation with the U.S. side in a broad-based way.”
The Ogles-led bill also requires the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network director “to provide critical information on the usefulness of the [suspicious activity report] updates.” A suspicious activity report is filed when a business or financial institution suspects money laundering or fraud.
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“Fentanyl is the No. 1 killer of Americans from my daughter’s age to my age. Something must change,” Nunn told the Washington Examiner.
“The Chinese Communist Party is raking in billions of dollars in profits by exploiting the fentanyl crisis in America. In order to stop this crisis, we must secure our southern border. We must also hold drug manufacturers, money launderers, and the cartels accountable for their role in the mass murder of Americans,” he added.