CLEVELAND — U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) was in Cleveland on Friday morning to discuss his new law to crack down on fentanyl traffickers.
Last month, the FEND Off Fentanyl Act passed the House and the Senate as part of the bipartisan national security package and was signed into law.
During the press conference, which was held at Stella Maris, Brown was joined by Cuyahoga County Sheriff Harry Pretel and Parma Police Department Chief Jim Blair.
Brown's office says the briefing followed "the year-long effort to get his legislation to crack down on fentanyl traffickers in China and Mexico signed into law."
The newly-passed FEND Off Fentanyl Act seeks to cut off the flow of fentanyl by sanctioning chemical suppliers and drug cartels that traffic the drug. In addition, the law will funnel money to law enforcement in order to help them fight the drugs as well.
“Local law enforcement, first responders, and prosecutors encounter fentanyl far too often. We worked with them and with national law enforcement to write this bill to help stop fentanyl at the source, before it ever reaches our communities. We built a broad, bipartisan coalition to get this vital legislation passed, and after a year of work, we got it done. This will allow us to target the fentanyl supply chain, from the chemical suppliers in China to the cartels that traffic the drug from Mexico,” said Brown.
Officials note that the prevalence of dangerous forms of fentanyl, which are often found mixed with other substances, "is a serious public health threat in Ohio." Brown's office reports that fentanyl was involved in 80% of unintentional drug overdose deaths in 2022.