Comer: Congress Must Address the Plague of Fentanyl Flowing into America’s Communities

WASHINGTON – Today, House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) delivered opening remarks at a full committee hearing titled “Oversight and Reauthorization of the Office of National Drug Control Policy.” In his opening statement, Chairman Comer emphasized that fentanyl is flowing into our communities at a fast rate and is leading to historically high levels of drug overdose deaths. He highlighted that over 100,000 people have tragically lost their lives to drug overdose in the United States in 2021 alone. In addition, he noted the Biden Administration’s border crisis has stimulated drug cartel operations and has jeopardized our ability to intercept and disrupt the flow of narcotics coming across the southern border. He stressed that Congress has a responsibility to conduct oversight over the U.S. government’s efforts to prevent these tragedies and ensure taxpayer funded programs are meeting their objectives. The Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) was formed with the mission to coordinate a government-wide effort to combat the loss of life and human misery caused by illicit narcotics. Chairman Comer concluded that Congress needs to ensure ONDCP is equipped and directed to take all appropriate actions to fight this ongoing drug crisis.

Below are Chairman Comer’s remarks as prepared for delivery.

Today’s hearing is an opportunity for the Committee to address the plague of fentanyl flowing into our communities, fueling misery across the country, and leading to historically high levels of drug overdose deaths. 

I am sure that every single member of this Committee knows constituents and their families who have been tragically impacted by illicit narcotics, especially synthetic opioids like fentanyl.

“Fentanyl is the deadliest drug threat that our country has ever faced.”  That is a direct quote from a letter the Drug Enforcement Administration wrote me this past December.

In 2021, over 100,000 people tragically lost their lives to drug overdose in the United States, the majority caused by fentanyl. 

In 2022, again, over 100,000 people lost their lives to drug overdose, again with the majority caused by fentanyl.

We must continue to conduct oversight over the U.S. Government’s efforts to prevent these tragedies.

And must make sure programs are using the best available resources and targeting taxpayer funds where they will make the biggest impact.

Director Gupta from the Office of National Drug Control Policy, or ONDCP is well situated to provide this information to Congress.

ONDCP was formed with the mission to coordinate a government-wide effort to combat the loss of life and human misery caused by illicit narcotics.

We need to understand from ONDCP what is working, what isn’t working, and what could be improved by legislation to prevent illicit drugs from coming into our country, entering our communities, and poisoning our families, friends, and neighbors.

The DEA assesses that “virtually all of the deadly fentanyl found in the United States” is mass produced by Transnational Criminal Organizations in Mexico using precursor chemicals sourced from China, and then smuggled into the United States across the southwest border. 

We need to know what ONDCP is doing to disrupt the criminal organizations that traffic in human misery and smuggle enormous quantities of drugs across our southern border.

The border crisis caused by the Biden Administration’s policies has diverted resources and manpower away from securing the border. And cartel criminals take every tactical advantage they can to cross narcotics at our ports of entry and in between as well.

We need to know what ONDCP is doing to ensure that our Customs and Border Protection Officers and Border Patrol Agents have the technology, legal authorities, and manpower to intercept and disrupt the flow of narcotics coming across the southern border.

We need to know how ONDCP is working with law enforcement partners here and abroad to shut down the secret labs that manufacture poisonous fentanyl from depriving these labs of the chemicals they need to make fentanyl to dismantling illicit financing networks that fund these labs.

We need to know about investments in prevention efforts, ensuring that the public is well informed of the dangers fentanyl presents, how to obtain treatment for drug use disorders, and ensuring access to lifesaving treatments like Narcan.

We know that China is not our ally in reducing drug overdose deaths in the United States.  Not only are the precursor chemicals sourced from China, but money laundering organizations operating out of China have partnered with the cartels to launder the proceeds of their death and destruction at a fraction of the cost as before.

We need to know what this Administration is doing to combat the aggression from China and expose the Chinese Communist Party’s complicity in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Americans. 

I am also alarmed at the increasing presence of xylazine in the drug supply, which Director Gupta has classified as an emerging threat. I am particularly concerned that Narcan cannot save someone from overdosing on it.

We need to know how this illicit drug is making its way into the supply chain, and what authorities ONDCP is leveraging to respond to this emerging threat.

Our oversight in this matter is critical not just to ensuring that federal programs like ONDCP are working as intended, but this hearing will also inform authorization of that office beyond Fiscal Year 2023.

ONDCP was last authorized by the bipartisan SUPPORT Act in 2018.

A lot has changed in that time, but our resolve to put an end to the daily drug overdose tragedies in our communities has only strengthened. 

As the Committee of jurisdiction over ONDCP, it is up to us to make sure that ONDCP is equipped and directed to take all appropriate actions to fight this crisis.

And with that, I yield to Ranking Member Raskin for his opening statement.

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