House Passes Legislation to Reauthorize ONDCP - United States House Committee on Oversight and Accountability

WASHINGTON, DC – House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy and Subcommittee Chairman Mark Meadows released the following statement after the House passed H.R. 5925, the Coordinated Response through Interagency Strategy and Information Sharing (CRISIS) Act, to reauthorize and revamp the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP).

“Each day, families and communities across the nation lose loved ones to drug addiction. Now more than ever, our country is in desperate need of a central, coordinated response at the national level. The Office of National Drug Control Policy plays a critical role in coordinating the nation’s drug control policy and programs. Today’s passage of the CRISIS Act reauthorizes the Office with enhanced authorities to improve the coordination and effectiveness of federal agencies’ vast and diverse drug control efforts.”

H.R. 5925 passed through the Committee on May 23, 2018.

Click here to view the full text of the bill.

Click here to view a one-page summary of the bill.

Bill Highlights

Calls for an immediate and comprehensive response to the opioid epidemic by requiring the Office develop a strategy to implement key recommendations of the President’s Opioid Commission.
Requires the Office report to Congress and the President annually on their progress toward meeting Strategy goals.
Retains the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) and the Drug Free Communities (DFC) programs within the Office to maintain and support these effective and well-functioning partnerships.
Ensures national drug control policy is based on evidence and increases the Office’s role in improving access to relevant information.
Renames ONDCP the Office of National Drug Control (ONDC) to represent the Office’s broad role of not only creating policy but also working with state and local government to improve government-wide coordination.

Feedback

On May 9, 2018, the Committee released a discussion draft of legislation to reauthorize ONDCP. The Committee launched a feedback submission page on the website to accept questions, comments and concerns from members of the public. The Committee received over 115 comments from over 70 respondents. Of those respondents, 61 specifically wrote in support of the HIDTA program. The Committee incorporated nearly 30 revisions in the final text of the bill based on feedback received.

The Committee also worked alongside five other Committees of jurisdiction, including Energy and Commerce, Foreign Affairs, Judiciary, Intelligence, and Appropriations, to solicit feedback and ultimately improve our bill.

Background

On May 17, 2018, the Committee held a hearing to discuss policy proposals for reauthorizing ONDCP and to discuss how evidence-based policymaking and information sharing can be used to identify and prevent emerging drug trends.
On May 9, 2018, the Committee hosted a roundtable discussion where ONDCP officials implored Members to reauthorize the office to empower ONDCP to more effectively coordinate the federal response to the opioid epidemic.
On April 11, 2018, the Subcommittee on Healthcare, Benefits, and Administrative Rules held a hearing to examine local responses and resources to curtail the opioid crisis.
In March 2018, Committee staff held a roundtable discussion at a newly designated HIDTA district.
In March 2018, Committee staff traveled to China to investigate the trafficking of illicit fentanyl through the U.S. Postal Service.
On November 28, 2017, the Committee held a field hearing at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore to discuss the findings and recommendations from the President’s Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis.
On July 26, 2017, the Committee held a hearing to examine options for reauthorizing ONDCP and to discuss ONDCP’s effort to coordinate drug control policy and spending across the federal government.

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