North Miami-Dade News

The House Foreign Affairs Committee has passed the DISPOSE Act (H.R. 9172), introduced by Rep. María Elvira Salazar (R-FL) and Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-TX), in a bipartisan, unanimous vote.

“The fentanyl crisis has become a scourge of the Western Hemisphere,” said Rep. Salazar. “By passing the DISPOSE Act, the Foreign Affairs Committee is committing to working with our partners to destroy fentanyl precursor chemicals well before they reach Miami and the rest of the country.”

In 2023, Customs and Border Protection seized over 23,000 pounds of fentanyl at the Southern Border. This substance provides a significant source of income for Latin American cartels. The majority of this fentanyl is produced using Chinese chemicals that are shipped to the Americas, converted into drugs in clandestine labs, and trafficked into the U.S. by Mexican cartels through drug mules.

The DISPOSE Act aims to enhance safety by cutting off this supply chain and targeting precursor chemicals used by foreign criminal cartels to produce fentanyl. The act ensures these chemicals can be destroyed before reaching the United States, which will also reduce crucial income for these cartels.

The legislation establishes the Precursor Chemical Destruction Initiative to combat drug trafficking in collaboration with partners in the Western Hemisphere. The initiative will:

- Increase rates of seizure and destruction of listed chemicals in beneficiary countries;

- Alleviate backlogs of seized chemicals and dispose of them safely;

- Ensure seized chemicals are not reintroduced into illicit drug production networks;

- Free up storage space for future chemical seizures; and

- Reduce negative environmental impacts from these chemicals.

“In San Antonio and communities across the world, families have endured unimaginable tragedy as a result of the fentanyl trade,” said Rep. Castro. “The DISPOSE Act is an important step forward to support our neighbors in the Western Hemisphere as they work to curb trafficking within their own nations. This bill will save lives at home and abroad, and I am honored to work with Chairwoman Salazar and a bipartisan coalition in both chambers as we move this much-needed progress closer to the president’s desk.”

Rep. Greg Stanton (D-AZ), an original cosponsor, played a key role in advancing this bill through committee stages. Rep. Salazar is now working towards getting it passed by the full House of Representatives while Senators Grassley (R-IA), Shaheen (D-NH), and Risch (R-ID) lead its Senate version.