U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Senator Tim Kaine (D-Va.) have been joined by Representatives Vince Fong (R-Calif.) and Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.) in advancing the Strengthening Tracking Of Poisonous Tranq Requiring Analyzed National Quantification (STOP TRANQ) Act, a bipartisan legislative effort aimed at combating the spread of the drug xylazine, or “tranq,” across the United States.
The legislation, introduced in both the Senate and the House, mandates the Department of State to report on xylazine in its annual International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR), highlighting international production and trafficking trends.
Senator Cruz emphasized the urgency of the situation, stating, “The spread of Tranq across American communities has become a crisis. This bipartisan effort aims to better equip the United States to address the increasing threat posed by this deadly drug.” The bill seeks to provide federal agencies with more robust data to counter the drug crisis effectively.
Senator Kaine echoed these sentiments, stressing the importance of using all available tools to combat the broader fentanyl crisis, which often involves xylazine as a lethal additive.
Representatives Fong and Spanberger also expressed their commitment to stemming the tide of xylazine and other deadly drugs into the country, emphasizing the need to support law enforcement efforts to protect Americans from this escalating threat.
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The STOP TRANQ Act is part of a broader legislative focus on drug enforcement and safety, coming in the wake of the earlier passage of related measures such as the Cruz-Welch Testing, Rapid Analysis, and Narcotic Quality (TRANQ) Research Act, and the Kaine-Ernst Disrupt Fentanyl Trafficking Act, both signed into law by President Biden last year.
These laws aim to enhance federal capabilities to combat drug trafficking and address the drug crisis affecting communities across the United States.
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