Attorney Generals effort seeks to tighten laws on copycat fentanyl

Copycat fentanyl, or fentanyl analogues, are lab-created drugs that are made to work around U.S. law (Courtesy photo)

CONCORD - Attorney General John M. Formella and 24 of his fellow Attorneys General have sent a letter urging the U.S. Senate to pass the HALT Fentanyl Act, which would end a dangerous loophole currently being exploited by drug traffickers.

Copycat fentanyl, or fentanyl analogues, are lab-created drugs that are made to work around U.S. law, according to a statement released Friday by the Attorney Generals Office. These fentanyl analogues are often more harmful than prescription fentanyl. Classifying fentanyl analogues as Schedule I drugs closes a loophole for drug dealers by giving law enforcement the tools to prosecute anyone who sells or uses the deadly copycat fentanyl analogues.

Congress temporarily classified fentanyl and fentanyl analogues as Schedule I drugs, but that status is set to expire March 31. The HALT Fentanyl Act would permanently fix the problem, providing law enforcement agencies with the certainty and resources to disrupt the trafficking of these deadly substances.

"Fentanyl and its analogues have become a significant and growing threat to public health. The HALT Fentanyl Act provides law enforcement the tools necessary to fight these deadly substances, and we are urging Congress to take immediate action to protect our communities," said Formella.

Since 2018, fentanyl has killed nearly as many Americans as World War II. The problem has only been made worse by drug cartels smuggling deadly copycat fentanyl across the southern border. Between October 2021 and June 2022 alone, U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized enough fentanyl to kill the entire American population five times over.

The HALT Fentanyl Act passed the U.S. House of Representatives with strong bipartisan support, and now, the Attorneys Generals of New Hampshire, Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming are now calling on the U.S. Senate to do the same.