Bill Details
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This bill would give the Attorney General power to award grants to improve information about opioid overdoses across the country. It aims to make overdose data more accurate and more complete by helping states, local governments, law enforcement, and forensic labs improve testing, data sharing, reporting systems, and training. The bill also pushes for better national standards so overdose and drug-seizure data can be compared more easily from one place to another. In short, it is meant to help officials track the opioid crisis more clearly and respond faster and more effectively.
- It allows grants to states, territories, and local governments to improve opioid overdose data collection and tracking, including postmortem toxicology testing, electronic death reporting, and linking data across systems.
- It requires grants for local law enforcement agencies and forensic labs in areas with high overdose rates to support overdose-response training, better lab equipment and tracing systems, and training related to darknet drug activity.
- It says grantees must report overdose data to the National Forensic Laboratory Information System in order to receive certain funds.
- It directs the Drug Enforcement Administration to create clearer, standard ways to report drug purity, form, and weight, and asks DEA to include a specific budget request for the Fentanyl Signature Profiling Program.
Official Summaries
Overcoming Prevalent Inadequacies in Overdose Information Data Sets Act or the OPIOIDS Act
This bill establishes and revises certain grants and resources to address opioid-related overdoses.
Specifically, the bill authorizes the Department of Justice (DOJ) to award grants to states, territories, and localities to improve data and surveillance related to opioid overdoses.
Additionally, the bill directs DOJ to award grants to law enforcement agencies and forensic laboratories in communities with high rates of drug overdoses to (1) provide training to help officers better identify overdoses, (2) upgrade essential systems for drug tracing and processing samples in forensic laboratories, or (3) provide training to better trace criminals through the dark web.
The bill requires the Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers to provide training to state and local law enforcement agencies on how to best coordinate with state and federal partners for tracking drug-related activity.
The bill allows funds under the Community Oriented Policing Services grant program to be used to provide training and resources for equipment that protects first responders from secondary fentanyl exposure.
Finally, the bill directs the Drug Enforcement Administration to (1) develop uniform reporting standards for information concerning drug control activities, and (2) budget for a program that analyzes fentanyl samples.
Current Full Text
[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 617 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 617
To permit the Attorney General to award grants for accurate data on
opioid-related overdoses, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 18, 2025
Mr. Scott of Florida (for himself and Mr. Welch) introduced the
following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on
the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To permit the Attorney General to award grants for accurate data on
opioid-related overdoses, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Overcoming Prevalent Inadequacies in
Overdose Information Data Sets Act'' or the ``OPIOIDS Act''.
SEC. 2. ACCURATE DATA ON OPIOID-RELATED OVERDOSES.
The Attorney General may award grants to States, territories, and
localities to support improved data and surveillance on opioid-related
overdoses, including for activities to improve postmortem toxicology
testing, data linkage across data systems throughout the United States,
electronic death reporting, or the comprehensiveness of data on fatal
and nonfatal opioid-related overdoses.
SEC. 3. LAW ENFORCEMENT GRANTS.
(a) In General.--The Attorney General shall make grants to local
law enforcement agencies and forensic laboratories in communities with
high rates of drug overdoses for the purpose of--
(1) training to help officers identify overdoses;
(2) upgrading essential systems for tracing drugs and
processing samples in forensic laboratories to provide timely,
accurate, and standard data reporting to the National Forensic
Laboratory Information System; or
(3) training to better trace criminals through the darknet.
(b) Mandatory Reporting.--None of the funds made under subsection
(a) may be used by grantees that do not submit to the National Forensic
Laboratory Information System reports on overdose data.
(c) Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers.--Federal Law
Enforcement Training Centers shall provide training to State and local
law enforcement agencies on how to best coordinate with State and
Federal partners for tracking drug-related activity.
(d) COPS Grants.--Section 1701(b) of the Omnibus Crime Control and
Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10381) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (23), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(2) in paragraph (24), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(24) to provide training and resources for containment
devices to prevent secondary exposure to fentanyl and other
substances for first responders.''.
SEC. 4. OFFICE OF NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL POLICY REFORM.
(a) In General.--The Drug Enforcement Administration shall develop
uniform reporting standards for inputting data into the National
Forensic Laboratory Information System for purity, formulation, and
weight to allow for better comparison across jurisdictions and between
agencies and the sharing of data.
(b) Clarification.--Nothing in subsection (a) may be construed to
require the creation of new or increased obligations or reporting
requirements on State or local laboratories.
SEC. 5. DEA TESTING.
The Drug Enforcement Administration shall submit to Congress, as
part of the annual budget process, a specific line item for the level
of funding necessary for the Fentanyl Signature Profiling Program.
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