HALT Fentanyl Act
HALT Fentanyl Act
Plain Language Summary
# HALT Fentanyl Act Summary **What It Does:** The HALT Fentanyl Act permanently classifies fentanyl-related substances as Schedule I controlled drugs—the most restrictive category under federal law. This means these substances are treated as having no accepted medical use and high abuse potential. The law applies the same criminal penalties to fentanyl-related substances as currently apply to fentanyl itself, meaning possession of 100 grams or more triggers a mandatory 10-year prison sentence. The bill also streamlines the process for researchers to obtain approval to study Schedule I drugs. **Who It Affects:** The law primarily impacts drug traffickers and people caught possessing fentanyl-related substances, who now face standardized federal penalties.
It also affects researchers studying these drugs, who will have a simpler registration process. Law enforcement agencies will use this framework when prosecuting fentanyl-related drug crimes. **Current Status:** This bill has been signed into law. It represents Congress's effort to address the fentanyl overdose crisis by making illegal fentanyl variants subject to the same strict legal consequences as fentanyl itself, while maintaining flexibility for legitimate medical research.
CRS Official Summary
Halt All Lethal Trafficking of Fentanyl Act or the HALT Fentanyl ActThis act permanently places fentanyl-related substances as a class into schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act. A schedule I controlled substance is a drug, substance, or chemical that has a high potential for abuse; has no currently accepted medical value; and is subject to regulatory controls and administrative, civil, and criminal penalties under the Controlled Substances Act.Under the act, offenses involving fentanyl-related substances are triggered by the same quantity thresholds and subject to the same penalties as offenses involving fentanyl analogues (e.g., offenses involving 100 grams or more trigger a 10-year mandatory minimum prison term).Additionally, the act establishes a new, alternative registration process for certain schedule I research.The act also makes several other changes to registration requirements for conducting research with controlled substances, includingpermitting a single registration for related research sites in certain circumstances,waiving the requirement for a new inspection in certain situations, andallowing a registered researcher to perform certain manufacturing activities with small quantities of a substance without obtaining a manufacturing registration.Finally, the act expresses the sense that Congress agrees with the interpretation of the Controlled Substances Act in United States v. McCray, a 2018 case decided by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York. In that case, the court held that butyryl fentanyl, a controlled substance, can be considered an analogue of fentanyl even though, under the Controlled Substances Act, the term controlled substance analogue specifically excludes a controlled substance.
Latest Action
Became Public Law No: 119-26.