Sen. Luján, colleagues introduce bill to strengthen border security to stop flow of fentanyl

This week, U.S. Sens. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Bob Casey (D-PA) and Mark Kelly (D-AZ) introduced legislation to reduce the flow of fentanyl by providing resources to secure the Southwest border.

The Stop Fentanyl at the Border Act increases staffing capacity and technology to detect illicit drugs and other contraband being smuggled through ports of entry along the border. The bill targets the most common way that fentanyl is coming into the United States: through ports of entry along the Southwest border.

“The flow of fentanyl into New Mexico has devastated families and their communities. This is a crisis resulting in thousands of deaths, and more investments are urgently needed to increase staffing at the border and boost technology to detect fentanyl,” Luján said. “I have long advocated for 100% border screening, and this legislation is one more tool to stop the flow of illicit drugs from entering through the Southwest border. Congress must take action to invest in border security, hold criminals accountable and put an end to the fentanyl crisis.”

The Stop Fentanyl at the Border Act would enable U.S. Customs and Border Protection to hire more officers and border patrol agents to increase capacity to stop illicit smuggling over the border. The bill also provides funding to purchase non-intrusive inspection systems, which scan vehicles and cargo at the border to provide detailed images of their interiors, which leads to the detection of fentanyl and other illicit drugs. Additionally, the bill would create an inspection program to increase seizure of firearms, which Mexican cartels frequently purchase in the United States and smuggle into Mexico to support their fentanyl production operations and other violent criminal enterprises.

At the Jan. 10 Sandoval County Commission meeting, District 2 Commissioner Jay Block praised Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott for their work securing the border and called on New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham to crack down on security at the state’s southern border.

“I’d like to thank the Democratic governor of Arizona, Governor Hobbs, for putting the National Guard on the border there in Arizona, and she’s calling for the Biden administration to help control the border because of the issues going on in Arizona,” Block said. “There has been 25 tons of fentanyl that has affected Americans, killed thousands of Americans. I would hope that our governor would follow along with what the Arizona governor [is doing]. The border is just such a crisis in this country that we’re seeing now. I’d like to really thank the governor of Arizona and the governor of Texas for what they’re doing along the border, and I wish we could do something similar here in New Mexico to protect our own people.”