"SITSA Act" Act - H.R.2851
Summary
H.R. 2851 amends the Controlled Substances Act by creating a new category, Schedule A, for controlled substances that have a chemical structure that are substantially similar to the chemical structure of a controlled substance in Schedules I, II, III, IV, or V, and have an actual or predicted stimulant, depressant, or hallucinogenic effect.
The legislation allows the Attorney General to issue a temporary order adding a drug or substance to Schedule A if the Attorney General finds that adding such a substance will assist in preventing abuse or misuse of the drug or other substance. A temporary scheduling order may last up to 5 years and would be vacated upon the issuance of a permanent order. The Attorney General and the Secretary of Health and Human Services must agree to issue a permanent order.
The legislation would make it unlawful to import, export, manufacture, distribute, dispense, or possess with intent to distribute a Schedule A substance or product except for legitimate research and other purposes.
Individuals who wish to handle those substances, such as researchers or persons conducting chemical analyses, would have to register with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and pay a fee, as they do now for all other controlled substances.
Background
Synthetic drugs, as opposed to natural drugs, are chemically produced in a laboratory. When produced clandestinely, they are not typically controlled pharmaceutical substances intended for legitimate medical use, and contain slightly modified molecular structures of illegal or controlled substances in order to circumvent existing drug laws. Examples include synthetic cannabinoids (Spice, K2), cathinones (Bath Salts), psychedelic phenethylamines (N-Bomb), and fentanyl. Government and media reports indicate that fentanyl, a synthetic opioid 50-100 times stronger than morphine, is rising in popularity as well as various synthetic cannabinoids.
The Controlled Substances Act (CSA) was enacted as Title II of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970. It regulates the manufacture, possession, use, importation, and distribution of certain drugs, substances, and precursor chemicals. Under the CSA, there are five schedules under which substances may be classified, with Schedule I being the most restrictive.
The Synthetic Drug Abuse Prevention Act of 2012—Subtitle D of Title XI of the Food and Drug Administration Safety and Innovation Act (P.L. 112-144)—added five structural classes of substances in synthetic cannabinoids (and their analogues) as well as 11 synthetic stimulants and hallucinogens to Schedule I of the CSA. In addition, the act extended the DEA's authority to temporarily schedule substances. Before DEA’s recently issued order to schedule all fentanyl-related compounds under Schedule I, when the agency would temporarily control one given fentanyl substance, illicit manufacturers abroad would produce new analogues through minor structural modifications to be smuggled and distributed as a purportedly “noncontrolled substances.”
Cost
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that any budgetary effects of enacting the bill would be negligible. Further, enacting H.R. 2851 would not increase net direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2028.
House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer:
The bill would amend the Controlled Substances Act to create a new schedule for synthetic analogues under “Schedule A” and establish an abbreviated procedure for temporary or permanent placement of drugs or substances on Schedule A.
Upon passage of H.R. 2851, thirteen fentanyl analogues will be placed on Schedule A. In addition, this legislation sets up an abbreviated procedure for the temporary or permanent placement of additional drugs or substances on Schedule A. Those substances would have to contain a chemical structure substantially similar to controlled substances already in Schedules I, II, III, IV, or V, or contain an actual or predicted effect similar to those drugs. Drugs that meet this criteria may be permanently scheduled or temporarily placed on Schedule A by the Attorney General for up to five years, with the ability to extend temporary placement for 180 days. Currently, the Attorney General may temporarily schedule a substance for up to two years only after demonstrating the drug’s “history and current pattern of abuse; the scope, duration and significance of abuse; and what, if any, risk there is to public health.” This legislation would eliminate the longstanding eight-factor analysis of drugs and substances put in place under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), therefore allowing the Attorney General to act independently, without the input from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) or any other agency and add additional substances without proper vetting or oversight for an extended period of time. Under current law, HHS is allowed to halt unjustifiable scheduling actions. This legislation not only eliminates HHS’s halt authority, but it does not even allow HHS to request a hearing on the placement of additional drugs on Schedule A. Comments from HHS would only be considered after temporary or permanent scheduling has already been initiated.
H.R. 2851 would expand mandatory minimum sentences for those convicted of drug offenses. This legislation lacks clarity that could result in thousands of Americans being incarcerated, potentially for life sentences, thus exacerbating an already over-populated prison system.
The opioid crisis is ravaging communities throughout the United States. Instead of putting resources into treatment centers and educating families and people impacted on how to help their loved ones, this legislation seeks to incarcerate Americans. Those suffering from opioid addiction need treatment and proper medical care, not more laws that will simply put them behind bars.
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