Nashville Standard

WASHINGTON—United States Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN) has introduced the Strengthening Tracking Of Poisonous Tranq Requiring Analyzed National Quantification (STOP TRANQ) Act alongside Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Jeff Merkley (D-OR). This bipartisan legislation aims to mandate the State Department to include reporting on xylazine, or "tranq," in its annual International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR).

Senator Hagerty emphasized, "The fentanyl crisis is claiming over 70,000 lives every year in the United States, and the trafficking of xylazine—known also as 'tranq'—is making this crisis even more deadly." He expressed his support for the bill, stating, "The United States must use all available means to counter these growing narcotic threats to our children."

Senator Cruz echoed these sentiments, highlighting the importance of combatting the threat posed by tranq. He stated, "The U.S. must use all its counternarcotics tools to combat the threat posed by tranq, especially given its alarming presence in America’s fentanyl drug crisis."

Senator Kaine also emphasized the need to address the fentanyl crisis, stating, "There's more work to do to keep Americans safe, including protecting our communities from xylazine, which is often mixed with fentanyl to create a more deadly drug." He urged his colleagues to support the bipartisan bill, describing it as a "commonsense step to address the threat posed by xylazine."

The STOP TRANQ Act aims to ensure that the United States is better prepared to counter and respond to trends in the international drug trade, particularly in light of the increasing use of tranq. The legislation covers not only well-known illicit drugs like fentanyl, cocaine, and heroin but also the illicit trafficking of more common pharmaceuticals with abuse risk such as pseudoephedrine (Sudafed).

The collaboration between Senators Hagerty, Cruz, Kaine, and their colleagues underscores a bipartisan effort to address the challenges posed by the trafficking of tranq and its impact on the ongoing drug crisis in the United States.