Davids, Cleaver Announce $15.9 Million for Regional Law Enforcement to Address Fentanyl Epidemic, Crack Down on Illicit Drug Trafficking

Today, Representatives Sharice Davids (KS-03) and Emanuel Cleaver (MO-05) announced the Midwest High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) Program will receive $15.9 million to help seize illicit drugs like fentanyl, reduce violent crime associated with drug trafficking, and improve data collection — all to keep Kansans safe. Davids has collaborated with Midwest HIDTA, a regional office working to reduce illicit drug availability, on multiple fentanyl summits with health care workers, education professionals, and law enforcement officers.

“In our state and around the country, the fentanyl crisis has become a public health emergency. That’s why I’m grateful for these resources to help Midwest HIDTA get these illicit drugs off our streets and keep Kansans safe and healthy,” said Davids. “I am committed to working with Republicans and Democrats — and everyone at the local, state, and federal level — to fight this crisis head-on, because one death is one too many. With increased collaboration from all corners of our community, we can help save lives.”

“Deadly drugs like fentanyl do not care about your background, race, or political affiliation; they impact nearly every family and devastate communities across the nation, and it’s going to take all of us, working together, to crack down on illicit drug traffickers and save lives,” said Congressman Emanuel Cleaver. “While it’s encouraging that overdose deaths decreased for the first time in five years in 2023, there is much more that must be done to keep our communities safe. Today’s announcement of nearly $16 million for the Midwest HIDTA Program is just the latest demonstration of President Biden’s commitment to providing local and federal law enforcement with the resources needed to do their jobs effectively, and I will continue to support these public safety initiatives by pushing for additional investments in Congress.”

“The funding will certainly impact the Midwest and its communities,” said Dan Neill, Director, Midwest High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area. “The funding will enhance the investigative efforts of state, local, and federal law enforcement in combatting drug trafficking, violence, and the fentanyl crisis.”

Davids, a member of the bipartisan Fentanyl Prevention Caucus, has been a vocal advocate around fentanyl and opioid death prevention. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 80-100 times stronger than morphine and is increasingly found in fake prescription pills such as Vicodin, OxyContin, or hydrocodone. Davids met with Libby Davis, a Johnson County resident, whose son passed away after taking a counterfeit pill that was unknowingly laced with fentanyl. Following their meeting, Davids co-sponsored and helped pass legislation through the House that creates a public awareness campaign about synthetic opioids through the Department of Health and Human Services.

Davids has taken several legislative actions based on the specific needs of the Kansas Third District, including:

• Joining a bipartisan group of lawmakers to request funding for new handheld mass spectrometry trace level chemical detection devices at domestic ports.
• Urging the FDA to take up expert recommendations and make Narcan, a common naloxone nasal spray, available without a prescription—which they did earlier this year.
• Hosting a Facebook Live conversation with Blue Valley School District and Johnson County Mental Health Center about opioid use in schools.
• Voting to permanently place all fentanyl-related substances into a schedule I class, labeling the drug with a high potential for abuse and no currently accepted medical value.
• Pushing for expanded federal grant opportunities, so law enforcement and Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT) can easily acquire life-saving Naloxone kits.
• Visiting the Port of Long Beach to see how the port uses state-of-the-art technologies to prevent harmful substances — like fentanyl — from entering the country illegally.

Community members looking to learn more about how to keep their families safe can visit the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s Kansas City-focused website. Resources and prevention services for individuals, families, schools, and others are available.

Background:

The federal investments announced today were part of a total of $276 million for 33 HIDTA regions located in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, the U.S.  Virgin Islands, and the District of Columbia. HIDTA programs collaborate with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies to assess the drug threats in their communities and develop strategies to advance public health and public safety. Midwest HIDTA covers counties in Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota.

In 2023, HIDTAs supported law enforcement in successfully disrupting and dismantling more than 3,000 drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and in seizing illegal drugs with a wholesale value of more than $17 billion. Through this work, HIDTA initiatives helped remove $17.3 billion of illegal drugs from the market, including more than 9,000 kilograms and more than 117 million pills of fentanyl, and seized $641.9 million in United States currency from drug traffickers.