Texas Scorecard by Matthew DeLaCruz June 15, 2023
The measures passed are meant to educate citizens and crack down on drug dealers to prevent Texans from suffering the deadly consequences of fentanyl.Gov. Greg Abbott has signed four new laws to address fentanyl abuse in Texas. These signings come after Abbott declared fighting the fentanyl crisis an emergency item for the 88th Legislative Session.
“Today, I am signing four new laws that will forever change Texas,” Abbott said. “Fentanyl is an epidemic that has taken too many lives.”
House Bill 3908 by State Rep. Terry Wilson (R-Georgetown), will mandate that students in grades 6-12 in government schools be educated about the dangers of fentanyl.
House Bill 6 by State Rep. Craig Goldman (R-Fort Worth) will classify fentanyl deaths as murder for the purposes of prosecution.
House Bill 3104 by State Rep. John Lujan (R-San Antonio) designates October as fentanyl poisoning awareness month.
Senate Bill 867 by State Sen. Royce West (D-Dallas) provides public universities in Texas with opioid antagonists like Narcan to respond to fentanyl and opioid overdoses.
Altogether, these pieces of legislation work to combat the fentanyl deaths in Texas, which spiked 400 percent from the fiscal year 2019 to 2021. Within the last five years, foreign drug cartels and domestic dealers have saturated Texas with deadly, untraceable drugs.
More:
https://texasscorecard.com/state/abbott-responds-to-fentanyl-crisis/
