Austin News

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has expressed support for the House introduction of the Strengthening Tracking Of Poisonous Tranq Requiring Analyzed National Quantification (STOP TRANQ) Act by Reps. Vince Fong (R-Calif.-20) and Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.-7). The legislation was initially introduced in the Senate earlier this year by Sen. Cruz and Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.).

The STOP TRANQ Act mandates that the Department of State include reporting on xylazine, also known as "tranq," in its annual International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR). This report tracks efforts to counter various aspects of the international drug trade on a country-by-country basis. By requiring active reporting on xylazine, the act aims to enhance U.S. capabilities to address trends in the international drug trade contributing to America's drug crisis.

Sen. Cruz stated, "This introduction means that the STOP TRANQ Act now has bipartisan, bicameral momentum for passage. The spread of Tranq across American communities has become a crisis. Earlier this year, I worked with Sen. Kaine to introduce legislation combatting that spread by committing State Department resources to track the international production and sale of this deadly drug. I am proud that Reps. Fong and Spanberger have now joined us in this bipartisan fight by introducing companion legislation in the House to better fight this crisis."

Sen. Kaine added, "I’m fully committed to addressing the fentanyl crisis, and we should use all tools at our disposal to do so... That includes protecting our communities from illegal uses of xylazine, such as mixing it with fentanyl to create a more deadly drug... I’m looking forward to working together to find a path forward for this bill."

Rep. Fong remarked, "Tranq is a growing drug threat to all Americans and must be taken seriously as a deadly drug coming into our country... It is critical that we combat this lethal drug crisis head-on and support our law enforcement and prosecutors in going after those who wish us harm."

Rep. Spanberger emphasized, "Tranq is killing Virginians in our communities and Americans across our country... As drug overdose deaths are increasingly involving xylazine, this bipartisan legislation would help law enforcement crack down on its proliferation in our communities and stop the predators who are killing our neighbors."

Tranq is described as a powerful sedative increasingly used as an additive to fentanyl, causing severe effects including necrotic skin alterations and over 3,000 overdose deaths in 2021 alone. Its presence surged by 200 percent from 2020 to 2021 in the American South—the largest increase nationwide.

Because xylazine is not an opioid, Narcan cannot reverse its effects—making fentanyl-mixed xylazine particularly dangerous. In response, early last year, the White House designated fentanyl-mixed xylazine as an “emerging threat” and released a National Response Plan.

Last year saw Congress pass several related pieces of legislation: The bipartisan Cruz-Welch Testing, Rapid Analysis, and Narcotic Quality (TRANQ) Research Act signed into law on December 19, 2023; and significant portions of the bipartisan Kaine-Ernst Disrupt Fentanyl Trafficking Act aimed at increasing federal attention on fentanyl trafficking were signed into law on December 22, 2023.

###