D.C. Dispatch: Grassley warns of ‘rainbow fentanyl’ sales; representatives pass police funding package

President Joe Biden’s administration is expanding funding for states’ opioid recovery programs as drug enforcers warn of new efforts to sell fentanyl to children, but Iowa’s U.S. senators say not enough is being done to criminalize drug distribution.

Also this week, all four of Iowa’s U.S. House members supported part of a package that would aid rural police departments.

Opioid treatment grants awarded

The White House announced Friday a $1.5 billion grant program through the U.S Department of Health and Human Services to help states, tribal lands and territories expand their recovery and treatment programs. The agency also issued new guidance on the distribution of naloxone, a drug used to combat overdoses, and sanctions on individuals and entities linked with fentanyl trafficking.

Iowa was awarded over $9 million in State Opioid Response Grants in 2022. But U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley said the federal government needs to do more to prevent the sale and consumption of fentanyl. He urged parents to talk to their children about “rainbow fentanyl” – brightly colored and packaged fentanyl that the Drug Enforcement Administration announced seizing in 18 states. According to a DEA news release, the candy-like appearance of the drug may be an effort to sell fentanyl to younger customers.

Grassley said parents should monitor who their children are talking to online, as counterfeit and illegal pills are often sold on social media websites.

“Make it your business to get in your teenager’s business,” Grassley said in a media release. “Be sure they understand a pill they think is harmless could kill them.”

He also re-emphasized his calls to extend the classification of fentanyl analogues as a Schedule 1 drug under the Controlled Substances Act. Fentanyl and related substances are currently classified as a Schedule 1 controlled substance, meaning that it has a high potential for abuse, and is not approved for any medical purposes.

Sen. Joni Ernst introduced legislation Sept. 16 with fellow Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida to further criminalize the trafficking of fentanyl. The act would make the distribution of fentanyl which results in death punishable by federal felony murder charges.

Ernst has called for stronger border security to stop illegal crossings, which she said are fueling the opioid epidemic in Iowa. The new legislation is another way to combat the sale of illegal drugs across the country, she said.

“The dealers and distributors of this deadly drug must be held accountable, and that’s what we’re fighting to do,” Ernst said in a news release. “This effort will impose felony murder charges for people who willingly distribute this lethal opioid to unknowing recipients.”

Rep. Ashley Hinson said in an Fox Business interview Tuesday that the Biden administration was ignoring illegal immigration and drug trafficking along the U.S.-Mexico border.

“This is a humanitarian crisis that they continue to turn a blind eye to – it is the migrants that are dying on the way to this country, the cartels that continue to profit off of that illicit fentanyl and meth that’s making its way into our backyards,” Hinson said Tuesday. “I talk to law enforcement all the time in Iowa, those drugs are not only making their way across the border in Arizona but they are in our backyards in Iowa as well.”

Representatives vote to increase rural police funding

All of Iowa’s U.S. House members voted to pass parts of a policing legislation package which increases funding for small local departments while requiring new accountability measures.

The Invest to Protect Act, passed by the U.S. House Thursday with bipartisan support, would provide grants to local or tribal governments which employ fewer than 125 law enforcement officers for measures like de-escalation training, body cameras, and mental health resources.

The legislation is not expected to have enough Republican support to pass in the Senate, but Iowa Republican Rep. Randy Feenstra said the act would provide needed support to local police.

“Our law enforcement officers put their lives on the line every day to protect our communities and keep our families safe,” Feenstra said in a news release. “I am proud to support the Invest to Protect Act to fully fund our police and give them the tools and resources they need to do their jobs. As a strong ally of our law enforcement community, I will always back the blue 100%.”

Money for victim services, violence intervention, mental health

In addition to the law enforcement funding act, the House passed legislation to start three other grant programs. These programs would provide federal funding t0 expand victim services, community violence intervention programs and services which send unarmed mental health professionals instead of armed police officers to respond to mental health calls.

All of Iowa’s Republican representatives voted against the bills funding mental health and violence intervention services, but Hinson and Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks supported the measure expanding victim services funding.

Rep. Cindy Axne, a Democrat, voted for all of the proposals. The Invest to Protect Act will help rural police departments, she said, and the other programs will help law enforcement across the country respond to the diverse needs of the people they serve.

“These bipartisan bills go beyond the usual funding of law enforcement to ensure more police departments have the resources they need to help victims of crimes and folks who are dealing with mental health crises,” Axne said in a news release. “These bills help equip officers to better respond to different situations and provide tools to help police departments strengthen trust in their communities.”

Iowa Capital Dispatch is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Iowa Capital Dispatch maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Kathie Obradovich for questions: info@iowacapitaldispatch.com. Follow Iowa Capital Dispatch on Facebook and Twitter.