Rep. María Elvira Salazar
The U.S. House of Representatives recently approved an $895.2 billion defense bill that includes bipartisan legislation led by U.S. Rep. María Elvira Salazar (R-FL) to promote bilateral counterdrug interdiction efforts with specific governments.
The House on Dec. 11 voted 281-140 to pass the Servicemember Quality of Life Improvement and National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2025, H.R. 5009, which the chamber is reconciling with the U.S. Senate. The House-approved NDAA contains Rep. Salazar’s Destruction Initiative for Stored Precursors Overseas and Safe Enforcement (DISPOSE) Act, H.R. 9172, which she introduced July 25 alongside lead original cosponsor U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-TX).
“The fentanyl crisis is destroying American communities, and Miami is no stranger to the dangers these drugs pose,” Rep. Salazar said on Dec. 13. “Thank you to House Republican leadership for prioritizing my DISPOSE Act in the National Defense Authorization Act. This bill will save American lives and rob cartels and criminals of a major source of income.”
Language from the congresswoman’s bill would create fentanyl and precursor chemical destruction facilities in three drug trafficking choke points — Mexico, Colombia, and Peru — to cut off the supply of chemicals and drugs before they reach American shores, according to a bill summary provided by Rep. Salazar’s staff.
Specifically, the measure would establish the Precursor Chemical Destruction Initiative to fight drug trafficking with U.S. partners in the Western Hemisphere to increase rates of seizure and destruction of listed chemicals in beneficiary countries; alleviate the backlog of seized chemicals and dispose them in an environmentally safe and effective manner; and ensure that the seized chemicals are not reintroduced into the illicit drug production network within beneficiary countries, among other provisions, the summary says.
“The DISPOSE Act takes common-sense steps to help America’s partners seize and destroy fentanyl precursors and save lives,” said Rep. Castro. “I look forward to seeing President Biden sign the DISPOSE Act into law.”