House committee passes Joyce’s bill protecting border security personnel from toxic drugs

Bipartisan legislation sponsored by U.S. Rep. Dave Joyce (R-OH) to protect Customs and Border Protection (CBP) personnel when handling illicit drugs on May 19 advanced out of the U.S. House Homeland Security Committee. 

“I thank my colleagues on the House Homeland Security Committee for passing this important legislation,” said Rep. Joyce, “and urge leadership to put it on the floor for a vote so that we can protect our CBP officers as they work to defend and maintain our borders.”

Rep. Joyce in September 2021 introduced the Prevent Exposure to Narcotics and Toxics Act of 2021, H.R. 5274, also known as the PREVENT Act, with lead original cosponsor U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-TX) to provide training for CBP personnel on the use of containment devices to prevent secondary exposure to fentanyl and other potentially lethal substances, according to the text of the bill.

“Tragically, as the crisis at the southern border continues to spiral out of control, so does the flow of deadly drugs into our country,” Rep. Joyce said. “In fiscal year 2021 alone, more than 10,000 pounds of fentanyl were seized during failed attempts to smuggle it across the U.S.-Mexico border.”

The congressman said it’s critical that the federal government provide its CBP officers with the tools and training necessary to do their jobs as safely as possible “amid this record-breaking surge of drug trafficking. The PREVENT Act would do just that.” 

If enacted, H.R. 5274 specifically would require the CBP commissioner to issue containment devices to CBP personnel and provide training on their use, according to a bill summary provided by Rep. Joyce’s staff.

Such containment devices are an important tool that provides secondary protection beyond personal protective equipment by creating a controlled, negative pressure environment to further reduce exposure to hazardous substances, the summary says, and the devices also better preserve chemical substances for forensic analysis and improve the efficacy of investigations.

H.R. 5274 is under consideration in the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee, which must take action on the bill before it can advance to the full chamber for a vote.