Senator Collins Questions FBI Director on Resources Targeted Specifically Toward Fentanyl Crimes

Click HERE to watch Senator Collins’ Q&A.  Click HERE for the high-resolution video.

Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Susan Collins, a senior member of the Appropriations Committee, questioned FBI Director Christopher Wray at a hearing to review the Administration’s fiscal year 2020 funding request and budget justification for the FBI.

Last week in Maine, the FBI and Maine law enforcement charged 25 individuals with drug-trafficking crimes.  Following multiple drug raids, law enforcement officials found a variety of drugs, including heroin and fentanyl, which the individuals planned to distribute in Washington and Hancock Counties.  

“Particularly alarming to me is the quantity of fentanyl that was discovered.  One man was found to have more than 265 grams of fentanyl.  A fraction of that amount—just three milligrams—is sufficient to kill someone,” said Senator Collins.  “How is the FBI targeting resources specifically toward fentanyl crimes?”

“Senator, I think you've put your finger on what I think we would all agree is a deadly epidemic plaguing communities all over the country,” responded Director Wray.  “Unfortunately it has grown to a point where it's a multidisciplinary problem, requiring a multidisciplinary approach.  The FBI’s  role in that is trying to really focus on where do we uniquely add value.”

Director Wray also discussed several programs within the FBI that target fentanyl crimes, including the Prescription Drug Initiative, Safe Street Task Forces, J-CODE, and the Transnational Organized Crime Programs.

In October 2018, the SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act was signed into law, taking important steps towards fulfilling the multipronged approach Senator Collins has long pushed for to address the opioid abuse crisis: prevention, treatment and recovery, and enforcement to stop drug trafficking.  Senator Collins authored two of the provisions that were included in the final legislation: the Opioid Peer Support Networks Act and the Safe Disposal of Unused Medication Act.

In 2018, overdoses claimed the life of more than one Mainer per day, making this one of the top causes of death in the state.  In 2017, there were more than 70,200 drug overdose deaths nationally.