Most students at Claremont High School have probably been exposed to their fair share of DARE and other drug PSAs warning them about the dangers of using illicit substances at any age. With the rise of fentanyl as the deadliest and most addictive drug in recent years, these programs’ message could not be more necessary for young people living in this state. California, with its relatively relaxed laws on drugs like marijuana, has become an unfortunate epicenter for fentanyl dealings. Law enforcement in Central Valley confiscated an astonishing 58 pounds of powdered fentanyl—enough to kill half of the people in the United States—from just Stanislaus County. Clearly, work needs to be done to continue successful confiscations and dwindle the desire to even produce 58 pounds of any substance, and it looks like a few lawmakers in the Golden State have finally put their best foot forward to do so. On February 2nd of this year, Central Valley Congressman John Duarte introduced the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Reauthorization Act, otherwise known as the HIDTA Reauthorization Act, to keep fentanyl off the streets of Central Valley and the rest of the US. The bill, if passed in the House Of Representatives, would designate $302 million every year to the preexisting HIDTA program which Congress created in 1998.
The HIDTA program was established then by local law enforcement and judicial officials in 33 areas across the country where drug trafficking is frequent, allowing officers in the field of drug seizure to purchase more advanced protection or substance identification equipment as a way to more effectively find and arrest dealers in high-trafficking areas in a way that gets to the root cause of distribution. One of the new enhancements that comes with Duarte’s reinvigoration of the HIDTA program is the designation of Assistant United States Attorneys, also known as AUSA’s, to these 33 areas with a mandated priority to organize investigations and prosecutions of fentanyl dealers. By making the distribution of fentanyl more punishable on the streets and in the courtroom, it is safe to say that Congressman Duarte is making meaningful change to not just how California but the United States at large tackles the biggest epidemic in recent years by taking the fight seriously on a political, practical, and community-oriented front.
“Passage of HIDTA will give me and my office the tools we need to fight the current fentanyl epidemic,” said Duarte. “It is only through our collective effort that we can make a positive impact on the well-being of our community.”
The revitalization of an often ignored program, though exciting when it comes to the future of the drug epidemic, does not mark the first step California has taken to attack fentanyl dealers in recent history. Assembly Bill 701, which was passed by the California State Senate unanimously in September and took effect on January 1st, 2024, adds on a mandatory three years to every prison sentence doled out as a penalty for being caught dealing more than a kilogram of fentanyl and raises the maximum that can be added to the sentence to an additional 25 years for carrying more than 80 kilograms. The bill, though attacking the same issue as HIDTA, serves more as a tool of initial deterrence from crime rather than a punishment for doing it, drawing attention to the fact that heinous crimes like drug dealing will not be taken lightly and will not allow for repeat offenses.
All in all, the efforts made through HIDTA and Assembly Bill 701 mark the most recent and most hopeful steps this state has taken towards reaching the youth where they are at and protecting them from their biggest and deadliest vice. Benito Summers-Sandoval, a senior at CHS, agrees.
“I’m not saying all teenagers are going to try drugs, but I think it’s oddly normalized in youth circles and these cheap, non-prescription drugs definitely have a higher chance of being laced or cut with fentanyl, if only for dealers to get as much money as possible,” said Summers-Sandoval. “I think heavy regulations, restrictions, and fines for these corporations would do a lot of good for everyone. I’d also like to see more education centered around the epidemic, especially focusing on the dangers of non-prescribed drugs.”
Remember, it is always up to the people to make the efforts of their government worth their while. So if students truly believe that half of the country they love deserves to be wiped out by 58 pounds of powder that can just happen to be lying around on the streets of California, they ought to support and vote for Duarte’s bill when the time comes to make change. Only then can everyone truly make substantial change towards substance abuse.