HRES959-119

In Committee

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that illicit fentanyl-related substances are a weapon of mass destruction and should be classified as such, and recognizing President Trump's efforts to mitigate illicit narcotics from entering the United States through such actions as signing an Executive Order "Designating Fentanyl as a Weapon of Mass Destruction" and declaring the crisis caused by the rise of fentanyl a national health emergency.

119th Congress Introduced Dec 18, 2025

Legislative Progress

In Committee
Introduced Committee Passed
Dec 18, 2025

Mr. Dunn of Florida (for himself and Mr. Carter of …

Summary

What This Bill Does
This is a non-binding House Resolution expressing Congress's view that the President should classify synthetic illicit fentanyl-related substances as a "weapon of mass destruction" (WMD). It also calls for permanently placing illicit fentanyl in Schedule I, the most restrictive drug classification. The resolution recognizes President Trump's executive actions on fentanyl and the declaration of fentanyl as a national health emergency.

Who Benefits and How
Federal drug enforcement agencies (DEA, CBP, ICE) would benefit from enhanced enforcement authority and potentially more funding if the executive branch acts on this resolution. Border security contractors and detection technology companies could see increased demand for their services. Drug treatment facilities might access additional federal funding if fentanyl is treated as a WMD-level threat.

Who Bears the Burden and How
Illicit fentanyl manufacturers and trafficking organizations would face enhanced criminal penalties if the WMD classification is adopted. Pharmaceutical companies that produce legitimate fentanyl products (currently Schedule II) may face increased compliance scrutiny, even though the resolution specifically targets "illicit" fentanyl.

Key Provisions
- Calls for the President to classify synthetic illicit fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction
- Calls for permanent Schedule I classification for illicit fentanyl and related substances
- Recognizes executive actions taken by the Trump administration on fentanyl enforcement
- This is a non-binding resolution; it expresses Congress's views but does not create law

Model: claude-opus-4
Generated: Dec 27, 2025 17:11

Evidence Chain:

This summary is derived from the structured analysis below. See "Detailed Analysis" for per-title beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.

Primary Purpose

A non-binding House Resolution expressing that illicit fentanyl-related substances should be classified as weapons of mass destruction and permanently placed in Schedule I.

Policy Domains

Public Health Drug Policy National Security

Legislative Strategy

"Non-binding expression of support for aggressive fentanyl classification to signal Congressional priorities and support executive action on drug enforcement."

Likely Beneficiaries

  • Federal drug enforcement agencies (DEA, CBP)
  • Pharmaceutical alternatives to fentanyl
  • Drug treatment and rehabilitation facilities

Likely Burden Bearers

  • Illicit fentanyl manufacturers and traffickers
  • Patients requiring legitimate fentanyl-based pain management (indirectly through tighter controls)

Bill Structure & Actor Mappings

Who is "The Secretary" in each section?

Domains
Drug Policy Public Health National Security
Actor Mappings
"the_president"
→ President of the United States

Key Definitions

Terms defined in this bill

2 terms
"Schedule I" §schedule_I

The most restrictive drug classification under the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 813), for substances with high abuse potential and no accepted medical use.

"Weapon of Mass Destruction" §weapon_of_mass_destruction

A classification typically reserved for nuclear, biological, chemical, or radiological weapons capable of causing mass casualties.

We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.

Learn more about our methodology