U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall of Kansas is backing legislation to require social media companies and other communication service providers to follow a standardized process for disclosing information to law enforcement agencies on suspected illegal trafficking of counterfeit or controlled substances.
The proposed federal law would be named for Cooper Davis, a 16-year-old resident of Shawnee who died last year of fentanyl poisoning. He apparently thought the pill he took was a prescription Percocet.
“Fentanyl is the deadliest drug our nation has ever seen, and nearly every day in Kansas somebody dies from a poisoning,” Marshall said. “Just one pill can kill, and in Cooper’s case it only took half a pill to take his life.”
On Monday, Marshall said social media companies and other communication service providers must comply with comparable reporting requirements for alleged child sexual exploitation.
He’s among co-sponsors of the bill with U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, a Democrat from New Hampshire. She said she was convinced the addiction crisis was fed by people who acquired illegal drugs though social media.
“Social media companies have a responsibility to report illicit drug activity on their platforms,” Shaheen said. “As the substance use disorder crisis continues to evolve, so must our response.”
The legislation would mandate the U.S. Department of Justice improve coordination with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, foreign law enforcement agencies as well as domestic state and local agencies regarding trafficking of fentanyl and other illegal drugs. In addition, the U.S. Drug Enforcement agency would make use of a comprehensive reporting system to better identify criminal networks trafficking drugs.
In another bipartisan effort, Marshall joined Democratic U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts to introduce a measure designed to close loopholes enabling cryptocurrency and other digital assets to be exploited for money laundering.
The idea would be to extend reform that enabled banks to cut off “bad actors” from America’s financial system following terrorist attacks Sept. 11, 2001, Marshall said.
“Applying these similar policies to cryptocurrency exchanges will prevent digital assets from being abused to finance illegal activities without limiting law-abiding American citizens’ access,” Marshall said.
He said applying standards for financial transactions required of banks and brokers would undermine criminal activities, including the trafficking in illicit fentanyl through the dark web.
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