Press Releases

Representatives Fry, Hageman, and Colleagues Introduce the Fight Illicit Pill Presses Act of 2024

Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Representatives Russell Fry (R-SC), Harriet Hageman (R-WY), Melanie Stansbury (D-PA), Josh Harder (D-CA), and Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) introduced the Fight Illicit Pill Presses Act. This legislation would help stop the production of counterfeit and fentanyl-laced pills and require pill presses to be engraved with serial numbers, assisting law enforcement in fighting crime and tracing pill presses back to cartels and traffickers.

“Fentanyl poisoning has taken the lives of countless Americans, including many South Carolinians,” said Representative Fry. “I am proud to work with my colleagues to develop a solution and introduce the Fight Illicit Pill Presses Act. Too many families have lost a loved one to fentanyl poisoning, and I am committed to doing all that I can in Congress to crack down on drug cartels and drug traffickers to protect our communities.”

“The scourge of deadly fentanyl pouring over our borders has claimed the lives of far too many of our family members and friends,” said Representative Hageman. “Law enforcement is seizing more fentanyl-laced pills, and the vast majority of pills contain lethal doses of fentanyl. By requiring an engraved serial number, law enforcement can better track presses back to the cartels and traffickers producing these deadly drugs.”  

In 2023, the Drug Enforcement (DEA) seized over 79 million fake pills containing fentanyl, a more than 33% increase from the year before. DEA laboratory testing currently indicates that 7 out of 10 pills contain a potentially deadly dose of fentanyl, an increase in lethality from prior years.  

However, drug traffickers, from Chinese illicit production to cartels and domestic traffickers, have acquired pill presses to press fentanyl into pills, punches, and dies to imprint markings and logos onto those pills. In turn, this produces pills that look like legitimate prescription medication, but the pills contain fentanyl and other deadly drugs.

Under current law, the Controlled Substances Act requires records of pill press transactions to be kept for two years after the purchase. The records identify the entities involved in the transaction, the description of the machine, and the description of the method of transfer. While pill presses have been seized in 43 states, including South Carolina, many reports suggest that these seizures only account for a low number of those used by cartels. 

The Fight Illicit Pill Presses Act would amend the Controlled Substances Act to require pill presses to be engraved with a serial number and impose criminal penalties for tampering with the serial number or transportation of tampered presses. This legislation would help law enforcement agencies and the DEA solve crimes against drug trafficking and trace pill presses back to cartels. 

Companion legislation has been introduced in the U.S. Senate by Senators John Cornyn (R-TX), Chris Coons (D-DE), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), and Maria Cantwell (D-WA). 

This legislation is endorsed by CPAC, Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, National District Attorneys Association, National HIDTA Directors Association, National Narcotics Officers Associations Coalition, Major County Sheriffs of America, and Sergeants Benevolent NYPD.

Representative Fry serves on the House Judiciary Committee, the House Oversight Committee, and the Select Committee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government. He also serves as the Republican freshman class president. To stay up to date with Representative Fry and his work for the Seventh District, follow his official Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter pages and visit his website at fry.house.gov.

###