Should Disneyland be required to stock Narcan? California bills address fentanyl crisis

Fentanyl has killed thousands of Californians.

In 2021 alone, based on preliminary California Department of Public Health data, there were 5,722 fentanyl-related fatal overdoses in the state. That includes 224 among teens aged 15 to 19.

For years, the families of those who died from fentanyl — a synthetic opioid that is 100 times more potent than morphine — have pleaded with California lawmakers to address the crisis.

As the 2023-24 legislative session gets underway, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have introduced bills to do just that.

From cracking down on fentanyl dealers to requiring life-saving naloxone be kept in schools and gas stations, here’s a look at the different approaches legislators are taking to address the crisis.

Criminal crackdown

Senate Bill 237, by Sen. Shannon Grove, R-Bakersfield, would add several years to sentences for fentanyl possession, distribution and trafficking, in some cases doubling the amount of time.

Existing law punishes fentanyl possession for purposes of sale with two to four years in county jail. Grove’s bill would increase that to four to six. Transportation and distribution currently carries three to five years in a county lockup, which Grove’s bill bumps to seven to nine. Finally, current law also punishes fentanyl trafficking with three to nine years in county jail. Grove’s bill raises that to seven to 13 years.

In a statement to The Bee, Grove said that fentanyl deaths are “a horrific crisis that is devastation families across our nation.”

“Fentanyl not only takes a life, but it also causes a lifetime of pain and suffering for users, their families and friends,” Grove said.

The bill is backed by the entire Senate Republican Caucus, though it faces a steep climb in the Democratic super-majority-controlled Legislature.

But Republicans aren’t the only ones looking to crack down on fentanyl.