HALT Fentanyl Act

The bill would permanently add fentanyl-related substances as a class to Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act. It defines a "fentanyl-related substance" as any substance structurally related to fentanyl through specific chemical modifications. Trafficking offenses involving these substances would carry the same penalties as fentanyl-analogue offenses — including a 10-year mandatory minimum for 100 grams or more — and the same penalty framework would apply to importation and exportation offenses. The Attorney General could publish a list of qualifying substances, but a substance's absence from the list would not exempt it from control.

The bill would also reform how researchers register to work with Schedule I controlled substances. Researchers already holding a Schedule I or II registration could begin new qualifying research 30 days after notifying the Attorney General, rather than completing a full registration process. Other changes would allow a single registration to cover multiple related sites within the same city or county, waive new facility inspections in certain circumstances, permit researchers to conduct small-scale manufacturing without a separate manufacturing license, and allow ongoing research to continue while a registration application is pending after a substance is newly added to Schedule I.

Drug traffickers and importers dealing in fentanyl-related substances would face mandatory minimum prison sentences previously reserved for fentanyl-analogue offenses. Researchers at universities, hospitals, and federal agencies — particularly those funded or run by HHS, DOD, or VA — studying Schedule I substances would gain streamlined DEA registration options. The Drug Enforcement Administration and Department of Justice would administer both the new classification and the updated registration framework.

Permanent scheduling eliminates the cycle of expiring emergency scheduling orders that has repeatedly left prosecutors and law enforcement in legal uncertainty about whether particular fentanyl variants can be charged under analogue penalties. For the research community, easing registration burdens could accelerate development of treatments for opioid addiction and overdose by reducing the administrative delays that have historically hampered Schedule I research.

The Attorney General would issue interim final rules within six months of enactment; those rules take effect immediately without a traditional good-cause showing, though interested parties may then comment and request a hearing before a final rule is issued. The DEA would maintain a public list of known fentanyl-related substances, though absence from the list does not exempt a substance from Schedule I control. Researchers with existing Schedule I or II registrations would notify the Attorney General electronically at least 30 days before starting qualifying new research; unregistered researchers would receive a registration decision — or an order to show cause — within 45 days of submitting a complete notice. The Inspector General of the Department of Justice must deliver a report on fentanyl research conducted under the expedited process within one year of enactment.