I 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 817 
To combat the heroin epidemic and drug sample backlogs. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 28, 2019 
Ms. KUSTER of New Hampshire introduced the following bill; which was 
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To combat the heroin epidemic and drug sample backlogs. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Combating the Heroin 
Epidemic Through Forensic Drug Testing Act of 2019’’. 
SEC. 2. CONFRONTING THE USE OF HEROIN AND ASSOCI-
ATED DRUGS. 
Title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 
Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3711 et seq.) is amended 
by adding at the end the following: 
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‘‘PART LL—CONFRONTING THE USE OF HEROIN 
AND ASSOCIATED DRUGS 
‘‘SEC. 3021. AUTHORITY TO MAKE GRANTS TO ADDRESS 
PUBLIC SAFETY AND HEROIN DISTRIBUTION, 
SALE, AND USE. 
‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to as-
sist States and Indian tribes to— 
‘‘(1) carry out programs to address the dis-
tribution, sale, and use of heroin, fentanyl, and asso-
ciated synthetic drugs; and 
‘‘(2) improve the ability of State, tribal, and 
local government institutions to carry out such pro-
grams. 
‘‘(b) GRANT AUTHORIZATION.—The Attorney Gen-
eral, through the Bureau of Justice Assistance, may make 
grants to States to address the distribution, sale, and use 
of heroin, fentanyl, and associated synthetic drugs to en-
hance public safety. 
‘‘(c) GRANT PROJECTS TO ADDRESS DISTRIBUTION, 
SALE, AND USE OF HEROIN, FENTANYL, AND ASSOCI-
ATED SYNTHETIC DRUGS.—Grants made under sub-
section (b) may be used for programs, projects, and other 
activities to— 
‘‘(1) reimburse State, local, or other forensic 
science laboratories to help address backlogs of un-
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tested samples of heroin, fentanyl, and associated 
synthetic drugs; 
‘‘(2) reimburse State, local, or other forensic 
science laboratories for procuring equipment, tech-
nology, or other support systems if the applicant for 
the grant demonstrates to the satisfaction of the At-
torney General that expenditures for such purposes 
would result in improved efficiency of laboratory 
testing and help prevent future backlogs; 
‘‘(3) reimburse State, tribal, and local law en-
forcement agencies for procuring field-testing equip-
ment for use in the identification or detection of her-
oin, fentanyl, and associated synthetic drugs; 
‘‘(4) investigate, arrest, and prosecute individ-
uals violating laws related to the distribution or sale 
of heroin, fentanyl, and associated synthetic drugs; 
and 
‘‘(5) support State, tribal, and local health de-
partment services deployed to address the use of 
heroin, fentanyl, and associated synthetic drugs. 
‘‘(d) LIMITATION.—Not less than 60 percent of the 
amounts made available to carry out this section shall be 
awarded for the purposes under paragraph (1) or (2) of 
subsection (c). 
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‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 
$10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2019 and 2020. 
‘‘(f) ALLOCATION.— 
‘‘(1) POPULATION
ALLOCATION.—Seventy-five 
percent of the amount made available to carry out 
this section in a fiscal year shall be allocated to each 
State that meets the requirements of section 2802 
so that each State shall receive an amount that 
bears the same ratio to the 75 percent of the total 
amount made available to carry out this section for 
that fiscal year as the population of the State bears 
to the population of all States. 
‘‘(2) DISCRETIONARY ALLOCATION.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Twenty-five percent of 
the amount made available to carry out this 
section in a fiscal year shall be allocated pursu-
ant to the discretion of the Attorney General 
for competitive grants to States with high rates 
of primary treatment admissions for heroin and 
other opioids, for use by State law enforcement 
agencies. 
‘‘(B) 
CONSIDERATIONS.—In 
making 
grants under subparagraph (A), the Attorney 
General shall consider— 
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‘‘(i) the average annual number of 
part 1 violent crimes reported by each 
State to the Federal Bureau of Investiga-
tion for the 3 most recent calendar years 
for which data is available; and 
‘‘(ii) the existing resources and cur-
rent needs of the potential grant recipient. 
‘‘(3) MINIMUM
REQUIREMENT.—Each State 
shall receive not less than 0.6 percent of the amount 
made available to carry out this section in each fis-
cal year. 
‘‘(4) CERTAIN TERRITORIES.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of the 
allocation under this section, American Samoa 
and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mar-
iana Islands shall be considered as 1 State. 
‘‘(B) ALLOCATION AMONGST CERTAIN TER-
RITORIES.—For purposes of subparagraph (A), 
67 percent of the amount allocated shall be al-
located to American Samoa and 33 percent 
shall be allocated to the Commonwealth of the 
Northern Mariana Islands.’’. 
Æ 
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