August 24, 2026
Mr. Auchincloss (for himself, Mr. Newhouse, Mr. Moolenaar, and Mr. Khanna) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committees on Financial Services, Oversight and Government Reform, and the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
To authorize sanctions relating to the production and distribution of illicit synthetic narcotics by the People’s Republic of China.
Section 1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the CCP Fentanyl Sanctions Act
.
Sec. 2. Codification of Executive Order 14059
United States sanctions provided for in Executive Order 14059 (86 Fed. Reg. 71549; Imposing Sanctions on Foreign Persons Involved in the Global Illicit Drug Trade), as in effect on the day before the date of the enactment of this Act, shall remain in effect and continue to apply.
Sec. 3. Authorization of sanctions
(a) In general
On and after the date that is 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President is authorized to impose the sanction described in subsection (b) with respect to a foreign person if the President determines that the person—
(1)
has engaged in, or attempted to engage in, activities or transactions in the People’s Republic of China, including in Hong Kong and Macau, or with respect to persons domiciled in, organized under the laws of, or with their principal place of business in such jurisdictions, that have contributed to, or pose a significant risk of contributing to, the international proliferation of illicit synthetic narcotics or their means of production;
(2)
has knowingly or with reckless disregard has received any property or interest in property that—
(A)
constitutes or is derived from proceeds of activities or transactions in the People’s Republic of China, including in Hong Kong and Macau, or with respect to persons domiciled in, organized under the laws of, or with their principal place of business in such jurisdictions, that have materially contributed to, or pose a significant risk of materially contributing to, the international proliferation of illicit synthetic narcotics or their means of production; or
(B)
was used or may have been intended to be used to commit or to facilitate activities or transactions in the People’s Republic of China, including in Hong Kong and Macau, or with respect to persons domiciled in, organized under the laws of, or with their principal place of business in such jurisdictions, that have materially contributed to, or pose a significant risk of materially contributing to, the international proliferation of illicit synthetic narcotics or their means of production;
(3)
is a PRC owned or operated port or ship that, knowingly or with reckless disregard, facilitates the shipment and transportation of illicit synthetic narcotics or their precursors (including in such circumstances where those precursors are improperly labeled during the customs process);
(4)
is a PRC entity that produces illicit synthetic narcotics or their precursors and, knowingly or with reckless disregard, sells those precursors to persons involved in the proliferation of illicit synthetic narcotics;
(5)
is a PRC online marketplace that, knowingly or with reckless disregard, facilitates the sale of, exchange of, shipment of, transshipment of, conveyance of, or payment for illicit synthetic narcotics;
(6)
is a covered PRC government entity;
(7)
is a PRC entity that knowingly or with reckless disregard, provides material support related to illicit synthetic narcotics to a covered PRC government entity;
(8)
has established an entity that engages in, has engaged in, or is designed to engage in evading sanctions that would otherwise be imposed pursuant to this Act; or
(9)
is acting directly or indirectly for or on behalf of a person referred to in paragraphs (1) through (8).
(b) Sanction described
(1) In general
The sanction described in this subsection is the exercise all of the powers granted to the President under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) to the extent necessary to block and prohibit all transactions in property and interests in property of a foreign person if such property or interests in property are in the United States, come within the United States, or are or come within the possession or control of a United States person.
(2) Implementation
The President may exercise the authorities provided to the President under sections 203 and 205 of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702 and 1704) to the extent necessary to carry out this section.
(3) Penalties
The penalties provided for in subsections (b) and (c) of section 206 of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) shall apply to any person who violates, attempts to violate, conspires to violate, or causes a violation of any prohibition of this section, or an order or regulation prescribed under this section, to the same extent that such penalties apply to a person that commits an unlawful act described in section 206(a) of such Act (50 U.S.C. 1705(a)).
(4) Exceptions
(A) Exception for intelligence and law enforcement actions
Sanctions under this section shall not apply with respect to—
(i)
any activity subject to the reporting requirements under title V of the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3091 et seq.); or
(ii)
any authorized intelligence or law enforcement activities of the United States.
(B) Exception relating to importation of goods
(i) In general
The authorities and requirements to impose sanctions authorized under this section shall not include the authority or requirement to impose sanctions on the importation of goods.
(ii) Good defined
In this subparagraph, the term good means any article, natural or manmade substance, material, supply or manufactured product, including inspection and test equipment, and excluding technical data.
(c) Waiver
The President may waive the application of sanctions under this section with respect to a foreign person for renewable periods of not more than 180 days each if the President determines and reports to Congress that such a waiver is in national interests of the United States.
(d) Rule of construction
Nothing in this section may be construed to limit the authority of the President to designate or sanction persons pursuant to an applicable Executive order or a Federal statute, including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.).
(e) Consideration of certain information in imposing sanctions
In determining whether to impose sanctions under subsection (a), the President shall consider—
(1)
information provided jointly by the chairperson and ranking member of each of the appropriate congressional committees; and
(2)
credible information obtained by other countries and nongovernmental organizations that monitor violations of human rights.
(f) Requests by appropriate congressional committees
(1) In general
Not later than 120 days after receiving a request that meets the requirements of paragraph (2) with respect to whether a foreign person has engaged in an activity described in subsection (a), the President shall—
(A)
determine if that person has engaged in such an activity; and
(B)
submit a classified or unclassified report to the chairperson and ranking member of the committee or committees that submitted the request with respect to that determination that includes—
(i)
a statement of whether or not the President imposed or intends to impose sanctions with respect to the person; and
(ii)
if the President imposed or intends to impose sanctions, a description of those sanctions.
(2) Requirements
A request under paragraph (1) with respect to whether a foreign person has engaged in an activity described in subsection (a) shall be submitted to the President in writing jointly by the chairperson and ranking member of one of the appropriate congressional committees.
Sec. 4. Financial sanctions
The Secretary of the Treasury may, in consultation with the Secretary of State, prohibit the opening of, or impose strict conditions on the maintenance of, correspondent accounts or payable-through accounts in the United States by a foreign financial institution that the President determines has, on or after the date of the enactment of this Act, knowingly conducted or facilitated a significant transaction or transactions on behalf of a foreign person described in section 3(a).
Sec. 5. Definitions
In this Act:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees
The term appropriate congressional committees means—
(A)
the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate; and
(B)
the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Select Committee on Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party of the House of Representatives.
(2) Covered PRC government entity
The term covered PRC government entity includes—
(A)
the PRC government, a PRC government official, or any entity or instrumentality thereof, that is identified by the United States Government as knowingly or recklessly facilitating the flow of illicit synthetic narcotics into the United States or otherwise providing material support to a foreign person described in section 3(a);
(B)
any subsidiary, affiliate, or successor of an entity described in subparagraph (A); and
(C)
any person owned or controlled by, or that provides material support to or for, or receives material support from an entity described in subparagraph (A).
(3) Foreign person
The term foreign person means a person that is not a United States person.
(4) Illicit synthetic narcotics
The term illicit synthetic narcotics means—
(A)
controlled substances, as such term is defined in section 102(6) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802(6)), with the exception of—
(i)
substances of natural origins; and
(ii)
medications that are lawful under the laws of the United States and the Drug Enforcement Administration has provided an import permit to the importing organization for the import of such medication;
(B)
listed chemicals, as such term is defined in section 102(33) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802(33)); and
(C)
active pharmaceutical ingredients or chemicals that are used in the production of controlled substances described in subparagraphs (A) and (B).
(5) Knowingly
The term knowingly, with respect to conduct, a circumstance, or a result, means that a person has actual knowledge, or should have known, of the conduct, the circumstance, or the result.
(6) PRC
The term PRC means the People’s Republic of China.
(7) United States person
The term United States person means any United States citizen, permanent resident alien, an entity organized under the laws of the United States or any jurisdiction within the United States (including a foreign branch of such an entity), or any person in the United States.