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SB-325 Controlled substances: fentanyl.(2023-2024)

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Date Published: 03/15/2023 09:00 PM
SB325:v98#DOCUMENT

Amended  IN  Senate  March 15, 2023

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Bill
No. 325

Introduced by Senator Grove
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Alanis, Davies, Dixon, Ta, and Waldron)

February 07, 2023

An act to amend Section 11351 of add Section 11352.3 to the Health and Safety Code, relating to controlled substances.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SB 325, as amended, Grove. Controlled substances: possession. fentanyl.
Existing law classifies controlled substances into 5 schedules and places the greatest restrictions and penalties on the use of those substances placed in Schedule I. Opiates, including fentanyl, are classified in Schedule II. Existing law prohibits a person from possessing for sale or purchasing for purposes of sale specified controlled substances, including fentanyl, and punishes a violation of that prohibition by imprisonment in a county jail for 2, 3, or 4 years. Existing law also prohibits transporting, importing into this state, selling, furnishing, administering, or giving away specified controlled substances, including fentanyl, and punishes a violation of that prohibition by imprisonment in a county jail for 3, 4, or 5 years. Existing law also prohibits the trafficking of specified controlled substances, including fentanyl, and punishes a violation of that prohibition by imprisonment in a county jail for 3, 6, or 9 years.
This bill would impose an additional punishment of 3, 4, or 5 years to a person who is convicted of the crimes mentioned above involving fentanyl or a fentanyl analog that was designed, shaped, colored, advertised, or packaged in such a way as to resemble food or candy. By imposing a new enhancement to the penalty of a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

Existing law designates certain substances as controlled substances and generally prohibits their possession, sale, transportation, and use. A violation of this prohibition is punishable by imprisonment for 2, 3, or 4 years, as specified.

This bill would make a technical, nonsubstantive change to these provisions.

Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: NOYES   Local Program: NOYES  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) Over the last several years, there has been a significant rise in the number of fentanyl-related overdoses and deaths in California.
(b) According to the State Department of Health Care Services, fentanyl accounted for 44 percent of all drug overdose deaths in California in 2020, and from the first quarter of 2019 to the third quarter of 2021, fentanyl overdose deaths increased by an alarming 365 percent.
(c) Fentanyl, which is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine, is now regularly used to enhance the effects of numerous controlled and uncontrolled substances sold illegally at the street level.
(d) Those who purchase and consume these substances are oftentimes unaware that they are laced with fentanyl, resulting in thousands of overdoses and deaths that would have otherwise never happened had this information been revealed.
(e) Many teachers, first responders, and small children have even become sick or died because of accidental ingestion or contact with fentanyl, and schools and businesses in California now stock Naloxone in order to be able to quickly respond to a fentanyl overdose.
(f) Last year, several cities and states throughout the country also began encountering “rainbow fentanyl,” which is a type of fentanyl that is made into brightly colored pills and has the appearance of candy or gum.
(g) Numerous law enforcement and public health agencies have issued alerts to warn the public about the unique threat posed by rainbow fentanyl, including the United States Department of Justice, the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, the Department of Justice, and the State Department of Public Health.
(h) If left unchecked, this type of fentanyl has enormous potential to injure and kill many children and young adults throughout California because of its lethality and deceptive appearance.
(i) The State Department of Public Health reports that fentanyl-related deaths in California’s youth between 10 to 19 years of age, inclusive, increased by 625 percent from 2018 to 2020, and an increased proliferation of rainbow fentanyl will only cause these numbers to rise even higher.
(j) In order to protect California’s youth and to combat the rise and spread of rainbow fentanyl throughout California, it is necessary for the Legislature to send a strong and unequivocal message that the sale and distribution of this substance is strictly prohibited and that anyone found guilty of selling or distributing this form of fentanyl shall be subject to significant criminal penalties.
(k) California’s communities have suffered for far too long because of the sale of illegal fentanyl, and it is imperative that the Legislature take bold and meaningful action to help stem the rise of the newest and most dangerous form of this lethal drug.

SEC. 2.

 Section 11352.3 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read:

11352.3.
 (a) Notwithstanding any other law, including Section 1385 of the Penal Code, a person who is convicted of a violation of Section 11351 or Section 11352 involving fentanyl or a fentanyl analog that was designed, shaped, colored, advertised, or packaged in such a way as to resemble food or candy shall receive an additional punishment of three, four, or five years, at the court’s discretion.
(b) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:
(1) “Food” means any article that is used for food or drink for a person, or for a component of any such article.
(2) “Candy” means a preparation of sugar, honey, or other natural or artificial sweeteners in combination with chocolate, fruits, nuts, or other ingredients or flavorings in the form of bars, drops, or pieces.

SEC. 3.

 No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.
SECTION 1.Section 11351 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:
11351.

Except as otherwise provided in this division, a person who possesses for sale or purchases for purposes of sale (1) any controlled substance specified in subdivision (b), (c), or (e) of Section 11054, specified in paragraph (14), (15), or (20) of subdivision (d) of Section 11054, or specified in subdivision (b) or (c) of Section 11055, or specified in subdivision (h) of Section 11056, or (2) any controlled substance classified in Schedule III, IV, or V which is a narcotic drug, shall be punished by imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170 of the Penal Code for two, three, or four years.