Transnational Drug Trafficking Act of 2015
Latest action. Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 469.
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary has been expanded because action occurred on the measure.)
Transnational Drug Trafficking Act of 2015
(Sec. 2) This bill amends the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act to broaden the scope of persons subject to criminal prosecution for manufacturing or distributing a controlled substance in schedule I or II, a precursor chemical, or flunitrazepam for unlawful import into the United States. The Controlled Substances Act classifies drugs, substances, and chemicals used to make drugs into one of five schedules based on the drug's medical use, potential for abuse, and risk of dependence.
Current law prohibits such manufacture or distribution by a person who knows or intends that the substance or chemical will be unlawfully imported. This bill broadens the scope to also prohibit such manufacture or distribution by a person who reasonably believes that the substance or chemical will be unlawfully imported.
In addition, this bill prohibits the manufacture or distribution of a precursor chemical by a person who: (1) knows or intends that the chemical will be used to manufacture a controlled substance; and (2) knows, intends, or reasonably believes that the controlled substance will be unlawfully imported into the United States.
(Sec. 3) The legislation amends the federal criminal code to replace statutory references to prohibited trafficking in a "counterfeit drug" with references to prohibited trafficking in a "drug that uses a counterfeit mark on or in connection with the drug."
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Reported to House without amendment, Part I" stage on June 3, 2016. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on June 3, 2016: Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 469.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 114th Congress (2015-16), 329 of the 10,233 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.2 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
Tom Marino (R-PA) introduced it on July 29, 2015, and 4 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 1 Democrat, 3 Republicans.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on July 29, 2015, 4061 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 3751 days ago, on June 3, 2016.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 114th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2017 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers