Congresswoman Schrier Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Combat Fentanyl Trafficking on Social Media Platforms

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congresswoman Kim Schrier alongside colleagues Angie Craig (D-MN) and Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA) introduced bipartisan legislation to stop drug trafficking on social media platforms and help law enforcement counter the sale of illicit drugs on social media platforms.

The Cooper Davis and Devin Norring Act is named for Devin Norring of Hastings, MN, and Cooper Davis of Shawnee, KS. Both teenagers died of fentanyl poisoning after purchasing what they thought were Percocet pills on Snapchat. The pills were laced with illicit fentanyl.

Rep. Schrier’s bipartisan bill requires social media companies and other communication service providers to alert federal law enforcement when illicit drug dealing and distribution occurs on their platforms.

“As a country, we need to find new ways to combat this ever-challenging fentanyl crisis. With children spending more and more time online, it's become imperative for law enforcement to know how and if kids are exposed to dangerous activity online," said Congresswoman Schrier. "Social media platforms are filled with harmful content for children, and this bill directly addresses this issue by empowering federal law enforcement to crack down on these criminals. As a mother and a pediatrician, the health and well-being of our children is always top of mind, which is why I'm incredibly proud to support this legislation.”

“The fact that this bill is needed at all is devastating, but we must fight back against the fentanyl crisis with every tool at our disposal, and that’s what our bill accomplishes. I am proud to lead this bipartisan push in the House and grateful to Rep. Miller-Meeks and Bridgette Norring for their advocacy. If we can save even one life, this will be worth it,” said Rep. Craig.

Data from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) shows that approximately 1 in 3 instances of illicit drug trafficking are linked to social media platforms, including Snapchat, Facebook Messenger, Instagram and Tik Tok.  

“Fentanyl is a plague in our communities, killing countless Americans and destroying their families. The Cooper Davis and Devin Norring Act would help law enforcement at all levels counter the sale of fentanyl and fentanyl-laced pills and help prosecute those preying on America's youth. By requiring social media companies and other communication service providers to alert law enforcement of fentanyl distribution on their platforms, we could hopefully save many more lives. As a mother, medical doctor, and former public health director, I am proud to be leading this bipartisan, bicameral legislation,” said Rep. Miller-Meeks.

“In the years since Cooper and Devin lost their lives to drug dealers operating on social media, we've heard the same canned response from social media companies that they're aware of the problem and are working to correct it. However, they've done nothing to put a stop to these dealers targeting our children. We support the Cooper Davis and Devin Norring Act because social media has proven over and over that they will never be able to self-regulate or make the necessary changes without our government stepping in to protect their most vulnerable users – our children,” said Devin Norring’s mother Bridgette Norring.

“Social media company platforms have great power and influence over the American people, especially our youth.  I’m sure we all have experienced the intelligence of the technology today as our “feeds” seem to represent something we have said aloud or thought in our head.  With this power and intelligence, comes great responsibility. However, social media companies are failing at keeping our kids safe and a much higher level of accountability is needed. The Cooper Davis and Devin Norring Act was designed to ensure that level of accountability and ensure compliance in an effort to keep our kids safe. We know the capabilities of this advanced technology and the focus needs to be shifted to protecting our kids rather than allowing illegal activity to thrive on these platforms,” said Cooper Davis’ mother Libby Davis.

Dan Crenshaw (R-TX), Don Davis (D-NC) and Jake LaTurner (R-KS) are original co-sponsors of the Cooper Davis and Devin Norring Act.

Text of the Cooper Davis and Devin Norring Act can be found here.