Gov. Kay Ivey has signed into law a bill creating mandatory minimum sentences for trafficking in fentanyl.
The bill, first introduced by Rep. Matt Simpson, R-Daphne, in the House had a quick and unopposed journey through the legislature, receiving unanimous support in both chambers.
“The entire nation should take note of what we accomplished today in Alabama with the passage of House Bill 1, the bill to help combat the fentanyl crisis,” Ivey said in a statement Thursday shortly after the bill was approved by the Senate. “Every member of the Legislature – Republican and Democrat – came together to pass this critical piece of legislation.
“Combatting this deadly drug will continue to be a top priority for our Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, and I will do everything in my power to stop this drug from being a killer in Alabama.”
Ivey signed the bill just hours after it was approved by the Senate without any discussion or debate.
Simpson said the bipartisan support shows how serious the state is taking the fentanyl crisis.
“It shows just how dangerous fentanyl is in our community,” Simpson said. “It doesn’t know Republican, it doesn’t know Democrat, it doesn’t know white, it doesn’t know Black, it doesn’t know anything other than the fact that it just kills.”
The bill creates a mandatory minimum sentence of three years for possession of one to two grams, 10 years for possession between two and four grams, 25 years for possession of four to eight grams and life in prison for possession of more than eight grams.
The act will take effect at the beginning of June.
