The deaths of five Commerce City residents, reportedly due to overdoses tied to fentanyl, prompted lawmakers on both sides of the aisle at the state Capitol to call for changes in state law Tuesday, with some calling the law that eased penalties for drug possession a “mistake.”
“Clearly a mistake was made” to lower the penalty for possession of up to four grams of fentanyl, and “we need to fix this,” said Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer, R-Brighton.
Kirkmeyer is referring to the legislature’s action in 2019, when lawmakers reduced the charges for possession of up to four grams of schedule II drugs, which includes fentanyl, from a level four drug felony to a level one drug misdemeanor. Gov. Jared Polis signed House Bill 19-1263 into law on May 28 that year.
Kirkmeyer made the plea even as policymakers, including the governor, acknowledge that fentanyl is fueling deaths in Colorado and elsewhere in country but have yet to act to confront the crisis. No legislation has yet been filed specifically introduced to deal with fentanyl deaths.
The 2019 bill had bipartisan support; it was sponsored by Democrats Rep. Leslie Herod of Denver and Sen. Pete Lee of Colorado Springs, and by Republicans Rep. Shane Sandridge of Colorado Springs and Sen. Vicki Marble of Fort Collins.
The General Assembly was divided over the issue; the final 20-15 vote in the Senate included 10 Republicans and five Democrats voting against. The House was more united in its support, with only one Democrat, then-Rep. Bri Buentello of Pueblo, voting against it, along with 19 Republicans. Four Republicans voted in favor of the bill.
During the bill’s passage, district attorneys representing multiple judicial districts asked that fentanyl be excluded from the bill, but those pleas failed to persuade the bill’s sponsors.
Kirkmeyer on Tuesday told the Senate that lawmakers made a mistake and should fix it. She said the deaths of the five Commerce City residents is…