Nitazene Control Act of 2025

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5415 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 5415

  To amend the Controlled Substances Act to permanently schedule the 
   class of benzimidazole-opioids known as nitazenes, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 16, 2025

Mr. Vindman (for himself and Mr. Baumgartner) introduced the following 
 bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and 
   in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
  of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
                               concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the Controlled Substances Act to permanently schedule the 
   class of benzimidazole-opioids known as nitazenes, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Nitazene Control Act of 2025''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) 2-Benzylbenzimidazole opioids are a class of synthetic 
        opioids first synthesized in the 1950s. They exhibit 
        significant potency at the mu-opioid receptor, with some 
        substances exceeding the potency of fentanyl.
            (2) The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has 
        temporarily or permanently scheduled multiple 2-
        benzylbenzimidazole opioid compounds under Schedule I of the 
        Controlled Substances Act due to their high abuse potential and 
        lack of accepted medical use.
            (3) Nitazenes and related compounds have emerged in the 
        illicit drug supply as designer drugs and contribute to 
        overdose and fatal poisonings in the United States.
            (4) A class-wide permanent scheduling of 2-
        benzylbenzimidazole opioids is necessary to preemptively 
        address the proliferation of new analogs, streamline 
        enforcement, and protect public health.
            (5) The HALT Fentanyl Act created pathways for research 
        using Schedule I controlled substances which apply to scheduled 
        nitazenes.

SEC. 3. SCHEDULE I CLASSIFICATION OF NITAZENES.

    (a) Amendment.--Section 202(c) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 
U.S.C. 812(c)) is amended by adding at the end of Schedule I the 
following:
    ``(f) 2-Benzylbenzimidazole opioids, commonly referred to as 
`nitazenes', their isomers, esters, ethers, salts and salts of isomers, 
esters, and ethers, including:
            ``(1) Is structurally related to 2-benzylbenzimidazole with 
        the following modifications:
                    ``(A) At the 1-position, substitution with an alkyl 
                linker connected to a substituted amine group 
                containing hydrogen, alkyl, alkenyl, and/or heteroaryl 
                group (e.g. morphilino, pyrrolidino, or piperidinyl 
                groups), whether or not further substituted.
                    ``(B) At the 2-position:
            ``i. Replacement of the alkyl portion of the benzyl group 
        with a substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, alkoxy, carbamates 
        group, nitrogen, sulfur, and/or oxygen atoms.
            ``ii. Replacement of the phenyl portion of the benzyl group 
        with an aryl or heteroaryl group.
                    ``(C) Substitution on the phenyl portion of the 
                benzimidazole ring with a hydrogen atom, halogen, 
                nitro, cyano, substituted or unsubstituted amide, 
                amine, alkyl, alkoxy, aryl, and/or heteroaryl groups.
                    ``(D) At the 6-position, substitution with 
                hydrogen, nitro, trifluoromethyl, methoxy, 
                trifluoromethoxy, cyano, and halogen groups.; and
            ``(2) Exhibits agonist activity at the mu-opioid receptor.
        Such substances include, but are not limited to: etonitazene, 
        clonitazene, metonitazene, isotonitazene, protonitazene, 
        butonitazene, etodesnitazene, flunitazene, N-pyrrolidino 
        etonitazene, N-desethyl isotonitazene, and N-piperidinyl 
        etonitazene.''.
    (b) Removal of Temporary Status.--Any substance included in the 
amendment to section 202(c) of the Controlled Substances Act made by 
this section that was temporarily scheduled under section 201(h) of the 
Controlled Substances Act shall be deemed permanently scheduled and 
subject to the requirements of Schedule I as of the date of enactment 
of this Act.
    (c) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section or the 
amendments made by this section shall be construed to authorize the 
initiation of new research using substances described in the amendment 
made by subsection (a) without proper registration and scheduling 
compliance.
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