# 119-s-1502: Felony Murder for Deadly Fentanyl Distribution Act of 2025

119-s-1502, Felony Murder for Deadly Fentanyl Distribution Act of 2025, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Ernst, Joni [R-IA] (R-IA); status introduced (as of 2026-10-03).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1502
- As of: 2026-10-03
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-1502
- Congress: 119
- Title: Felony Murder for Deadly Fentanyl Distribution Act of 2025
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2025-04-29
- Sponsor: Sen. Ernst, Joni [R-IA] (R-IA)
- Cosponsors: 10
- Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
- Touches household money: no
- Last recorded action: 2026-10-03

## Summary

**Makes distributing fentanyl that causes a death a form of first-degree murder punishable by death or life imprisonment.** It sets clear quantity thresholds and ties key terms to the Controlled Substances Act so prosecutors can use those criteria when bringing charges. - Families of overdose victims: Creates a path for homicide prosecutions when a death is linked to fentanyl, which may lead to the most severe criminal penalties and affect case outcomes for survivors. - People who distribute fentanyl: If the distributed substance meets the statute's quantity tests and causes a death, the distributor can be charged with first-degree murder and face death or life imprisonment. - Law enforcement and prosecutors: Defines “distributing fentanyl” to include 2 grams of fentanyl or 0.5 grams of certain analogues, requires proof the distributor knew or had reason to know the drug contained fentanyl, and adopts the Controlled Substances Act definitions for “controlled substance” and “distribute.”

## Cosponsors (10)

- Sen. Budd, Ted [R-NC] (R-NC), 2025-04-29T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Britt, Katie Boyd [R-AL] (R-AL), 2025-04-29T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Cruz, Ted [R-TX] (R-TX), 2025-04-29T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Lankford, James [R-OK] (R-OK), 2025-04-29T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Scott, Rick [R-FL] (R-FL), 2025-04-29T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Hyde-Smith, Cindy [R-MS] (R-MS), 2025-04-29T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Hagerty, Bill [R-TN] (R-TN), 2025-04-29T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Ricketts, Pete [R-NE] (R-NE), 2025-04-30T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Daines, Steve [R-MT] (R-MT), 2025-04-30T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Justice, James C. [R-WV] (R-WV), 2025-04-30T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- New felony murder for fentanyl: cost, medium. If enacted, the bill would make distributing certain fentanyl that causes a death a first-degree murder offense. It would apply when the distribution involves 2 grams or more of the named fentanyl compound or 0.5 grams or more of an analogue. It would only apply if the victim died from using the su…

## Related bills

- 119-s-1071: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026
- 119-s-3752: SAVE America Act
- 119-s-5025: Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia Act of 2026
- 119-s-401: Fair Access to Banking Act
- 119-s-587: Death Tax Repeal Act of 2025
- 119-s-186: No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act of 2025

## Sources
- [119-s-1502 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/1502)

## Related
- [119-s-1071: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1071)
- [119-s-3752: SAVE America Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3752)
- [119-s-5025: Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5025)
- [119-s-401: Fair Access to Banking Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-401)
- [119-s-587: Death Tax Repeal Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-587)
- [119-s-186: No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act of…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-186)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1502 (as of 2026-10-03).