Senate committee postpones bill that would let governor designate new synthetic drug analogs

Senate Bill 99, sponsored by Senator Kirchmeyer, would permit authorities to treat certain material compounds, mixtures or preparations that are analogs of Schedule II drugs as Schedule II under Colorado’s Uniform Controlled Substances Act so regulators could respond more quickly to new synthetic drugs.

Kirchmeyer told the Senate Health and Human Services Committee the measure is a forward-looking response to changing synthetic drugs and overdose trends. "The authority to declare the same, a material, calm, mixture or preparation, our preparation of an analog of schedule 2 drug ... the idea is here to be forward thinking, to try and get ahead of the next poison," he said, adding that illicitly manufactured fentanyl accounted for roughly 68 percent of overdose deaths in 2023.

Committee members expressed divided views on the tradeoffs between speed and oversight. Senator Weisman said he recognized the public-health urgency but worried about concentrating enforcement decisions in the executive branch: "I don't know if I can support this particular solution for risk of, politicizing a process that I think is fundamentally more scientifically based to me." He said he could not back the bill in its current form.

Other members voiced support for the sponsor’s intent while urging stronger legislative involvement. One senator said they would support the bill for today but recommended future discussions about bringing the legislature more directly into the decision-making process.

The committee considered a procedural motion to send SB99 to the Committee of the Whole; that motion failed. Senator Frizzell then moved to postpone the bill indefinitely. The chair called for opposition, none was registered, and the committee postponed Senate Bill 99 indefinitely by reverse roll call.

No witnesses testified in person or online during the hearing despite two names having been listed; the chair closed the witness phase after confirming no one was available. Senator Kirchmeyer thanked the committee and said he looked forward to further collaboration.

The committee took no further formal action on the bill beyond postponement. The bill’s sponsor and several committee members signaled an intent to continue working on legislative approaches to address novel synthetics that balance speed with legislative or scientific review.