TRANQ Research Act of 2023

What it does

This bill requires the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to support research and other activities related to identifying xylazine (a compound used in veterinary medicine as a nonopioid tranquilizer), novel synthetic opioids, and other new psychoactive substances.

In particular, NIST must support

• basic measurement science and research;

• near-real time spectrometry capabilities (i.e., a technique for rapidly identifying the chemical composition of a substance);

• strategies and voluntary best practices for handling, transporting, and analyzing such substances; and

• collaboration with other government agencies, institutions of higher education, and the private sector to enhance relevant narcotic and opioid detection and analysis capabilities.

Additionally, the Government Accountability Office must conduct a study on the capabilities of the federal government to detect, identify, and otherwise respond to threats of new psychoactive substances, such as xylazine.

Summary by the Congressional Research Service, Dec 19, 2023 (Public Law). CRS summarizes bills impartially; it does not take positions.