Liberally interpret the Illicit Drug Anti-Proliferation Act to allow safe and anonymous testing of unknown substances

Since the introduction of the Illicit Drug Anti-Proliferation Act, venues have been afraid to provide life-saving resources, such as bottled water and substance testing kits, to their customers for fear of being accused of knowingly allowing illicit drug use. Unfortunately, despite venues implementing strict security policies, this zero-tolerance approach has resulted in significant harm, including multiple overdose deaths from mislabeled drugs. The War on Drugs has failed, and it’s past time to treat drug use as a public health issue. We call on the Obama Administration to interpret the act to permit venues that otherwise discourage drug use (through security checks, anti-drug education, etc.) to offer life-saving resources such as substance testing kits. We must focus on minimizing harm.