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Mass. lawmakers help craft successful bipartisan bill

WASHINGTON — Massachusetts lawmakers have done the impossible: navigated the hyper-partisan waters of Congress to pass a bipartisan bill that President Trump will soon sign.

The Interdict Act, which appropriates funds to buy new devices that could detect synthetic opioids such as fentanyl at the border, was authored by Massachusetts Senator Edward Markey and could be signed by Trump as soon as Wednesday, according to Senate aides.

Markey’s office said the law will provide up to $15 million for border agents to procure an estimated 250 new screening devices, which will help detect the synthetic opioids sometimes brought across the US-Mexico border.

The senator worked with Representative Niki Tsongas, of Lowell, who helped shepherd the bill through the House. “It is an immediate and grave threat to the American people, and we need to staunch its flow through our borders now,’’ Markey said. “Customs and Border Protection is a critical line of defense in the battle to stop fentanyl from flooding our communities, and the INTERDICT Act will help provide it with the latest technological tools to detect and intercept this deadly drug.’’

The Interdict Act was approved last year in a unanimous vote in the Senate and a nearly unanimous vote in the House. Though it was authored by Markey, it had significant Republican support — which led to its uniquely large margin of passage.

ASTEAD HERNDON