{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://gonzalez-colon.house.gov/media/press-releases/gonz-lez-col-n-murphy-welcome-release-2020-caribbean-border-counternarcotics", "Gonzlez-Coln, Murphy Welcome Release of 2020 Caribbean Border Counternarcotics Strategy", "2020-06-17", "2020", "2020-06", "Republican", "House", "PR", "Jenniffer Gonz\u00e1lez-Col\u00f3n", "G000582", "gonzalez-colon.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, D.C. - Today, Representatives Jenniffer Gonzlez-Coln (R-PR) and Stephanie Murphy (D-FL)welcomedtheOffice of National Drug ControlPolicy's(ONDCP)release of the2020 Caribbean Border Counternarcotics Strategy. The publication of this documentwhich articulates the U.S.strategy toreducedrug trafficking, drug-related violence, and drug addictionin Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islandsis the result ofthe two Congresswomen securinglegislativelanguagerequiringONDCP toupdatethis strategy,which waslast published in 2015.  \n\t  \n\tPuerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islandsthe United States' Caribbean borderareboth adestination and a transshipment point forillegaldrugs shipped to the mainlandUnited States,whichendangersthe lives of Americanslivingin the two territories andinstates along the eastern seaboard,especially Florida.  \n\t  \n\tIn 2014,the House Appropriations Committee directed ONDCPto publishthefirst-everCaribbean Border Counternarcotics Strategy. In January 2015, ONDCP published thestrategy. However, ONDCP had not updated the document sincethen, despite the congressional requirement that it be published every two years. Reps. Gonzlez-Coln and Murphythereforesecured languagerequiringONDCP topreparean updated Caribbean Border Counternarcotics Strategy.The lawalsodirected ONDCP to include that strategy in forthcoming versions of thebroaderNational Drug Control Strategy, just asONDCPis requiredto do for theSouthwest BorderCounternarcotics Strategy andtheNorthern Border CounternarcoticsStrategy.  \n\t  \n\tPuerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are at the forefront of our Nation's efforts to combat drug trafficking and transnational criminal organizations. Since arriving in Congress, I have made it my priority to ensure the federal government responds accordingly. The release of the 2020 Caribbean Border Counternarcotics Strategy is critical to this endeavor, providing the necessary framework for the United States to employ the most effective approach to address drug-related threats and violence on the islands. I'm proud to have worked with Congresswoman Murphy to achieve the strategy's publication and look forward to its implementation, said Rep. Jenniffer Gonzlez-Coln. American citizens in Florida and Puerto Rico face a common threat from international drug trafficking organizations, whose illegal activities cause violence and harm our communities,said Murphy, a former national security specialist at the Department of Defense. I am proud that Congresswoman Gonzlez-Coln and I worked across party lines to secure an updated federal government strategy to combat the threat in the Caribbean region. I hope and expect that this strategy will lead the federal government to allocate the necessary resources and personnel to this fight, saving lives and strengthening communities in both Florida and Puerto Rico.       \n\t  \n\tThe 2020 Caribbean Border Counternarcotics Strategyestablishesthree main goals: countering criminal networks, strengthening interdiction and law enforcement capabilities, and targeting specific drug transportation routes.  \n\t  \n\tImportantly, the Strategy recognizes thatdrug-related violence and drug use inPuerto Rico and theU.S. Virgin Islands, including violence between transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) operating in the region,endanger the lives of American citizensinthe two territories.For instance,the Strategy notes thatthe murder rates in the two territories haveconsistentlybeen among the highest in the United States, and that many, if not most,homicides and other violent crimes are connected tothedrug trade. According to law enforcement agencies, approximately 60 percent of all murders in Puerto Rico may be drug-related.  \n\t  \n\tThe Strategy further recognizes that political instabilityinVenezuela continues to generate new opportunities fordrug trafficking organizations,which complicatesU.S.efforts toreduce drug-related threats intheCaribbeanregion.  \n\t  \n\tReps. Gonzlez-Coln and Murphy have joinedforcesin the past tostrengthenthe federal government's counterdrug efforts.In October 2018, Rep. Gonzlez-Coln led a bipartisan letter urging ONDCP to update the geographically-focused strategies accompanying the National Drug Control Strategy, namely the National Southwest Border Counternarcotics Strategy, the National Northern Border Counternarcotics Strategy, and the Caribbean Border Counternarcotics Strategy. Congresswoman Murphy joined as a cosigner.  \n\t  \n\tIn May 2018, Rep. Gonzlez-Coln introduced legislation, H.R. 5869, theMaritime Border Security Review Act, to require the Secretary of Homeland Security to conduct a detailed threat analysis of the United States' maritime border, including the transit zone and the borders and territorial waters of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The Maritime Border Security Review Act passed the U.S. House of Representatives by voice vote in September 2018 and was eventually enacted into law as part of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 (Section 1813 of P.L. 115 254). Congresswoman Murphy was an original cosponsor of the bill.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://gonzalez-colon.house.gov/media/press-releases/gonz-lez-col-n-murphy-welcome-release-2020-caribbean-border-counternarcotics"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8098422549664974, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}