Ruling Democrats at the Capitol are about to debut a long-awaited bill addressing our state’s deadly fentanyl epidemic.

Judging by an advance draft of the pending legislation – it’s a colossal cop-out.

Such a disappointing outcome after months of dithering by lawmakers – as Coloradans, especially our youths, continue to die from the drug – is unconscionable.

Gov. Jared Polis, who called for action on fentanyl at the outset of the 2022 legislative session, owes it to every Coloradan to send lawmakers back to the drawing board. He should demand a real response to the crisis – and a real fix for the disastrous legislation Democrats enacted three years ago decriminalizing possession of fentanyl and other hard drugs in the first place.

The governor’s mandate to our feckless, weak-kneed legislative leadership should be to authorize a late bill truly reversing the effects of the 2019 legislation. Foremost, they must make it a felony to possess any amount of fentanyl, which the legislation as it now stands does not. If lawmakers fail to deliver – and fail Colorado yet again – call them back in a special session.

As a result of the 2019 legislation, possession of up to 4 grams of fentanyl – which could kill up to 2,000 people – now warrants only a ticket from police. Law enforcement officers’ hands are tied.

The pending bill as drafted, as of press time Tuesday, at best moves the ball a few inches down the field. It only restores felony status for possession of 4 grams or more of any substance containing fentanyl. But if it’s less than that – even if it’s pure fentanyl – it would remain a misdemeanor. That’s absurd.

It amounts to a reprieve for fentanyl’s death merchants in China and Mexico. They have been flooding our state with the ultrapotent opioid and lacing it into a host of other illegal drugs. How comforting it must be to them that our “justice reform”-minded legislative majority supports unlimited second chances for criminals.

Assuming the bill’s chief provisions remain in place by the time it is officially introduced, probably this week, it also will be a slap in the face to the grieving loved ones left behind by the skyrocketing number of fentanyl victims across our state.

As of the end of 2021, our state had suffered 1,578 fentanyl-related deaths since 2015. That’s a stunning 1,008% increase in just six years. Since 2019, the increase in fentanyl deaths in our state has outstripped that of every other state but Alaska – surging 382% in that time. Nationally, overdose deaths from opioids of all varieties exceed homicides by 307%.

The point of making fentanyl possession a felony is to let police make an arrest so they can get the drug off the streets.

It has been likened to a weapon of mass destruction. Even a trace is a public menace. And someone in “possession” of 2 or 3 grams of it isn’t carrying it for personal use. Even those who aren’t peddling it share it at parties, concerts and even at school. Like the Colorado Springs high schooler who died in December after friends gave her some and she used it in a school restroom.

The legislative leadership has abdicated responsibility. It has caved in to a fringe of Democrats who confuse justice with coddling cold-blooded criminals. It’s now up to the governor – who unwisely signed the 2019 legislation – to make amends. His first step is setting lawmakers straight.

Denver Gazette editorial board