DENVER — The state Senate on Friday, on bipartisan lines, approved a sweeping measure that seeks to confront Colorado's fentanyl crisis by making it a felony to possess 1 gram of an illicit substance that contains the deadly drug.
The full Senate approved House Bill 1326 on a 24-8 vote, a day after the chamber decided that prosecutors shouldn't have to prove users knowingly possessed the drug in order to charge them with a felony offense.
The vote included "no" votes from three Democrats and five Republicans, and three excused.
> The video above aired May 5 when the state Senate advanced the fentanyl bill.
The revision is the most significant and far-reaching change to come out of the Senate's work on the legislature's response to overdoses, which surged nationwide over the past several years, as fentanyl, which is stronger than heroin and lethal in small doses, became an increasingly dominant presence in the illicit drug market.
In Colorado, more than 800 people died after ingesting fentanyl in 2021, according to state data.
Video below: Ashley Romero died in 2018 after taking half a fentanyl pill. Her family says they are desperate to share their story to help spare others of the experience:
RELATED: Colorado House passes fentanyl bill
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