Statement by General Barry R. McCaffrey
Director, Office of National Drug Control Policy
Before the House Appropriations Committee,
Subcommittee on Treasury, Postal Service, and General Government

March 3, 1999

I.  Introduction

All of us in the Office of National Drug Control Policy thank the
Committee for the opportunity to testify today about the Office of
National Drug Control Policy's (ONDCP) Fiscal year 2000 budget.
Chairman Kolbe, Ranking Member Hoyer, distinguished members of the
subcommittee, your interest in all aspects of drug control policy and
your commitment to bipartisan support of a comprehensive response to
the nation's drug abuse problem are much appreciated. We welcome this
opportunity to review the FY 2000 budget request for ONDCP. However,
to provide a framework for understanding this budget, this testimony
must begin with an overview of the 1999 National Drug Control Strategy
and an analysis of current drug trends.

II.  Overview of the 1999 National Drug Control Strategy

-- The Requirement for a National Drug Control Strategy

The Office of National Drug Control Policy Reauthorization Act of 1998
required the President to submit to Congress by February 1999 a
comprehensive National Drug Control Strategy for reducing drug abuse
and the consequences of drug abuse in the United States by limiting
the availability of and reducing the demand for illegal drugs.
Specifically, the Act required that the strategy include:

-- Comprehensive, research-based, long-range, quantifiable, goals for
reducing drug abuse and the consequences of drug abuse in the United
States.

-- Annual, quantifiable, and measurable objectives and specific
targets to accomplish long-term quantifiable goals that the Director
determines may be achieved during each year of the period beginning on
the date on which the National Drug Control Strategy is submitted.

-- Five-year projections for program and budget priorities.

-- A review of international, state, local, and private sector drug
control activities to ensure that the United States pursues
well-coordinated and effective drug control at all levels of
government.

ONDCP has prepared the following documents in compliance with this
Act:

-- The National Drug Control Strategy.

-- Drug Control Budget: FY 2000.

-- Performance Measures of Effectiveness: Implementation and Findings.

-- Classified Annex.

It was the sense of the Congress in this Act that substantial progress
could be made toward achieving specific reductions in drug supply and
demand by the year 2003 as well as during the intervening years. This
Strategy sets in motion policies and programs designed to make
progress toward these targets. It contains careful analysis of what is
achievable by specified years. Specifically, it proposes a multi-year
conceptual framework to reduce illegal drug use and availability by 50
percent. If this goal is achieved, just 3 percent of the household
population aged twelve and over would use illegal drugs. This level
would be the lowest recorded drug-use rate in American history.
Drug-related health, economic, social, and criminal costs would also
be reduced commensurately. The Strategy also presents a detailed
performance measurement system that links goals, objectives, and mid-
and long-term targets. As we succeed in reaching our targets, we will
continue to achieve even further reductions insofar as resources and
other developments allow.

-- Annual Strategy Report

The ONDCP Reauthorization Act of 1998 also requires the President to
submit to Congress each February a report on progress in implementing
the Strategy. The 1999 Strategy contains a detailed report (in Chapter
II) on: progress in reducing drug use and availability in the United
States; the consequences of drug abuse; and the effectiveness of
prevention, treatment, enforcement, interdiction, and international
programs. A summary of the report contained in the Strategy follows:

Overall Trends: In 1997, there were 13.9 million current users of any
illicit drug in the total household population aged 12 and older, down
from the peak year of 1979, when 25 million (or 14.1 percent of the
population) abused illegal drugs. The 13.9 million number represents
6.4 percent of the total population and is statistically unchanged
from 1996. 36 percent aged twelve and older have used an illegal drug
in their lifetime. Of these, more than 90 percent used either
marijuana or hashish and approximately 30 percent tried cocaine. There
are an estimated 4 million chronic drug users in America: 3.6 million
chronic cocaine users (primarily crack cocaine) and 810,000 chronic
heroin users.

Juvenile Trends: Drug use among 12-17 year olds declined slightly in
1997 and 1998. Among 8th graders, past month use of illicit drugs
declined from 12.9 percent to 12.1 percent. Among 10th graders, the
percentage declined from 12.9 to 12.1. Among 12th graders, the decline
was from 26.2 percent to 25.6 percent. These declines follow an
earlier four-year trend or increasing drug use rates among 12-17 year
olds. Between 1992 and 1996, past month illicit drug use had increased
from 6.8 percent to 14.6 percent among 8th graders, increased from 11
percent to 23.2 percent among 10th graders, and increased from 14.4
percent to 24.6 percent among 12th graders. Use of inhalants declined
among 8th graders from 5.6 percent in 1997 to 4.8 percent in 1998. In
1998 alcohol use decreased among 10th graders, and remained stable
among 8th graders and 12th graders, albeit at unacceptably high
levels. Past-month use of cigarettes slightly declined among 8th,
10th, and 12th graders from 1997 to 1998. We are concerned that every
day more than 6,000 people aged eighteen or younger try their first
cigarette, and more than 3,000 people aged eighteen or younger become
daily smokers.

Drug Availability: In 1997, an estimated 289 metric tons (MTs) of
cocaine were available in the U.S., the lowest amount since the 1980s
and far below the peak of 529 MTs in 1992. 145 MTs of cocaine were
seized enroute to the U.S. in 1998. Marijuana remains readily
available. Information about heroin price and purity is imprecise. In
1998 the average retail price for a pure gram of heroin was
approximately $1,799; the wholesale price was $318. These prices were
significantly lower than in 1981, when the retail price per gram was
estimated to be $3,115 and the wholesale price $1,194. The average
purity for retail heroin in 1998 was 25 percent, much higher than
1991's average of 19 percent. Methamphetamine remains the most
prevalent synthetic drug. Americans spent $57 billion on illegal drugs
in 1995, down 37 percent since 1988.

Consequences of Drug Abuse: Drug-related deaths climbed throughout the
1990s but have leveled off at about 9,300. Drug-related medical
emergencies remain near historic highs but remained statistically
constant, with 514,347 episodes in 1996 and 527,058 in 1997. Illegal
drugs cost our society approximately $110 billion each year.

Drugs and Crime: More than 60 percent of adult male arrestees tested
positive for drugs in 20 major cities in 1997. Drug offenders account
for 25 percent of the growth in the state prison population and 72
percent of the growth in the federal prison population since 1990.

Drugs and the Workplace: 6.7 million current illegal drug users were
employed full-time in 1997. Another 1.6 million current users worked
part-time. Drug abuse is twice as prevalent among the unemployed
compared to those employed full-time. Drug users are less dependable
than other workers and decrease workplace productivity. They are more
likely to have taken an unexcused absence in the past month; 12.1
percent did so compared to 6.1 percent of drug-free workers. Illegal
drug users get fired more frequently (4.6 percent were terminated
within the past year compared to 1.4 percent of non-users). Drug users
also switch jobs more frequently; 32.1 percent worked for three or
more employers in the past year, compared to 17.9 percent of
non-drug-using workers. One-quarter of drug users left a job
voluntarily in the past year. This high turnover increases training
and other productivity-related costs to American businesses.

Goals and objectives of the 1999 National Drug Control Strategy

Goals. The Strategy's five goals are comprehensive in that they cover
the three broad aspects of drug control: demand reduction, supply
reduction, and adverse consequences of drug abuse and trafficking. In
addition, these goals are national in that they state what we must
collectively achieve; they are not markers for solely a federal
effort. Finally, these goals are research-based, quantifiable, and
long-range. The five goals and 31 objectives reflect the need for
prevention and education to protect all Americans, especially
children, from the perils of drugs; treatment to help the chemically
dependent; law enforcement to bring traffickers and other drug
offenders to justice; interdiction to reduce the flow of drugs into
our nation; international cooperation to confront drug cultivation,
production, trafficking, and use; and research to ensure policy is
based on science.

Goal 1: Educate and enable America's youth to reject illegal drugs as
well as alcohol and tobacco.

The Strategy focuses on youth for both moral and practical reasons.
Children must be nurtured and protected from drug use and other forms
of risky behavior to ensure that they grow up as healthy, productive
members of society. As youngsters grow, they assimilate what they
observe. Drug use is preventable. If children reach adulthood without
using illegal drugs, alcohol, or tobacco, they are unlikely to develop
a chemical-dependency problem. To this end, the Strategy fosters
initiatives to educate children about the real dangers associated with
drugs. ONDCP seeks to involve parents, coaches, mentors, teachers,
clergy, and other role models in a broad prevention campaign. ONDCP
encourages businesses, communities, schools, the entertainment
industry, universities, and sports organizations to join these
national anti-drug efforts.

Goal 2: Increase the safety of America's citizens by substantially
reducing drug-related crime and violence.

The negative social consequences of drug-related crime and violence
mirror the tragedy that substance abuse wreaks on individuals. A large
percentage of the twelve million property crimes committed each year
are drug-related as is a significant proportion of nearly two million
violent crimes. The nation's estimated 4 million chronic drug users
contribute disproportionally to this problem. Drug-related crime can
be reduced through community-oriented policing and other
law-enforcement tactics, which have been demonstrated by police
departments in New York and other cities where crime rates are
plunging. Cooperation among federal, state, and local law-enforcement
agencies also makes a difference. Operations targeting gangs,
trafficking organizations, and violent drug dealers have contributed
to declining violence associated with illegal drug markets. Equitable
enforcement of fair laws is critical. We are a nation wedded to the
prospect of equal justice for all. Punishment must be perceived as
commensurate with the offense. Finally, the criminal justice system
must do more than punish. It should use its coercive powers to break
the cycle of drugs and crime. Treatment must be made available to the
chemically dependent in our nation's prisons.

Goal 3: Reduce health and social costs to the public of illegal drug
use.

Drug dependence is a chronic, relapsing disorder that exacts an
enormous cost on individuals, families, businesses, communities, and
nations. Addicted individuals frequently engage in self-destructive
and criminal behavior. Treatment can help them end dependence on
addictive drugs. Treatment programs, moreover, can reduce the
consequences of addictive drug use on the rest of society. The
ultimate goal of treatment is to enable a patient to become abstinent
and to improve functioning through sustained recovery. On the way to
that goal, reducing drug use, improving the addict's ability to
function, and minimizing medical consequences are useful interim
outcomes. Treatment options include therapeutic communities,
behavioral treatment, medication (e.g., methadone,
levo-alph-acetyl-methadol (LAAM), or naltrexone for heroin addiction),
outpatient drug free programs, hospitalization, psychiatric programs,
twelve-step recovery programs, and treatment that combines two or more
of these options. Providing treatment for America's chronic drug users
is both compassionate public policy and a sound investment. For
example, the recent Drug Abuse Treatment Outcome Study (DATOS) found
that outpatient methadone treatment reduced heroin use by 70 percent,
cocaine use by 48 percent, and criminal activity by 57 percent, and
increased employment by 24 percent. The same survey also revealed that
long-term residential treatment achieved similar successes.

Goal 4: Shield America's air, land, and sea frontiers from the drug
threat.

The United States is obligated to protect its citizens from the
threats posed by illegal drugs crossing our borders. Interdiction in
the transit and arrival zones disrupts drug flow, increases risks to
traffickers, drives them to less efficient routes and methods, and
prevents significant quantities of drugs from reaching the United
States. Interdiction operations also produce information that can be
used by domestic law enforcement agencies against trafficking
organizations. Each year, more than 68 million passengers arrive in
the United States aboard 830,000 commercial and private aircraft.
Another eight million individuals arrive by sea, and a staggering 365
million people cross our land borders driving approximately 115
million vehicles. Ten million trucks and cargo containers and 90,000
merchant and passenger ships also enter the United States annually,
carrying some 400 million metric tons of cargo. Amid this voluminous
trade, drug traffickers seek to hide approximately 300 metric tons of
cocaine, thirteen metric tons of heroin, vast quantities of marijuana,
and smaller amounts of other illegal substances.

Goal 5:  Break foreign and domestic drug sources of supply.

The rule of law, human rights, and democratic institutions are
threatened by drug trafficking and consumption. International supply
reduction programs not only reduce the volume of illegal drugs
reaching our shores; they, also attack international criminal
organizations, strengthen democratic institutions, and honor our
international drug-control commitments. The U.S. supply-reduction
strategy seeks to: (1) eliminate illegal drug cultivation and
production; (2) destroy drug-trafficking organizations; (3) interdict
drug shipments; (4) encourage international cooperation; and (5)
safeguard democracy and human rights. The United States continues to
focus international drug-control efforts on source countries.
International drug-trafficking organizations and their production and
trafficking infrastructures are most concentrated, detectable, and
vulnerable to effective law-enforcement action in source countries. In
addition, the cultivation of coca and opium poppy and production of
cocaine and heroin are labor intensive. For these reasons, cultivation
and processing are relatively easier to disrupt than other downstream
aspects of the trade. The international drug control strategy seeks to
bolster source country resources, capabilities, and political will to
reduce cultivation, attack production, interdict drug shipments, and
disrupt and dismantle trafficking organizations, including their
command and control structure and financial underpinnings.

Objectives. The Strategy also presents 31 objectives that are more
narrowly focused than these five goals and stipulate the specific ways
in which the goals will be attained. Under the prevention goal (Goal
1), for example, nine supporting objectives articulate the specific
ways that illegal drug use and underage consumption of alcohol and
tobacco products will be discouraged. Programmatic initiatives will be
tied directly to one or more of these objectives. The national youth
anti-drug media campaign, for example, supports objective 2 ("pursue a
vigorous advertising and public communications program") and objective
7 ("create partnerships with the media, entertainment industry, and
professional sports organizations") of Goal 1.

-- The Supporting Performance Measures of Effectiveness (PME) System

Strategy links ends, ways, and means. Progress toward a strategy's
goals and objectives must be constantly assessed in order to gauge
success or failure and adjust the strategy accordingly. ONDCP has
developed -- in conjunction with national drug-control program
agencies, Congress, state and local officials, and private citizens
with experience in demand and supply reduction -- a Performance
Measurement of Effectiveness (PME) system to orient drug-control
efforts. This system:

(1) assesses the effectiveness of the Strategy;

(2) provides information to the entire drug-control community on what
needs to be done to refine policy and programmatic directions; and

(3) assists with drug program budget management.

The PME system identifies 97 performance targets, of which twelve
indicate the impact of national drug-control activities on the
Strategy's five overarching goals. The other 85 measure progress
toward the Strategy's 31 supporting objectives. These targets
represent desired end-states for the years 2002 and 2007. They are
"stretch targets" in that they require progress above that attained in
previous years. This assessment is in keeping with recommendations of
the National Academy of Public Administration, the General Accounting
Office, and other organizations advocating good government practices.

Progress toward each goal and objective will be gauged using existing
research and new surveys. Monitoring the Future and the National
Household Survey of Drug Abuse, for example, both estimate risk
perception, rates of current use, age of initiation, and life-time use
for alcohol, tobacco, and most illegal drugs. The Arrestee Drug Abuse
Monitoring System (ADAM) and Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN)
indirectly measure the consequences of drug abuse. The State
Department's annual International Narcotics Control Strategy Report
(INCSR) provides country-by-country assessments of initiatives and
accomplishments. INCSR reviews statistics on drug cultivation,
eradication, production, trafficking patterns, and seizure along with
law-enforcement efforts including arrests and the destruction of drug
laboratories. The Subcommittee on Data, Research, and Interagency
Coordination will consider additional instruments and measurement
processes required to address the demographics of chronic users,
domestic cannabis cultivation, drug availability, and data shortfalls
related to drug policy.

The relationship between goals, objectives, targets, and federal and
non-federal resources will be reassessed and refined continuously to
reflect the dynamic drug-abuse problem and progress in reducing its
scope. Non-achievement of a target over a period of time will trigger
an in-depth interagency program evaluation to identify problems and
recommend corrective action. Such measures might include a range of
options such as modifying programs, reinforcing them with more
resources, or eliminating them altogether. This ongoing review process
will also allow reinforcement of successful programs.

III.  The Supporting Fiscal Year 2000 Federal Drug Control Budget

In total, drug control funding recommended for FY 2000 is $17.8
billion, an increase of $735 million (+4.3%) over FY 1999 regular
appropriations of $17.0 billion. In addition to regular
appropriations, federal drug control agencies received $844 million
for emergency purposes in FY 1999. With this emergency funding, drug
control appropriations total $17.9 billion in FY 1999. Spending that
supports drug education, prevention and treatment programs increases
by $210.0 million (+3.6%) in FY 2000 over FY 1999 regular
appropriations. Spending that supports drug law enforcement efforts
increases by $524.8 million (+4.7%) in FY 2000 over FY 1999 regular
appropriations. Major increases in the budget submitted by the
Administration follow:

1.  Youth Prevention

-- School Coordinators: (Total $50 million, an increase of $15M).
These additional resources will expand the School Coordinator program,
started in FY 1999. With this increase, total funding for this
initiative will be $50 million in FY 2000. This program will support
the hiring of drug prevention coordinators in nearly half of the
middle schools across the country to help improve the quality and
effectiveness of drug prevention programs.

-- National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign: (Total $195 million, an
increase of $10M). This additional funding brings the budget for
ONDCP's Media Campaign to $195 million in FY 2000. With this money,
ONDCP will continue its targeted, high impact, paid media campaign
designed to change naive adolescent perceptions of the dangers and
social approval of drugs.

-- Youth Tobacco Prevention: (Total $169 million, an increase of
$61M). The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will receive an
increase of $27.0 million in drug-related funds to extend state-based
efforts to conduct comprehensive programs to reduce and prevent
tobacco use. The Food and Drug Administration will receive an
additional $34.0 million in drug-related funding in FY 2000 to expand
implementation of its final rule intended to halt the supply of
tobacco products to children.

2.  Criminal Justice Programs

-- Drug Intervention Program: (New program -- $100 million.) This
initiative, funded through the Office of Justice Programs, will
provide drug abuse assistance to state and local governments to
develop and implement comprehensive systems for drug testing, drug
treatment and graduated sanctions for offenders.

-- Drug Courts: (Total $50 million, an increase of $10M.) This program
provides alternatives to incarceration through using the coercive
power of the court to force abstinence and alter behavior with a
combination of escalating sanctions, mandatory drug testing,
treatment, and strong after care programs.

3. Treatment

-- Treatment Capacity Expansion Grants: (Total $110 million, an
increase of $55M.) This additional funding will help the Substance
Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) expand the
availability of drug treatment in areas of existing or emerging
treatment need.

-- Substance Abuse Block Grant Program: (Total $1.615 billion, an
increase of $30M ($24.8 million drug-related.) This increase for
SAMHSA's Substance Abuse Block Grant will provide funding to states
for treatment and prevention services. This program is the backbone of
federal efforts to reduce the gap between those who are actively
seeking substance abuse treatment and the capacity of the public
treatment system.

4. Law Enforcement and International Programs

-- Southwest border -- INS: (Total $450.8 million, an increase of $50M
($7.5 million drug-related)). INS will continue to deploy the
Integrated Surveillance Information System (ISIS). ISIS, which
incorporates infrared and color cameras with ground sensors, will aid
Border Patrol enforcement efforts and drug interdiction along the
Southwest border.

-- International Programs -- State: (Total $265 million, an increase
of $29M). These new resources over FY 1999 (excluding emergency
funding) are requested for the Bureau of International Narcotics and
Law Enforcement Affairs (INL). This additional funding includes
support for Andean countries, Mexico, and assistance to international
organizations.

-- DEA Drug Intelligence: (Total spending for DEA is $1.469 billion.
Spending on intelligence will increase by $22 million.) This funding
will provide $13 million to accelerate implementation of DEA's
FIREBIRD office automation system. FIREBIRD includes e-mail, uniform
word processing and other forms of office automation that will provide
DEA with more sophisticated electronic investigative records. Once
fully deployed, FIREBIRD will allow DEA components located around the
world to act as one cohesive unit through instantaneous access to
critical law enforcement and intelligence information. In addition, $9
million will enhance DEA's Special Operations Division by providing
critical support for Title III investigations aimed at dismantling
drug trafficking organizations.

-- Forward Operating Locations -- DOD: (New program -- $70.6 million.)
The drug control budget for the Department of Defense includes these
additional resources in FY 2000 for restructuring SOUTHCOM's theater
counterdrug architecture, which will include the development of three
Forward Operating Locations (FOLs). These FOLs will support transit
and source zone air operations in SOUTHCOM's area of responsibility.

IV. ONDCP's Coordinating Role

The Office of National Drug Control Policy's statutory
responsibilities are established in the following laws and executive
orders:

The Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988. A key provision of that Act was the
establishment of ONDCP to set priorities, implement a national
strategy, and certify federal drug-control budgets. The law specifies
that the strategy must be comprehensive and research based, contain
long-range goals and measurable objectives, and seek to reduce drug
abuse, trafficking, and their consequences. Specifically, drug abuse
is to be curbed by preventing youth from using illegal drugs, reducing
the number of users, and decreasing drug availability.

The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 extended
ONDCP's mission to assessing budgets and resources related to the
National Drug Control Strategy. It also established specific reporting
requirements in the areas of drug use, availability, consequences, and
treatment.

Executive Order No. 12880 (1993) and Executive Orders Nos. 12992 and
13023 (1996) assigned ONDCP responsibility within the executive branch
for leading drug-control policy and developing an outcome-measurement
system. The executive orders also chartered the President's Drug
Policy Council and established the ONDCP Director as the President's
chief spokesman for drug control.

The Office of National Drug Control Policy Reauthorization Act of 1998
expanded ONDCP's mandate and authorities and set forth additional
reporting requirements and expectations, including:

(1) Development of a long-term national drug strategy.

(2) Implementation of a robust performance-measurement system.

(3) Commitment to a five-year national drug-control program budget.

(4) Permanent authority granted to the High Intensity Drug Trafficking
Areas (HIDTA) Program, along with improvements in HIDTA management.

(5) Greater demand-reduction responsibilities given to the
Counter-Drug Technology Assessment Center (CTAC).

(6) Statutory authority for the President's Council on
Counter-Narcotics.

(7) Increased reporting to Congress on drug-control activities.

(8) Reorganization of ONDCP to allow more effective national
leadership.

(9) Improved coordination among National Drug Control Program
agencies.

(10) Establishment of a Parents Advisory Council on Drug Abuse.

V. ONDCP's FY 2000 Budget Request

-- Salaries and Expenses:  $21.933 Million

ONDCP's budget provides $21.933 million for salaries and expenses to
support ONDCP's requested 158 Full Time Equivalents (FTEs) -- 128 full
time employees and 30 detailees. This $21.933 million for salaries and
expenses is the smallest programmatic component of the ONDCP budget.
However, this funding is the linchpin for all the other programs
funded through the ONDCP budget. Without a fully staffed and funded
ONDCP, none of these other initiatives can be carried out.

ONDCP is an organization of committed professional men and women. The
FY 2000 request for $21.933 million represents a $2.791 million
increase over the enacted FY 1999 total of $19.142 million. Major
expenses include:

-- $9.768 million for compensation of 128 FTES. This represents an
increase of $822,000 over the FY 1999 enacted total of $8.946 million,
to support pay raises, within grade increases, and 4 additional FTEs
for two growing areas within ONDCP.

-- $2.210 million for total personnel benefits.

-- $5.845 million for guard services, professional services contracts,
maintenance services, and related costs. Over the last year, we have
taken prudent steps to increase the security of both our personnel and
sensitive information within the office's purview.

-- $2.202 million for rental payments to GSA.

-- $754,000 for travel and transportation costs.

-- $847,000 for communications, utilities, printing, reproduction, and
related miscellaneous costs.

-- $307,000 for equipment, supplies and materials, and
representational allowance.

-- Educating America's Young People, Empowering Communities, and
Advancing Our Understanding of America's Drug Problem: $225.3 Million
for the Special Forfeiture Fund.

The National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign

The President requests $195,000,000 for the National Youth Anti-Drug
Media Campaign. The anti-drug media campaign began in January 1998 in
twelve test sites and was expanded nationwide in July. Once ads began
to run in the twelve test sites, anti-drug awareness increased and
requests for anti-drug publications increased by more than 300
percent. The campaign harnesses a diverse mix of television, video,
radio, Internet, and other forms of new media to deliver anti-drug
messages. Its objectives are "universal," aiming at all adolescents,
parents, and primary caregivers. Messages and channels through which
they are being delivered are tailored for specific regional, ethnic,
cultural, gender, and age differences among members of the target
audiences. Advertisements are being prepared in eleven different
languages. Paid and public service advertising, news, public-affairs
programming, and entertainment venues are being used in the media
campaign.

So far, media outlets are matching paid advertisements with
public-service time for advertisements and pro-bono programming
content on more than a one-for-one basis. In the past year, we
received $165 million in free public service announcement spots and
$40 million in corporate contributions. Public-service advertising
space generated by the paid campaign is being dedicated to messages
that target underage drinking and smoking, as well as other messages
related to the campaign's communications objectives. We have also
developed partnerships with a broad range of community and civic
groups, professional associations, government agencies, and
corporations. The entertainment industry is also responding favorably.
In 1998, 30 television programs focused on themes and messages
supportive of the campaign. While the campaign's goal was to reach 90
percent of the target audience with four messages a week, by January
1999, 95 percent of the target audience was receiving seven anti-drug
messages a week.

The outstanding results attained during the first year of this media
campaign are a function of the outstanding support of the private
sector. The firm Porter-Novelli developed our strategic communications
plan. Bates Advertising and Zenith Media planned and bought ad time
and space in the initial phases of the campaign. Ogilvy and Mather is
ONDCP's long term contractor for ad planning and placement.
Fleishman-Hillard is our contractor for non-advertising media
(entertainment industry collaboration, Internet initiatives,
partnerships with major organizations serving youth and parents, and
public education and media outreach). The Partnership for a Drug-Free
America continues to produce most of the ads for the paid component of
the campaign. The Ad Council serves as a clearing house for public
service ads which are supported by campaign-generated ads. The
American Advertising Federation and the National Association of State
Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors (NASADAD) form the core public
service task force at the local level to ensure local and community
organizations are supported by matching funds/air time. The support of
most of the major television networks, the Disney Corporation, America
Online, and other multimedia companies is indicative of the breadth of
support this campaign has generated.

The Drug-Free Communities Program

The President requests $22,000,000 to continue the Drug-Free
Communities Program. Government response is only a small part of the
national effort to counter illegal drugs. Communities are significant
partners for local, state and federal agencies working to reduce drug
use, especially among young people and deserve continued support. This
program provides grants, information, and other essential support to
communities around the country as they organize to confront drug
abuse. Thousands of communities around the country have formed
coalitions that coordinate local reactions to the illegal drug
problem. Coalitions typically include schools, businesses, law
enforcement agencies, social service organizations, faith communities,
medical groups, and youth groups, as well as county and local
government. Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA) supports
these organizations through technical assistance, leadership
development, and information dissemination.

The Drug-Free Communities Act of 1997 provides vital support to
communities. The program's genesis and growth has been fueled by an
unprecedented level of bipartisan support. In FY 1998, $10 million in
grants were provided to 92 coalitions in 46 states. ONDCP also
conducted an initial training and technical assistance conference and
a presidentially appointed Advisory Commission was established. In FY
1999, we project that support will be provided to the original 92
recipients and that an additional 119 communities will be awarded
grants. This FY 2000 request will support the coalitions that received
grants in FY 1998 and FY 1999 and will fund an additional 68 grants. A
key feature of this program is ease of application and reporting
requirements. Grants will be made to coalitions of representatives of
youth, parents, businesses, the media, schools, youth organizations,
law enforcement, religious or fraternal organizations, civic groups,
health care professionals, state, local, or tribal government
agencies, and other organizations. The requirement for participating
communities to match funding will help ensure local initiatives,
support, and accountability.

An Advisory Commission on Drug-Free Communities has been established
to advise, consult with, and make recommendations to the ONDCP
Director concerning activities carried out under the Program. In
addition to providing outright support for coalitions, ONDCP and its
partners -- OJJDP and CSAP -- are providing training and technical
assistance to individuals and groups to enable them to start up
coalitions in their communities.

Director's Discretion

The President requests $8,300,000 for the ONDCP Director's discretion
to enhance drug control activities and address emerging drug threats.
We believe that it is essential for the ONDCP Director to have
discretionary funds with which to respond to unforeseen contingencies.
We would be delighted to brief Congress on a regular basis concerning
programs funded and accomplishments.

At least $3.3 million will be used to improve the Federal Drug Related
Data Systems. This past February, ONDCP issued its first annual report
on the Performance Measures of Effectiveness (PME) system for the
National Drug Control Strategy. The PME is the first federal
performance measurement system cutting across departments and agencies
on a single area. It contains 97 performance targets for the five
goals and 31 objectives of the Strategy. We have conducted a gap
analysis to determine the number of targets for which data need to be
developed. ONDCP's Subcommittee on Data, Research, and Interagency
Coordination will review existing Federal data systems, within the
context of the gap analysis, to determine what additions/modifications
can be made to existing data systems to provide the measures for the
PME system.

This funding request will provide support for agencies to modify or
add to their existing data systems. Some projects targeted include:
deriving annual estimates of the social costs of drug abuse;
developing SAMHSA's National Treatment Outcome Monitoring Study; and
developing estimates of drug availability. Funds will be transferred
to agencies once a plan to redesign/modify/add to an existing data
system has been submitted to and approved by ONDCP. Outyear funding is
required to support ONDCP's continual data development projects.
Agencies will be required to provide continuation funding in the out
years through their own appropriations.

-- Strengthening Law Enforcement: $185.777 Million for the High
Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Program

High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) are regions with
critical drug-trafficking problems that harmfully affect other areas
of the United States. These locations are designated by the ONDCP
Director in consultation with the Attorney General, the Secretary of
the Treasury, heads of drug-control agencies, and governors. There are
currently 21 HIDTAs. HIDTAs assess regional drug threats, design
strategies to address the threats, develop integrated initiatives, and
provide federal resources to implement these initiatives. HIDTAs
strengthen America's drug-control efforts by forging partnerships
among local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies; they
facilitate cooperative investigations, intelligence sharing, and joint
operations against trafficking organizations. In 1998, new HIDTAs were
designated in central Florida (including Orlando and Tampa), North
Texas, the Milwaukee metropolitan area, and the marijuana-growing
regions of Kentucky, Tennessee, and West Virginia. HIDTAs have been
established in the following locations:

Since January 1990, countries in 21 areas across the United States
have been designated as HIDTAs:

1990

New York/New Jersey; Los Angeles; Miami; Houston; Southwest Border
(which contains the five partnerships of the California Border,
Arizona, New Mexico, West Texas, and South Texas).

1994

Baltimore/Washington, D.C.; Puerto Rico/U.S. Virgin Islands.

1995

Chicago; Atlanta; Philadelphia/Camden.

1996

Rocky Mountain (Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming); Gulf Coast (Alabama,
Louisiana, and Mississippi); Lake County (Lake County, Indiana);
Midwest (Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and South Dakota), focused
on methamphetamine; Pacific NW (Washington Cascades).

1997

Southeast Michigan; San Francisco Bay.

1998

Central Florida; Kentucky/West Virginia/Tennessee; Milwaukee; North
Texas.

This FY 2000 request for $185,777,000 for HIDTA is $1.8 million
greater than the FY 1999 enacted HIDTA budget. The additional funding
is required to retain independent auditors to perform financial and
programmatic reviews of the HIDTAs. At least half of the resources
will go to state and local participants to support more than 250 task
forces and initiatives.

-- Deploying Advanced Technologies to Fight Drugs: $19 Million for the
Counterdrug Technology Assessment Center

The ONDCP Reauthorization Act of 1998 reestablished within ONDCP the
Counter-Drug Technology Assessment Center (CTAC) to serve as the
central counter-drug technology research and development organization
of the United States Government. CTAC's responsibilities include:

(a) identify and define the short-, medium-, and long-term scientific
and technological needs of Federal, State, and local drug supply
reduction agencies, including:

(i) advanced surveillance, tracking, and radar imaging;

(ii) electronic support measures;

(iii) communications;

(iv) data fusion, advanced computer systems, and artificial
intelligence; and

(v) chemical, biological, radiological (including neutron, electron,
and graviton), and other means of detection;

(b) identify demand reduction basic and applied research needs and
initiatives, in consultation with affected National Drug Control
Program agencies, including:

(i) improving treatment through neuroscientific advances;

(ii) improving the transfer of biomedical research to the clinical
setting; and

(iii) in consultation with the National Institute on Drug Abuse, and
through interagency agreements or grants, examining addiction and
rehabilitation research and the application of technology to expanding
the effectiveness or availability of drug treatment;

(c) make a priority ranking of such needs identified in subparagraphs
(A) and (B) according to fiscal and technological feasibility, as part
of a National Counter-Drug Enforcement Research and Development
Program;

(d) oversee and coordinate counter-drug technology initiatives with
related activities of other Federal civilian and military departments;

(e) provide support to the development and implementation of the
national drug control performance measurement system; and

(f) submit requests to Congress for the reprogramming or transfer of
funds appropriated for counter-drug technology research and
development.

CTAC is pursuing a comprehensive research and development (R&D)
program in support of the long-term National Drug Control Strategy.
This R&D program has three essential elements:

-- Projects to support the development of federal law enforcement and
drug abuse treatment technology.

-- Technical assessments and operational test and evaluation of
emerging drug detection and tactical counterdrug technology for field
transition.

-- A program to transfer federal counterdrug technology directly to
state and local law enforcement organizations.

Supporting activities include a variety of regional one-day workshops,
technical symposia, and ad hoc studies to promote the exchange of
relevant information throughout the scientific and technical
community. These outreach activities serve to reduce unnecessary
duplication of effort and provide the mechanism for CTAC to oversee
and coordinate counterdrug technology initiatives with related
activities of other federal, civilian and military departments. This
oversight and coordination effort extends to include developments in
the industrial, academic and federal laboratory sectors, as well.

CTAC has organized its R&D program according to five technology
categories or areas of work:

-- Non-intrusive inspection technology development.

-- Tactical technology development for federal agencies.

-- Demand reduction technology.

-- Technical assessments and operational test and evaluation of
emerging technology.

-- Transfer of federally developed technology directly to state and
local law enforcement organizations.

National laboratories, private industry and academic institutions are
the sources for the expertise needed for technology development
efforts and have performed the research within the R&D Program.
Standard and centralized test and evaluation activities performed
under CTAC sponsorship are used by the law enforcement community to
validate expected system performance in the field and assist in rapid
transfer of successful technology to the end-users.

-- Expanding Our Understanding of the Problem: $1.2 Million for
ONDCP-Coordinated Policy Research

The President requests $1,200,000 for policy research in FY 2000, an
increase of $100,000 over FY 1999. This increase is primarily to
provide funding for evaluations to be conducted in support of ONDCP's
Performance Measures of Effectiveness (PME) system. ONDCP conducts
policy research to develop and assess drug policy, identify and detail
changing trends in the supply of and demand for illegal drugs, monitor
trends in drug use and identify emerging drug problems, assess program
effectiveness, and improve the sources of data and information about
the drug situation. The requested funds will support a wide range of
policy research areas, such as:

-- Drug-Flow Modeling. ONDCP is currently leading an interagency
process to estimate the flow of drugs, from source country to
distribution in the United States. The four drugs of interest are
cocaine, heroin, marijuana, and methamphetamine. No single agency
provides the data for the entire process, rather many agencies have
key pieces. For example, the CIA's Crime and Narcotics Center provides
data on potential cultivation, the Coast Guard and DOD provided data
on events and seizures in the transit zone, and Customs provide data
on seizures at ports of entry. We are working with the relevant agency
staff to review their data, improve their estimates, and fit their
data into the overall model. The resulting estimates will be used to
measure progress in achieving several of the targets in the
Performance Measures of Effectiveness system of the Strategy.

-- Price of Illicit Drugs. This yearly project generates quarterly and
annual illicit drug prices and purities for the United States and
selected cities. Results of the project are used to monitor market
trends and support other research projects related to the illicit drug
market. Statistical models based on data from the DEA are used to
estimate typical prices for standardized purchases of heroin, cocaine,
and marijuana. The paper includes price trends for these standardized
purchases over time.

-- Deterrence Study. The purpose of this study is to develop a
reliable functional relationship between the allocation and
application of interdiction resources and the deterrence of illegal
drug smuggling. The analysis is principally confined to deterrence
associated with interdiction operations against all routes and
modalities of illegal drug smuggling in the Source, Transit, and
Arrival Zones. It addresses domestic U.S. description activities only
to the extent that these activities affect interdiction operations or
suggest changes in smuggling routes likely to alter the flow of drugs
in the Source, Transit, and Arrival Zones. The first half of the study
was supported with FY 1998 funds from ONDCP, the Coast Guard, and
Customs.

-- Gallup -- Consultation with America Survey. This project is a
follow up of a similar survey conducted by the Gallup Organization for
ONDCP two years ago as part of ONDCP's Strategy consultation process.
The survey asks respondents their attitudes and perceptions regarding
a number of drug-related issues, including their perception of the
importance of the problem relative to other national issues. The
information obtained from the survey will be useful to the development
of the National Drug Control Strategy and as a measurement source for
several PME targets.

-- Federal Grant Directory. The Directory produced every 2-3 years
assists state and local governments, community coalitions,
researchers, and others in identifying and applying for Federal grants
by cataloging Federal programs that award drug-related grants. It also
provides information on how to identify and contact private
foundations that also may provide valuable resources in the field. The
third edition of the Directory is currently being prepared.

-- Pulse Check. This report, issued twice each year, provides details
on current drug use and emerging trends based on qualitative
information from the police, ethnographers, and epidemiologists
working in the field, and providers of drug treatment services across
the country. The report contains separate sections on marijuana,
cocaine, and heroin markets and patterns of use.

-- Technical Paper: What America's Users Spend on Illegal Drugs. The
report is prepared once every two years and estimates the amount of
drugs available in the United States and how much Americans spend to
purchase them. The report focuses on the retail sales value of
cocaine, heroin, marijuana, and other illegal drugs. It currently
provides ONDCP's estimates of the size of the hardcore user
population.

-- National Alliance for Model State Drug Laws -- $1,000,000

State drug laws play a critical role in the effort to reduce drug
availability and use. In recognition of this fact, in 1988 Congress
mandated the creation of a bipartisan, presidentially appointed
commission to develop model state drug legislation. The resulting
President's Commission on Model State Drug Laws developed 44 exemplary
drug laws. Since 1993, the Alliance for Model State Drug Laws has been
holding workshops throughout the country to focus attention on state
policies and laws concerning drugs. The adoption of the Model State
Drug Laws, and the continued efforts of the Alliance, are important to
national drug-control efforts.

The National Alliance for Model State Drug Laws (Alliance) encourages
States to adopt and implement model laws, policies, and regulations to
reduce drug use and its adverse consequences. The Alliance's success
in promoting model laws among the States has prompted interest in
assessing outcomes associated with such laws. The FY 2000 request
funds the Alliances' administrative costs.

VI. Conclusion

The Office of National Drug Control Policy's budget request of
$454.210 million is a modest component of the requested $17.8 billion
federal drug control budget. However, the importance of this funding
cannot be overstated. This support will provide ONDCP the resources
necessary to ensure the successful implementation of the 1999 National
Drug Control Strategy, which will have broad reaching, positive
impacts on this nation and its citizens.

All of us at ONDCP are proud of the growing partnership between the
Executive and Legislative branches on drug control issues. This
Strategy responds to longstanding congressional concerns over the
adequacy of the federal response to the drug problem. It provides
detailed long-term plans for addressing domestic and international
trends in drug use, production, and trafficking. This Strategy is
national in scope and purpose. The federal government cannot
accomplish the objectives laid out in this Strategy without the
support of the 50 states and four U.S. territories, as well as the
thousands of city, county, and local governments threatened by illegal
drugs. This Strategy also recognizes that it is only the federal
government that can undertake international drug-control efforts,
consequently, it also promotes vigorous international cooperation.
Finally, the Strategy addresses congressional concerns over lack of
accountability of drug-control programs by including specific
benchmarks for a base year (1996) against which to measure progress
and hard data results for 1997 and 1998 (where such data is
available).

We look forward to working with committee members and, indeed, the
entire Congress to ensure that the federal response to the nation's
drug problem is comprehensive, appropriately resourced, and completely
supportive of states, cities, counties, communities, families, and all
citizens who share our commitment to confronting the cancer of drug
abuse.