Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Contact: Jennifer de Vallance 202-395-6618
Wednesday, April 9, 2003

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) —John P. Walters, the White House Director of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), testified today before the House Committees on Appropriations' Subcommittee on Transportation, Treasury, and Related Agencies regarding the Administration's FY '04 budget request for ONDCP. In his remarks, Director Walters highlighted progress made in the national effort to reduce substance abuse by 10 percent in two years and by 25 percent in five years.

Director Walters said, "Our efforts to reduce substance abuse in America have been far-reaching and diverse. We are working with the nation's top scientists to make important breakthroughs in the field of addiction research; we are providing cutting-edge technology to the state and local public safety officers who are our first line of defense against drug traffickers; we are supporting community anti-drug coalitions in their grassroots efforts to prevent and reduce drug use in our cities and towns; and we are constantly improving the most comprehensive public health advertising campaign in history. The results of these efforts are paying off: National surveys show that youth drug use is at its lowest levels in nearly a decade."

Director Walters pointed to several of ONDCP's accomplishments as contributing factors to the recent downturn in youth drug use:

• 49% of teens see ONDCP's anti-drug ads daily, according to the Partnership for a Drug Free America's 2002 PATS survey

• 40% of teens say that anti-drug advertising makes them less likely to try or use drugs, according to the Partnership for a Drug Free America's 2002 PATS survey

• The Media Campaign provides parents accurate information on drugs: theantidrug.com, the Parenting Web-site, gets 300,000 visits per month and 2.5 million people have contacted the ONDCP Clearinghouse for more information

• ONDCP's Technology Transfer Program has brought advanced drug crime-fighting technologies and associated training to over 20 percent of the nation's sate and local police departments and sheriffs' offices.

• After five years in operation, the Drug-Free Communities Support Program supports 530 community anti-drug coalitions in 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

But Director Walters concluded that there is more to be done. "We are eager to continue working with our partners at the federal, state, and local levels, and with our colleagues around the world to stop drug use before it starts, to heal America's drug users, and to disrupt the illegal drug market."