Press Release

(Union, MO)—John Walters, the Director of National Drug Control Policy and President Bush's "Drug Czar," heralded progress reducing drug use in Missouri and today announced the designation of Franklin, Jefferson, Cole, and Boone Counties as part of the Midwest High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) program. The designation will bring an additional $500,000 in Federal funds to help coordinate Federal, State, and local law enforcement activities against drug trafficking throughout the Midwest HIDTA, including the newly designated counties in Missouri.

New workplace drug testing data shows that positive tests for amphetamines—including methamphetamine—decreased 27 percent in Missouri the first five months of 2006 versus the same time period last year. Since 2001, there has been a 38 percent drop in the number of Missouri students who have tried meth at least once in their lifetimes. The number of meth labs has also declined in the State. From 2004–2005, there was a 22 percent decrease in the number of reported meth lab incidents statewide.

Director Walters said, "Missourians can be proud that their state has made significant progress reducing methamphetamine production and use. But the threat from Mexican drug trafficking organizations looms large. By designating Franklin, Jefferson, Cole, and Boone Counties as part of the Midwest HIDTA, we can leverage the progress already made and more effectively push back against individuals and organizations seeking to use the area as a transit corridor for drugs."

Law enforcement officials in the newly designated counties will use the new Federal resources to coordinate investigations and interdiction efforts against local clandestine methamphetamine labs and Mexican cartels using Interstates 70, 55, and 44 as key transit corridors for illegal drugs. These violent drug trafficking organizations ship multi-kilogram quantities of methamphetamine and other drugs into and through the region.

"The meth epidemic is not just confined to our inner cities and hard-core users. It is common in small towns, and suburbia, even among families with children. All of us—law enforcement, Federal, state and local officials—are continuing to attack the meth problem on many fronts," said Senator Kit Bond. "This new designation will be another weapon in the arsenal of Franklin, Jefferson, Cole, and Boone counties as they fight the menace of illegal drugs."

"Methamphetamine is the worst drug I've encountered in my nearly 20 years in public life and it's destroying lives all over states like Missouri," said U.S. Sen. Jim Talent. "We can do something about it by assisting local law enforcement and the efforts they tell us will work. This new designation will make resources available to our sheriffs and local law enforcement working to combat meth trafficking and distribution in their communities. We need to get ahead of the meth problem, which is why this funding is so important."

Congressman Kenny Hulshof said, "We have made tremendous progress in the fight against drug producers and traffickers. Unfortunately, because of Missouri's major highways, we remain a hotspot for people transporting these illegal drugs. This designation will help coordinate efforts between Federal, State and local law enforcement. The more these authorities work together, the better it will position us to fight back. I'm pleased that the Federal government recognizes the unique needs of these counties and has given this designation."

The HIDTA program designates regions which exhibit serious drug trafficking problems and harmfully impact other areas of the country, providing additional Federal resources to those areas to help eliminate or reduce drug trafficking and its harmful consequences. Law enforcement organizations within HIDTAs assess drug trafficking problems and design specific initiatives to reduce or eliminate the production, manufacture, transportation, distribution, and chronic use of illegal drugs and money laundering. The Midwest HIDTA is one of 28 regions throughout the country designated as a High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area.

For more information, please visit www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov