Battling Meth in Oregon a Top Priority

Battling the meth epidemic has been one of the top priorities for Oregon Congresswoman Darlene Hooley.

Photo courtesy: Marion County Sheriff

(WASHINGTON D.C.) - Already this year, Oregon Congresswoman Darlene Hooley has passed three anti-meth amendments; one to devote more money to the fight against drug trafficking, one for counter-methamphetamine efforts in Mexico and one to force the Drug Czar and the White House to finally give meth the attention and focus it requires. This past week, added to these efforts were two amendments to provide more resources for anti-drug and gang task forces and to help kids threatened by drug use. Hooley says, “I’ve never seen a problem as pervasive or as damaging as Oregon’s meth epidemic. The production, distribution, and use of meth are serious threats to public health and safety." "As I’ve traveled around the state talking to policymakers and law enforcement about the meth problem, I’ve heard one message loud and clear: Local law enforcement lacks the resources needed to extinguish Oregon’s meth wildfire. And I know Oregon isn’t alone in this fight. She notes that one of the most troubling aspects of the meth epidemic has been its impact on children. According to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), over 15,000 children were found at meth labs from 2000 to 2004. A recent study in Oregon revealed that police find children living on the premises in one out of every four laboratories that they break up. These children are exposed to toxic chemicals on a daily basis and face the constant threat of physical, mental, and emotional abuse from the nonstop flow of addicts through their home. Congresswoman Hooley has teamed up with Congressmen Dennis Cardoza (CA) and Rick Larsen (WA) in passing an amendment to provide $5 million for the Drug Endangered Children grant program, to help the children living in homes in which methamphetamine or other drugs are used or manufactured. This initiative had been authorized in the COMBAT Meth Act at $20 million, but no funding had been appropriated until this amendment was approved. The Drug Endangered Children grant program provides grants to states to help kids found in homes made dangerous by drugs and to aid the transition of these children to safe residential environments. The amendment was approved by voice vote. Darlene Hooley also joined Congressmen Lee Terry, Mark Kennedy and others in offering an amendment to increase funding for the critical Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grants formula program. Since Fiscal Year 2001, funding for Byrne-JAG grants have been slashed from over $1 billion to less than $367 million. Many states have been forced to cut or completely eliminate their gang and drug task forces. Without Byrne-JAG grants, there would be no one left to make drug arrests and prosecutions, seize meth labs and stop meth traffickers from peddling their poison on streets across the country. The amendment, which passed by a vote of 291-129, will increase Byrne-JAG funding by $50 million. Other Hooley Anti-Meth Amendments in 2007: • Increasing Funding for High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas: Earlier in June, the U.S. House of Representatives approved the fiscal year 2007 Transportation-Treasury-HUD appropriations bill, which includes an amendment by Congresswoman Darlene Hooley (OR-5) increasing funding for the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program by $8 million. • Combating Mexican Meth: Congresswoman Hooley also offered an amendment to the Fiscal Year 2007 Foreign Operations Appropriations Act, approved by a voice vote, which designated $10 million in the Bureau of International Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement for counter-methamphetamine efforts in Mexico. • Requiring Drug Czar to Have a Meth Strategy: Earlier this year, the House of Representatives passed another amendment offered by Hooley to the Office of National Drug Control Policy Reauthorization Act, requiring ONDCP to submit to Congress a comprehensive strategy to address the growing threat of methamphetamine throughout the country. These bills are in the Senate awaiting action, and then go to their respective House-Senate Conference Committees to reconcile the differences in the bills before being signed into law by the President. “Stopping the distribution of meth and the destruction it causes in our communities will take more efforts like these at the local, state, federal, and international level, says Hooley. “I’ll continue to work with elected officials, law enforcement, and community leaders to battle this growing epidemic and to make our neighborhoods safer.