For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
December 14, 2001
President Empowers Communities in the Fight Against Illegal Drug Abuse
Today's Presidential Action:
President Bush signed legislation that
extends and expands the Drug-Free Communities Support Program, which
supports community-based efforts nationwide to reduce the demand for
illegal drugs. It's an important step forward in the
President's agenda for reducing illegal drug use through effective
education, prevention and treatment.
President Bush also called on the Senate
to move forward with the Armies of Compassion legislation to support
charitable organizations in America, including many faith- and
community-based institutions that are making remarkable progress in
preventing and treating drug abuse.
About the Drug-Free Communities Support Program
The President believes in a balanced
approach to drug policy that emphasizes not only efforts to reduce the
supply of drugs coming into our country from overseas, but also
reducing the demand for drugs here at home.
The Drug-Free Communities Support Program
supports community anti-drug coalitions that harness local energy and
resources to work together toward the common goal of reducing substance
abuse. Coalitions include local partnerships between youth,
parents, businesses, the media, schools, youth organizations, law
enforcement, religious or fraternal organizations, civic groups, health
care professionals, state, local or tribal governmental agencies, and
other organizations.
Activities include parent drug education
programs, youth summits where young people learn to resist drugs, local
drug use surveys in middle and high schools, drug intervention
counseling services, tutoring and financial incentives for businesses
that adopt drug-free workplace programs. Coalitions empower
individuals and communities at the local level to join national drug
prevention efforts.
The President's Budget for FY02 provided
more than $50 million for the Drug-Free Communities Support Program --
an increase of $10.6 million over FY01. The legislation signed by the
President today authorizes annual increases that will meet the
Presidential commitment to increase the size of the program to nearly
$100 million by FY07.
The Drug-Free Communities Support Program
was created in 1997. Since then, it has awarded 464 grants
to coalitions in 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and
the U.S. Virgin Islands. Of these grants, approximately 35%
were awarded to coalitions in urban areas, 17% in suburban communities,
39% in small towns or rural areas, and the remainder to other types of
communities. The maximum award is $100,000 per fiscal year,
with each grantee having to match federal dollars with non-federal
funds or in-kind support.
The President's Budget strongly supports
other key demand reduction initiatives, including:
- Narrowing the treatment gap with a
five-year commitment to increasing resources for treatment services by
$1.6 billion, including targeted treatment programs for children and
adolescents.
- Increasing resources for the
National Institute on Drug Abuse and the National Institute on Alcohol
Abuse and Alcoholism.
- Securing $180 million
for the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign to ensure that vital
anti-drug public service advertisements continue to reach parents and
children.
- Strongly supporting Drug Courts and
other criminal justice diversion programs to help more Americans break
the vicious cycle of addiction and incarceration.
For more information on the President's initiatives, please visit
www.whitehouse.gov
|
