METH FUNDS WENT TO CONGRESSIONAL VETERANS

Kansas may have been shut out from receiving federal funds to clean up
seized methamphetamine labs because its relatively new congressional
delegation hasn't yet amassed great political clout in the Senate.

Kirk Thompson, assistant KBI director for field investigations, said Kansas
had applied for some of the $35 million originally provided by Congress to
help states and local law enforcement agencies clean up environmental
contamination caused by clandestine meth labs.

"We tried to apply for some of that money," Thompson said. "It was our
understanding it was a very political process and that Kansas just didn't
have the weight to get any of this money."

"All these funds were earmarked to the different states by Congress. There
was just really no money for the other states to apply for," he said. "I
don't know for sure if that was the case, but that was the explanation that
came to us."

Both of the state's U.S. senators are freshmen. Sen. Sam Brownback, a Topeka
Republican, was elected in 1996, taking the seat vacated by long-time Sen.
Bob Dole. Sen. Pat Roberts, a Dodge City Republican who served in the U.S.
House of Representatives for 16 years, also was elected to his first Senate
term in 1996. He succeeded former Sen. Nancy Kassebaum Baker, who served 18
years in the Senate.

Erik Hotmire, Brownback's spokesman, confirmed that most of the money went
to states with heavyweight senators.

"Eleven of the 14 states that received money have members on the Senate
Appropriations Committee," Hotmire said. "And a 12th state that received
money is represented by Senator Tom Daschle of South Dakota, the Senate
minority leader."

"Senator Brownback doesn't ask for earmarking of funds because he doesn't
like the pork barrel process," Hotmire said. "And this program is one of the
reasons he's opposed to earmarking. All too often the money goes to states
with members on the Senate Appropriations Committee."

Brownback wrote a letter to President Clinton seeking $10 million more in
funding for the meth lab cleanup program after receiving a request for help
from Gov. Bill Graves.

Kansas, which ranks third in the nation behind California and Missouri in
the number of meth labs seized, received $1.2 million in federal meth lab
cleanup funds last year.