NO FEDERAL UNITE FUNDING

All Hope Not Lost

Hopes of obtaining funding to branch the Operation UNITE program into
Madison County in the immediate future are looking dim, U.S. Rep. Ben
Chandler, D-6th District, confirmed Friday.

But all hope for the initiative is not lost.

UNITE is an acronym for Unlawful Narcotics Investigative, Treatment
and Education. The program "works to rid communities of illegal drug
use through undercover narcotics investigations, coordinating
treatment for substance abusers, providing support to families and
friends of substance abusers and educating the public about the
dangers of using drugs," the program's Web site states.

The existing UNITE program in southeastern Kentucky that has been
funded through the efforts of U.S. Rep. Hal Rogers, R-Somerset, is
facing financial concerns of its own. The state House of
Representatives received a bill Thursday which would transfer
$450,000 from the multi-county coal severance tax fund to pay
employees in the southeast through June 30 if passed. One of the
bill's sponsors, Tom Jensen, told CNHI Frankfort bureau reporter
Ronnie Ellis that Rogers had hoped to secure federal funding to keep
the program going after that date. The Richmond Register is a CNHI newspaper.

Funds to help a Madison County branch get off the ground were not
included in the state budget. And Chandler said Friday that federal
funds for Madison also don't look likely at the present time.

"Unfortunately, UNITE has not gotten enough funding in either of the
past two years to even maintain its current level of effort,"
Chandler said. "This is largely because of the controversy
surrounding earmarks."

It has been nearly a year since a community meeting was conducted at
Richmond City Hall to inform citizens about UNITE and begin work
toward establishing Neighbors UNITED, a program to take back
communities in Madison, Estill and Powell counties from the grips of
a growing drug problem. Efforts to ignite the program have been on
hold while funding issues were being sorted out, local UNITE
coordinator Eva Gay said.

But neither Chandler nor Gay are giving up on the local cause.

"While UNITE's funding may be limited, we are trying to work within
these parameters to expand this successful program into additional
counties," Chandler said. "Madison County would be one of the first
counties to benefit from this expansion."

Gay attended a UNITE dinner where a Georgia man spoke about how his
community implemented Operation UNITE efforts without federal
funding, she said, and were doing it successfully.

Through the help of Madison County's faith-based community, business
community and elected officials, Gay said that could happen here, too.

"I think a judge and a preacher (in Georgia) had gotten together and
just really campaigned for the people to get involved, and they did,"
Gay said. "And they implemented a lot of the things that UNITE has
done. So there is that possibility."

As for a timeline for when funding might be available for Madison
County, Gay said we will have to "wait and see."

"We all need to band together to fight the drug problem in our
communities," Chandler said.

To get more information about how to get involved locally with UNITE,
call Chandler's Lexington office at 1-859-219-1366.