DRUG FIGHT MONEY STALLED

Schumer Is Pressing White House to Fund Upstate Efforts

(April 28, 2004) -- An attempt to bolster upstate New York's fight
against illegal drugs with millions of dollars in federal funds is
stalled in the White House.

John P. Walters, director of the White House Office of National Drug
Control Policy, is resisting an effort to have the regions that
include Rochester, Buffalo, Syracuse and Albany designated a High
Intensity Drug Trafficking Area, which could bring $1 million to $3
million a year to help local law enforcement agencies fight the
importation and distribution of illegal drugs.

"He's giving us resistance," said U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y.,
referring to Walters by his politically shorthanded title, "drug czar."

"It's always hard to get good things done in Washington," Schumer
added. "The drug czar, without even batting an eye, should understand
our needs in upstate New York."

But Joseph Keefe, Walters' deputy director for state and local
affairs, said the upstate region does not fit the criteria for the
federal drug-trafficking designation, called a HIDTA.

"We felt at this point, with the funds available, we couldn't expand
(the HIDTA program to upstate)," said Keefe.

Keefe said a copy of a "threat assessment" submitted with an upstate
proposal indicated the majority of drugs moving through the upstate
region from Canada go to New York City, where there is already a HIDTA.

"We do have it in the right spot," Keefe said.

Schumer traveled to Rochester in August to announce his support of a
plan to have Rochester lead a coalition of upstate cities under a HIDTA.

The designation would give local police money to spend on overtime,
improve anti-crime coordination with community groups and tie local
agencies more closely to a federal pipeline of drug-trafficking
intelligence, authorities said.

"The mayor and police chief have done everything in their power" to
curb the violence, Schumer said in August. "They've done a great job.
We in Washington have to give them the federal dollars they need to do
the job."

Upstate would join 19 other U.S. regions, including New York City, to
be awarded the designation. At the time of his announcement, Schumer
said, the upstate region's chances of getting the designation were
"pretty good," and hoped to have it in place by the beginning of this
year. In all, the program sends about $225 million a year to the
designated areas.

Since Walters took office in December 2001, no new HIDTAs have been
designated, Keefe said.

Mayor William A. Johnson said he's disappointed that Walters' office
doesn't recognize upstate's role in the national drug network.

"We've provided ample documentation that drugs are finding a nest in
places in upstate New York as they move through the pipeline from
Canada," Johnson said. "I stand by our application and I'm
disappointed and puzzled by their response."

Johnson said he suspected the real reason for the rejection is the
federal budget deficit.

"The federal government is out of money. I'd much rather they be
honest and say 'We don't have the money,'" Johnson said. "But to say
there isn't a need for this program in upstate New York, I think
anybody who says that is withdrawn from the reality of our situation."

Schumer said a member of his staff has been negotiating almost daily
with Walters' office. The negotiations are "coming to a head," Schumer
said. If there isn't any breakthrough in the next few weeks, he said
he would attempt to bypass the executive process by submitting
legislation to the Senate Judiciary Committee.

"If he doesn't do it on his own, we can do it legislatively," Schumer
said.

The plea for federal assistance comes at a time when the state
government has demonstrated recognition that upstate cities need help
in the fight against crime.

Gov. George Pataki last month announced the launch of Operation
Impact, which is designed to lower crime in 15 cities outside New York
City by augmenting local law enforcement agencies with state troopers
and state money.

The governor's office decided to initiate the program in Rochester in
part because Rochester saw a sharp spike in drug-related violence in
2003, from 41 to 57 homicides, many of which were linked to the drug
trade. The operation brings about $500,00 along with state troopers
and sheriff's deputies into the city.

A report on the region's "justification" for being designated a HIDTA
was included in a report submitted to the City Council this month by
Police Chief Robert Duffy. The report, which cites information from
the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, makes a case for federal
funding by linking Rochester's drug problem to international markets.

"(L)ocal law enforcement is often overmatched by drug trafficking
organizations," the justification states.

A key concern outlined in the proposal is that New York's 428-mile
border with Canada includes 26 points of entry to the United States,
many of which are popular with drug traffickers. The Canadian border
crossings are a "favorite conduit for drug traffickers," who
distribute such products as extra-strong hydroponic marijuana,
cocaine, heroin, PCP and synthetic "club drugs," such as ecstasy.

Some drugs, such as hydroponic marijuana -- which is cultivated in a
nutrient solution to increase its potency -- are produced in Canada.
Other drugs, such as heroin and cocaine, are moved through Canada to
the United States from South America, Europe and Asia, according to
the statement.

Drug smugglers consider the Canadian crossings a "lower risk" than
other points of U.S. entry that have heavier law enforcement and
advanced drug-detection equipment, the justification states.

It also notes that three of Canada's four largest cities -- Toronto,
Montreal and Ottawa -- are within a two-hour drive of the New York
border and generate a lot of private and commercial traffic, and many
of the drugs are destined for New York City, Atlanta and Chicago.

"Because there is currently a limited enforcement effort to interdict
illicit drugs entering the United States through its northern border,
it is difficult to know with any certainty what quantities of drugs
are being moved across the border," according to the justification.
"What is clear, however, is that drugs are coming across the border
and that is due to the upstate New York's proximity to major
metropolitan areas in the northeast and north central United States;
it is likely that many of the drugs imported into the United States
through Upstate New York are intended for distribution outside the
region."

[sidebar]

What's At Stake

By designating the upstate region a High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area,
the federal government could pump $1 million to $3 million a year into the
area to help local police fight the drug problem.

U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, a Democrat, asked for the designation last year,
but the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy has ruled that
upstate doesn't fit the criteria.

Schumer said he's trying to work it out with the White House but might soon
opt to appeal directly to the Senate Judiciary Committee.