METH PROBLEM TAKES TOLL ON TENNESSEE CHILDREN

Every Tennessean has a stake in the state's methamphetamine problem.
The effects on children alone make it so.

Taken separately, law enforcement issues related to meth labs and
numerous problems at the Department of Children's Services put high
demands on state officials. But the two issues are merging into an
especially difficult circumstance for state government.

Meth labs have become so abundant that they have drawn special
attention from law enforcement authorities across Tennessee. Police
and prosecutors have joined forces in an attempt to put more teeth
into state laws, desperately trying to control the trafficking of the
home-cooked substance.

Meanwhile, the state Department of Children's Services, struggling to
meet the requirements of court supervision, finds itself embroiled in
the meth issue too, as it tries to absorb children whose families are
involved in meth labs and abuse.

From January 2002 to July 2003 the state took in 697 children from
homes because of meth. Viola Miller, the new commissioner of DCS, told
legislators this week that her department is getting children at an
''incredible rate'' because of the expansion of meth labs.

Lawmakers should pay special attention to those trends, because in
addition to the human toll the issues take, they result in staggering
monetary costs as well. It costs the state about $26,000 a year to put
a meth offender in jail. It costs the state about $25,000 a year to
have a child in state custody.

The Tennessee Public Safety Coalition, comprised of state sheriffs,
chiefs of police and district attorneys, has called for strengthening
existing laws regarding the manufacturing or distribution of meth.
Education and treatment programs also are essential. The fact that
children are victimized in meth homes, sometimes in heartbreaking
fashion, complicates the demands on DCS, which is trying to climb its
way out of poor management problems.

Lawmakers, facing daunting budget constraints, must find ways to
support state initiatives that protect children and combat drug
crimes. The issues will require resources, political will and close
coordination. The problems are not going away without strong
leadership in state government.