DARE FUNDING CUT 42%

Ouachita Parish Sheriff Richard Fewell got word Tuesday of a 42 percent cut
to the Drug Abuse Resistance Education program.

The program, run by police departments across the nation, sends officers
into schools to teach children about the dangers of drug abuse.

Out of a $124,000 budget last year, Fewell said, the state of Louisiana
provided about $62,000 for the parish DARE program.

Although a 42 percent cut - about $26,000 - is a significant hit, Fewell
said, the Ouachita Parish Sheriff's Office is not willing to eliminate the
program.

While it's not the only drug prevention education provided in parish
schools, Ouachita Parish School Superintendent Robert Webber said, DARE is
the most popular among students, especially elementary-aged. "The officers
really make a connection with the kids," Webber said. "I would hate to see
it go."

That connection goes both ways, Fewell said. The officers involved were
picked for the program because of their desire to work with children, and
the children, in turn, learn to trust law enforcement.

But the money has to come from somewhere, he said.

Concordia Parish Sheriff Randy Maxwell, who works closely with the state
program, said the state funding came from the Tobacco Tax Health Care Fund,
and those taxes have not generated as much revenue as was projected.

Maxwell said the shortfall in tax revenue is most likely temporary. "Store
owners probably stocked up (on tobacco products) before the tax went into
effect," Maxwell said. "I imagine it will pick back up."

In the meantime, Maxwell said corporate sponsors in Concordia Parish always
have been supportive of the program and will hopefully get them through the
next fiscal year.

But if the DARE program disappeared tomorrow, Maxwell said, it could have a
bigger impact than loss of camaraderie for schools.

Schools must provide a certain amount of drug prevention education as one
of the requirements to receive federal funding. The DARE program is one
that doesn't cost schools a dime, Fewell said.

But it doesn't just help schools, Fewell said. He said drugs make up a
major part of the crime in the parish. If any children can be steered away
from drug abuse, he said, the better it will be for the parish's future.

So it's a program that will stay, Fewell said, though his department may
have to scramble to find corporate or private sponsors for the program.