FEDS SHOULD KEEP SPENDING MONEY TO FIGHT DRUG PROBLEM

The issue: Drug abuse

Our opinion: It is essential that U.S. Department of Homeland
Security money cover drugs as well as other anti-terrorism measures.
The drug problem is real and harming lives

Ten years ago, Lake County was identified as a high-intensity drug
trafficking area. The federal government has poured money into the
county since then to try to fight the spread of drug crimes in the county.

But now that money is at risk as the federal government shifts its
priorities from domestic social issues to fighting terrorism. Make no
mistake, however. Drugs are terrorizing the populace and causing a
tremendous drain on personal and public resources. Continued federal
funding of anti-drug programs -- prevention, enforcement and
treatment -- is essential.

Last year, 22 percent of the Indiana Department of Correction's adult
inmate population had 1 or more drug offenses. For juveniles, that
number was 11.4 percent.

And that's not counting the crimes like burglary and robbery
committed in order to obtain money to feed the drug habit.

Recent stories about how Porter County is dealing with its heroin
problem have put the spotlight on that county's drug problem and how
officials and others have responded to it.

The Porter County Drug Task Force is operating on a very thin
shoestring -- $44,000 a year -- but that is likely to improve as a
result of The Times' recent series on the heroin problem.

The Lake County Drug Task Force has a much larger budget, at $543,000
to support six officers. But that funding is less certain.

Cmdr. Zon Haralovich, who heads the Lake County unit, said his
funding comes almost exclusively from a U.S. Department of Justice grant.

The Lake County unit's federal funding is shrinking fast and expected
to be gone by 2008.

That would be a mistake. It is essential that U.S. Department of
Homeland Security money cover drugs as well as other anti-terrorism measures.

The drug problem is real and harming lives now. Criminals are dumb,
but they are smart enough to know when enforcement lags and will be
emboldened by their successes.

If Lake County loses funding for its anti-drug efforts, a situation
that is already bad could become much worse.

U.S. Rep. Pete Visclosky and Sens. Dick Lugar and Evan Bayh know the
importance of supporting law enforcement efforts in the region. They
must convince their colleagues to make sure fighting drugs remains a
high federal priority.