DRUG-FIGHTING TASK FORCE NEEDS TO FIND A SOLUTION

Today's bleak budget times often require tough choices - and creative
thinking by public officials.

Marin's drug-fighting task force is a good example of both.

Novato has announced it may drop out of the Marin County Major Crimes
Task Force because the city can't afford its $190,000 share of the
unit's $1.5 million annual budget.

Given Novato's budget problems, that hardly qualifies as a surprise.

Novato would join San Rafael, which in 2002 dropped out of the task
force that until then enjoyed the financial backing of the county and
every Marin city and town. Without Marin's two largest cities helping
shoulder the cost, the task force's days would be numbered.

That would be a shame. While we may have our doubts about the overall
effectiveness of the so-called war on drugs, there is great value in
having a countywide task force that targets drug dealers.

Drug traffickers tend to ignore city and county lines, and Marin's
cities and towns are too small to have the resources and expertise to
effectively make a dent in such drug dealing.

The good news is that the task force and local leaders are looking at
creative ways to keep the squad working Marin's streets.

Officials are talking about San Rafael and Novato meeting a large
part of their annual obligation by loaning officers to serve on the
task force. In addition to keeping the task force alive, such an
arrangement could provide additional value, in terms of training and
in greater communication and cooperation between law enforcement in
the county.

Marin Supervisor Judy Arnold, a Novato resident and member of the
task force's oversight committee, said county and city officials are
working to come up with a new way to pay for the task force that
makes sense at a time when member agencies are struggling to maintain
local police patrol and services.

A reduction in the amount of money collected from assets seized in
drug busts has contributed to the task force's budget problems, with
cities being asked to increase their contribution. The $100,000 the
task force expects to collect in forfeiture cash this year should
buy time needed to adjust its budget and staffing.

"I'm convinced it's worth it and we have to find a way to make it
workable," said Arnold. She said the squad's work on narcotics cases
also has led to breaks in solving other crimes, such as burglaries
and identity theft.

For smaller police departments, the task force gives them access to
expertise, including investigative and undercover capabilities, that
they would not be able to afford on their own.

We applaud the efforts by Sheriff Bob Doyle and city officials and
police chiefs to come up with ways to reduce the task force's drain
on local budgets while still keeping the unit strong.

Only our local drug dealers benefit if the drug task force finds
itself busted and out of money.