HUNKINS CALLS FOR NEW METH POSITION

CHEYENNE -- Warning that Wyoming's methamphetamine epidemic is beyond
the crisis stage, Republican gubernatorial candidate Ray Hunkins
Thursday pledged to create a new cabinet-level administrator to deal
with the problem.

The Wheatland attorney and rancher said his first act as governor, if
elected, will be to appoint an administrator of the Governor's Drug
Enforcement, Prevention and Treatment Office.

"This administrator will report directly to the governor and have the
authority to act with the full political support and will of the
governor," Hunkins said during a news conference at the Plains Hotel.

The office holder, he added, will be responsible for putting into
effect the reforms identified in a Legislative Service Office audit
- -- especially a single, coordinated plan.

The LSO audit found the state's effort to implement the reforms
remain fragmented, despite the Legislature's intent to develop a
comprehensive plan and its initial $25 million allocation for
methamphetamine treatment.

The report also said it is unclear what progress the state is making
toward the long-term goal of reducing substance abuse.

"We're stumbling over each other with four different plans," Hunkins said.

Over an 18-month period, he noted, the Substance Abuse Division of
the Department of Health had four different administrators.

His proposal for a cabinet-level administrator, he said, is not new
and has been recommended by state newspapers and requested by law
enforcement and the people.

"What's new is it's being proposed by a Wyoming leader," Hunkins said.

This is a top priority, he said, because methamphetamine abuse
affects every element in the state, including the economy and
education as well as law enforcement.

People he talked to during his campaign in every county in the state
named meth use as their top concern, he said.

In response to Hunkins' plan, Democratic Gov. Dave Freudenthal, who
is seeking a second term, said the idea "appears to be a recycled
federal drug czar model" he saw up close when he was U.S. attorney for Wyoming.

"It was an idea I considered and rejected some years ago. That's in
part because it's very much a top-down, state government approach.
I'm not in favor of centralizing more and more authority in Cheyenne.
The drug czar tactic focuses on public relations and bureaucracy," he said.

Hunkins said he will have more specific proposals regarding the meth
epidemic later. He has identified the drug problem and the need to
diversify the economy as two of his campaign themes.