STATE'S DRUG SUMMIT NEEDS YOUR HELP

Those who live and work in Kentucky's communities are more familiar
with the substance abuse issues affecting their areas than anyone. For
that reason, the team that Gov. Fletcher and I charged to assess drug
problems in our commonwealth is spending time in every region of
Kentucky listening to citizens - medical professionals, judges,
prosecutors, dedicated teachers, highly skilled law enforcement
officers, treatment specialists, former substance abusers and parents
- - about their ideas for combating drug abuse in their communities and
on the effectiveness of existing drug programs in their regions. The
team - the Statewide Drug Control Assessment Summit - is considering
all of the input it is receiving from citizens in the Bowling Green
area and across the state as it discusses the recommendations it will
make to Gov. Fletcher this summer on a statewide drug control policy.

There is no question that we must change the way that substance abuse
is addressed in Kentucky. The solutions must be long-term and come at
the drug problem with the right balance of prevention-education,
treatment and enforcement. Implementing such a comprehensive strategy
will not be a simple or speedy process, and once a plan it is in
place, it will take time for us to see the results. The feedback the
summit received at the public input meeting it held this month in
Bowling Green and through questionnaires from people in Warren and
surrounding counties indicates some of the intensive work that may be
ahead in reducing the drug problems in our commonwealth. The forum in
Bowling Green was the 12th of the 16 regional public input meetings
that the summit conducted throughout Kentucky. Residents of Warren,
Logan, Simpson, Butler, Allen, Edmonson, Barren, Monroe and Metcalfe
counties were invited to attend this public forum. During the public
meeting and through questionnaires, the people who live and work in
those counties have told the summit team that their communities need:
.more drug courts; .more drug treatment facilities; .shorter waiting
periods for admittance to existing treatment programs; .science-based
drug prevention and education programs for children in public schools
and more education programs for adults and parents; .more
communication between law enforcement agencies about drug issues; .and
better coordinated strategies, with measurable objectives, for law
enforcement to use in addressing drug issues in their communities.

These messages, as well as the call for stabilized funding in each
area, have been echoed across the commonwealth. The summit team is
finding that that list of needs is very similar in every community.

Clearly, these issues, along with the data collected from hundreds of
questionnaires from federal, state and local program leaders, will be
among the top subjects the summit panels will discuss when they begin
considering the recommendations that the group will make to Gov.
Fletcher in May and June. There will not be a quick fix to the drug
problems in the commonwealth. Our communities will need patience and
resolve as we work together to see those recommendations through to
results. Once a comprehensive and more balanced statewide drug control
policy is at work, we should all expect greater achievements in
reducing substance abuse trafficking and use. In addition, the
commonwealth will be making the best use of its resources by directing
tax dollars to drug control methods that are proven to work.

Kentuckians have made the public input portion of the assessment a
success by taking time to share their knowledge about substance abuse
in their communities with the summit. If you have not been able to do
so yet, there is still time to make suggestions. To complete a
questionnaire about substance abuse issues in your community and learn
more about the Statewide Drug Control Assessment Summit, please visit
www.kydrugsummit.ky.gov, or call (859) 622-1328 to request a paper
copy of the questionnaire. I urge all Kentuckians to join us in our
efforts.

Editor's note: Steve Pence is Kentucky's lieutenant
governor.