GOVERNOR HAS PLAN TO COMBAT ECSTASY

Seized Assets Of Drug Dealers To Fund State's "Project X"

SPRINGFIELD - The illegal drug ecstasy is becoming increasingly popular in
Illinois, especially among young people, and Gov. Rod Blagojevich wants to
reverse that trend before it "rages out of control," a spokeswoman said Monday.

In his State of the State address Wednesday, the governor will call upon
lawmakers to establish "Project X," a $2 million initiative, spokeswoman
Cheryle Jackson said. The main goals are to adopt a more aggressive
approach toward ecstasy dealers and to reduce demand for the so-called club
drug.

The Illinois State Police and Department of Human Services would oversee
the program.

Most or all of the funding for Project X would come from the sale of cars,
property and other assets that state police seize from drug dealers,
Jackson said. That would make the initiative "budget neutral," she added.

Project X, which is part of Blagojevich's crime agenda, would consist of
three components.

The first involves increased funding and staffing for the Chicago-based
"club drugs task force," which is made up of federal, state and local law
enforcement officials. The task force now gets $400,000 in funding from the
federal government.

One state trooper works full time with the task force, Jackson said.

She said Blagojevich wants Illinois to invest $800,000 more, with the money
coming from drug dealers' seized assets, and he wants to boost the number
of state police working on the task force.

A statewide repository would be created to keep track of ecstasy-related
information, she said.

Another component of Project X would focus on college campuses, with state
police conducting undercover operations that target traffickers of ecstasy
and other club drugs, Jackson said.

The third piece of Project X is a statewide awareness campaign that aims to
warn parents and youths about the dangers of using club drugs, Jackson said.

Abuse of ecstasy is "a problem that's gettable," she added. "If we wait,
we'll be in the same situation that we're in with other drug-related problems."

Jackson said statistics show that ecstasy abuse has risen nationwide by 71
percent since 1999. That trend has affected communities across Illinois and
college campuses in particular, she said.

A state law that took effect last year was inspired by the ecstasy-related
death of a former Peoria and Springfield woman who died in 1999 in New
Jersey. That measure, known as "Kelley's Law" toughened penalties against
people convicted of selling ecstasy.