CARSON BILL TO BOOST METHAMPHETAMINE BATTLE

An Oklahoma congressman's proposal to give rural law enforcement a boost
would help the state wage its battle against methamphetamine.

Rep. Brad Carson, D-Okla., said the focus of his legislation would be
providing grants to local law enforcement agencies to hire, train and
retain officers.

Money also would be provided to help rural communities acquire technology
and equipment and develop 911 services.

"Oklahoma is faced with a methamphetamine epidemic," Carson said . "Every
sheriff I have spoken with since taking office has told me the overwhelming
majority of everyone in his or her jail are there for a drug-related crime."

Carson said his measure would cost $172 million.

One provision would set aside 10 percent of the funding for tribal law
enforcement.

Carson's legislation also would create a Rural Policing Institute to train
rural law enforcement agencies.

"As I have traveled eastern Oklahoma and met with sheriffs and police
chiefs, I have constantly heard the same concerns _ a lack of funding, a
need for new equipment, and difficulties in recruiting and retraining
officers," he said.

Carson is a member of the Congressional Methamphetamine Caucus, a
bipartisan group of lawmakers working on legislation to help fight the drug.

"Methamphetamine is unlike other drugs because it has a direct impact on
each community in our state," he said.

"For every one pound of methamphetamine that is cooked, five pounds of
toxic waste is produced. This toxic waste is finding its way into our
groundwater, our lakes and streams, and in our soil."

Often, he said, meth labs are booby-trapped with explosives, and they also
are dangerous because they are filled with toxic gas, which can explode.

Carson's bill authorizes an expansion of the Methamphetamine Hot Spots
Program to assist in not only the prosecution of meth cases but the cleanup
of the labs.

It also increases funding for treatment programs and creates a grant
program for community-driven education programs.