FLORIDA GUARD CUTS COUNTER-DRUG FORCE

Officials Have Been Hoping For Extra Federal Cash To Keep 22 Troops On The Job.

Unable to wait any longer for more federal cash, the Florida National Guard
announced Wednesday that it will let go 22 of its drug-fighting troops today.

Guard officials still hope that a spending boost will come down from
Washington in the next few weeks for the counter-drug unit, which does
everything from help U.S. Customs officials ferret out illegal drugs to run
educational programs around the state. But a $2.5 million shortfall, which
threatens as many as 43 more jobs, no longer can be ignored, said Jon
Myatt, a spokesman for the Guard.

"We've run out of money," he said. "But we do have a plan to sort of
lighten the pain a little bit."

Some of the Guard members whose positions are threatened will be shifted,
at least temporarily, to airport-security units and the new state
counter-terrorism task force, Myatt said.

Most of those who are losing their jobs are on duty in Fort Lauderdale and
Miami, although some have been working in Orlando, Tampa and Jacksonville.

The 22 whose jobs are disappearing were initially hired as part of a
temporary program to reduce drug trafficking in Miami, Myatt said, although
the Guard had hoped to keep them. However, the other 43 positions now at
risk are considered permanent, he said.

Across the country, as many as 1,100 of the more than 3,000 members of the
National Guard's counter-drug forces may be let go because of a $195
million gap in funding. The money is not in the Department of Defense
budget approved by Congress late last year, but Guard officials had hoped
the Pentagon would come through with additional money when it asks Congress
for more funding in coming weeks.

A host of politicians nationwide, including most of Florida's congressional
delegation, have sent pleas for the money to President Bush and Secretary
of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.

Maj. Gen. Douglas Burnett, the adjutant general of Florida, said he hopes
the cuts are temporary and that the full force will be back soon.

"In spite of this necessary action, I still remain optimistic that Congress
will restore some or our entire funding shortfall this year," Burnett said.
"If that should occur, I will attempt to rehire as many of our former
counter-drug personnel as possible. They play a vital role in the security
of our state's and nation's ports of entry."

The counter-drug troops' main job is to help cut off illegal drugs and
other contraband coming across the state's borders, particularly at its
seaports.