
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, February 1, 1991                   TAG: 9102010379
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-8   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Short

MORE FUNDS SOUGHT FOR DRUG WAR/ BUSH PLANS TO ASK FOR $11.7 BILLION

President Bush on Thursday proposed an 11 percent increase in federal spending next fiscal year on the nation's other war, the home-front battle against drugs.

The president said he would seek $11.7 billion for antidrug programs for the budget year beginning Oct. 1. That would include $5.1 billion for domestic law enforcement, up 14 percent from this year's share.

The overall 11 percent boost would come in the face of a budget crunch brought on by recession and the Persian Gulf war, but Bush said this is no time to relax the anti-drug effort, even though surveys and hospital reports indicate drug abuse is abating.

While such reports are "welcome news," the president told a federal employees' group at the White House, "You might ask, can we lessen our commitment to stopping the scourge of drugs?

"Can we afford to look elsewhere, lose interest? Can we declare victory? And, of course, the answer is an emphatic no," the president declared.

His latest plan follows patterns set previously, stressing law enforcement while promoting treatment and prevention.

The spending breakdown:

Domestic law enforcement: $5.2 billion, up 14 percent.

International and border law enforcement: $2.9 billion, up 8 percent.

Drug treatment: $1.7 billion, up 10 percent.

Drug prevention and education: $1.5 billion, up 5 percent.

Both the current budget and the fiscal 1992 proposal would about 70 percent of appropriations on supply reduction and 30 percent on demand reduction.

by CNB