April 2, 1999

In testimony before Congress last month, Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) Director Barry McCaffrey discussed the Clinton administration's antidrug strategy. Some key budget figures are below. All requests are for Fiscal Year (FY) 2000 unless otherwise indicated.

• Overall trends in current use of any illicit drug are unchanged since 1996, with 6.4 percent of the population, or 13.9 million people, reporting current use of any illicit drug in 1997, the most recent year for which there are complete data.



• The Clinton administration's recommended FY 2000 drug control budget is $17.8 billion, an increase of $735 million, or 4.3 percent, over FY 1999 regular appropriations; $844 million for "emergency spending" was received by federal drug control agencies in FY 1999, which brought actual spending in FY 1999 to $17.9 billion.



• Spending for law enforcement would increase by $524.8 million, or 4.7 percent, in FY 2000 versus FY 1999 regular appropriations.



• Spending for drug education, prevention, and treatment would increase by $210 million, or 3.6 percent.

There are five goals for the 1999 drug strategy:

• Educate and enable America's youth to reject illegal drugs as well as alcohol and tobacco.



• Increase Americans' safety by reducing drug-related crime and violence.



• Reduce health and social costs to the public of illegal drug use.



• Shield America's air, land, and sea frontiers from the drug threat.



• Break foreign and domestic drug sources of supply.