House Approves Greater Power but Tough Goals for Drug Czar

The House, over the strong objections of the administration, approved a measure Tuesday that would give the director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy greater powers but require him to meet stiff goals, including cutting overall drug use in half over the next four years.

“This fundamentally restructures the way the drug war is fought,” said Rep. J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.), chief sponsor of the legislation.

“For the first time ever Congress is actually setting a standard, a bar, and empowering the drug czar’s office to promulgate aggressive performance measures for the agencies which will provide results,” he said.

The bill, passed by voice vote, reauthorizes for another two years the drug control policy office founded in 1988 to oversee actions among drug-fighting agencies. It adds to the power of the director, currently Gen. Barry R. McCaffery, to transfer money and coordinate activities of agencies involved in the fight against illegal drugs.

It also holds his office responsible for meeting performance goals, including reducing by the end of 2001 the availability of heroin and cocaine by 80% and reducing drug-related crimes by 50%.

It requires the director to submit a four-year plan to reduce drug use in the United States to 3% of the total population by 2001, down from the current rate of more than 6%.

The White House, while supporting legislation to extend the life of the drug office, said it opposed the House bill because it establishes “unrealistic and unattainable” targets.

McCaffery, in a letter earlier this week to House Speaker Newt Gingrich, said the “unrealistic targets” could “hurt our efforts against drug use when the public, seeing the inevitable failure to meet these goals, becomes convinced the effort is lost.”