A strategic objective of the DOJ is to "break the cycle of drugs and violence by reducing the demand for and use and trafficking of illegal drugs."⁷ This objective is incorporated in the DOJ Strategic Plan, which includes the goals, objectives, and strategies of the DOJ for achieving its mission. The DOJ's strategies for achieving this objective include:

• Supporting programs providing drug testing, treatment, and graduated sanctions for persons under the supervision of the criminal system.
• Preventing juvenile use and abuse of drugs.
• Reducing demand for and use and trafficking of illegal drugs.

The OIG's Audit Division conducted this audit to identify and review the DOJ's drug demand reduction activities. The objectives of the audit were to (1) identify all DOJ programs that related to drug demand reduction, to quantify the total amount of DOJ obligations for each program, and to verify that financial information provided to the ONDCP was prepared in accordance with its circulars; (2) determine whether the DOJ performance measures are adequate to determine the success of programs; (3) identify whether DOJ drug demand reduction activities were duplicative and whether DOJ components were coordinating drug demand reduction efforts; and (4) review the DEA activities and funding dedicated to drug demand reduction.

History of Federal Drug Control Efforts

Federal drug control efforts have been a long-standing national priority.⁸ In response to the nation's growing drug problem, Congress passed the Controlled Substances Act, Title II of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970. This law established a single system of control for both narcotic and psychotropic drugs for the first time. In 1973, President Nixon declared "an all-out global war on the drug menace."

In early 1975, President Ford established the Domestic Council Drug Abuse Task Force to assess the extent of drug abuse in America. The resulting report recognized the necessity of drug demand reduction efforts in addition to enforcement efforts. Drug demand reduction efforts include those policies and programs dealing with drug abuse education, prevention, treatment, research, rehabilitation, drug-free workplace programs, and drug testing.⁹

In 1986, Congress approved the Anti-Drug Abuse Act, authorizing $6 billion over 3 years for interdiction and enforcement measures, as well as drug demand reduction education and treatment programs. The 1986 Act allocated a larger share of federal drug control funds for prevention and treatment programs than did any other previous law. Prevention efforts were also expanded by the 1986 Act with the creation of the White House Conference for a Drug-Free America and the establishment of the Office for Substance Abuse Prevention, both of which were aimed at community prevention strategies.

The Anti-Drug Abuse and Control Act of 1988 established the ONDCP as part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States. The ONDCP was charged with setting national priorities and implementing the National Drug Control Strategy. The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 extended the ONDCP's mission to assessing budgets and resources relating to the National Drug Control Strategy, and established specific reporting requirements in the areas of drug use, availability, consequences, and treatment.

Currently, the National Drug Control Strategy established by the ONDCP includes 5 goals and 31 strategic objectives. The 5 goals of the National Drug Control Strategy are listed on the following page.

Generally, the DOJ drug demand reduction programs fall under the first and third goals of the National Drug Control Strategy. The DOJ's inmate treatment programs are included in the second goal.

Federal Drug Control Budget

Pursuant to 21 U.S.C. § 1703(c)(1), federal agencies are required to submit drug control budget information to the ONDCP for review, certification, and inclusion in the consolidated National Drug Control Budget. The total federal drug control budget reported in the ONDCP Budget Summary includes those resources dedicated to both supply reduction (enforcement) and drug demand reduction efforts. Historically, about one?third of the total drug control budget has been dedicated to drug demand reduction efforts. As reported in the ONDCP FYs 2002 and 2003 budget summaries, the federal drug control budget totaled $17.9 billion in FY 2000, $18.1 billion in FY 2001, and $18.8 billion in FY 2002. Drug control funding by agency is shown in the table on the following page.

FEDERAL DRUG CONTROL BUDGET¹⁰
($ millions)

As shown above, the federal drug control budget increased by about $900 million between FY 2000 and FY 2002. During the same period, the DOJ's drug control budget increased by about $800 million. The total DOJ drug control budget comprised about 41 percent of the total federal budget in FY 2000, 45 percent in FY 2001, and 43 percent in FY 2002.

Federal Drug Demand Reduction Budget

Since 1987, the federal drug control budget, which includes those resources dedicated to both supply reduction (enforcement) and drug demand reduction, has more than tripled from $4.8 billion in 1987 to $18.1 billion in FY 2001. As shown in the chart on the following page, the federal drug demand reduction budget has increased at about the same rate as the total drug control budget.

NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL BUDGET BY FUNCTION¹¹
($ millions)

As reported in the ONDCP FY 2003 Budget Summary, approximately $5.9 billion (33 percent) of the total federal drug control budget was dedicated to drug demand reduction programs in FY 2001. The $5.9 billion federal drug demand reduction budget consisted of about $3.3 billion (19 percent) dedicated to treatment programs and $2.6 billion (14 percent) dedicated to prevention programs.

From the ONDCP FYs 2002 and 2003 budget summaries, we identified the total federal and DOJ drug demand reduction budgets for FY 2000 through FY 2002. The DOJ drug demand reduction budget comprised 6 percent of the total federal drug demand reduction budget in FYs 2000 and 2001, and 5 percent in FY 2002, as shown in the table on the following page.

FEDERAL DRUG DEMAND REDUCTION BUDGET
($ millions)

Based on our analysis of the information in the above table, the total federal budget for drug demand reduction programs has increased by about $900 million (17 percent) from FY 2000 to FY 2002. During the same period the DOJ drug demand reduction budget only increased about $3 million (1 percent). As reported in the ONDCP FYs 2002 and 2003 budget summaries, the DOJ drug demand reduction budget comprised about 4 percent of the total DOJ drug control budget for FYs 2000 through 2003, and includes programs administered by the BOP, COPS Office, DEA, and OJP.

7. The U.S. Department of Justice, Fiscal Years 2001- 2006, Strategic Plan, dated November 2001 (DOJ Strategic Plan).
8. A Tradition of Excellence; The History of the DEA.
9. The Office of National Drug Control Policy, FY 2001 - FY 2007 Strategic Plan.
10. The total federal drug control budget includes those resources dedicated to both supply reduction (enforcement) and drug demand reduction efforts.
11. For the functional areas in the table: (1) Demand (shown in blue) relates to funding for drug demand reduction prevention and treatment activities; (2) Dom. Law Enf. (shown in green) relates to funding for the enforcement of domestic drug laws; (3) International (shown in yellow) relates to funding for drug control activities that are focused on or conducted in foreign countries; (4) Interdiction (shown in red) relates to funding for activities designed to interrupt the trafficking of illicit drug into the United States.