The White House's proposed fiscal year 2018 budget reduces the funding request for ONDCP from $388 million in 2017 to $24 million.
The Trump administration plans to cut 96% of the budget of the Office of Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), effectively eliminating the federal agency that has traditionally been used to spearhead the war on drugs, according to multiple media reports.
The White House Office of Management and Budget's proposed fiscal year 2018 budget reduces the funding request for ONDCP from $388 million in 2017 to $24 million, according to a leaked memo reported by CBS News.
The cuts would eliminate approximately half ONDCP's staff, around 33 employees, as well as "intelligence, research and budget functions at the agency, as well as the Model State Drug Laws and Drug Court grant programs," CBS reported on Friday.
"These cuts are frankly heartbreaking and, if carried out, cause us to lose many good people who contribute greatly to ONDCP's mission and core activities," Acting Director Richard Baum wrote in an email to ONDCP staff obtained by CBS.
Baum added that news is "discouraging," but told staff "not to panic" and that "events are unfolding."
In addition, the budget proposes to eliminate multiple grant programs administered by ONDCP, including the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas program and the Drug-Free Communities Support program, which the memo called "duplicative of other efforts across the Federal government and supplant State and local responsibilities."
The ONDCP was first created in 1988 by the Anti-Drug Abuse Act at the height of the crack epidemic and the so-called “War on Drugs.”
As of early Friday, the website for the agency was replaced with a blank page and the message: “Check back soon for more information.”
This is a developing story...
The White House's proposed fiscal year 2018 budget reduces the funding request for ONDCP from $388 million in 2017 to $24 million. Read Full Story
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