Last week ANOA President Clif Roberts and I traveled to Washington DC to attend the National Narcotics Officers’ Associations’ Coalition (NNOAC) meeting. The week was very rewarding with new relationships formed and friendships made.

Briefings and meetings with the NNOAC included presentations by Ms. Betty Sembler, founder, and Professor Calvina Fay Executive Director, of the Drug Free American Foundation and Save Our Society from Drugs; U.S. Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon; Acting Attorney General & Principle Deputy Attorney General Laurie Robinson from the United States Department of Justice; Mr. Stephen Pasierb President and CEO of The Partnership for a Drug Free America; Fraternal Order of Police National President Chuck Canterbury; Drug Enforcement Administration Acting Administrator Michele Leonhart; U.S. Senator Amy Klobacher of Minnesota; U.S. Representative Bart Stupak of Michigan; U.S. Representative David Reichert of Washington; the National Drug Intelligence Center and many, many others.

On February 10th, we spent the day on Capital Hill expressing our concerns to our representatives. We met with Senator Richard Shelby who was very charming. As the ranking Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Shelby is very important when it comes to properly funding the Byrne-Justice Assistant Grants. He has been a very important ally in this endeavor. We also met Representative Parker Griffith of the Alabama 5th Congressional District. He was a real joy to meet as one of our freshman Congressmen. For those of you that didn’t know it, Representative Griffith is a medical doctor who was endorsed by the Fraternal Order of Police. He is a true friend of law enforcement.

Some of the highlights of the conference included the passing of the Economic Stimulus Bill. This bill is expected to include:

- Byrne JAG formula program - $2 billion

- Byrne competitive grants - $225 million

- COPS - $1 billion (no match requirement, no per-officer cap)

- Southern border and HIDTA competitive grants - $40 million

- Rural law enforcement and drug enforcement competitive grants - $125 million

The Department of Justice is required to develop a spending plan within 60 days of enactment for congressional approval. These details will be important for you all.

All of the funding must be obligated by the end of FY 2010 (September 30, 2010).

One other item of interest included a future proposal to make pseudoephedrine a Schedule III drug. Please stand by for future updates on this issue.

I want to thank all of you for allowing Clif and I the opportunity to travel to Washington DC to represent your interests.