FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2002
WWW.USDOJ.GOV
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AG
(202) 514-2008
TDD (202) 514-1888
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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE REQUESTS $30.2 BILLION TO
PREVENT AND COMBAT TERRORISM, CONTINUE THE FIGHT
AGAINST DRUGS, ENSURE CIVIL RIGHTS
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Attorney General John Ashcroft today announced that
the President's FY 2003 budget proposal includes $30.2 billion for the
Department of Justice. Federal law enforcement programs increase by 13 percent
over the funding enacted in the FY 2002 Department of Justice Appropriations
Act. In total, the FY 2003 budget increases Department funding by almost 21
percent over the prior two years. The FY 2003 budget proposal consists of
$23.1 billion in discretionary spending and $7.1 billion derived from
fee-funded and mandatory accounts.
"Defending our nation and defending the citizens of America against
terrorist attacks is the first and overriding priority of the Department of
Justice," said Ashcroft. "The President's budget supports the Department's
reorganization to refocus law enforcement efforts to fight the war on
terrorism. Additionally, the Department continues to pursue the
Administration's mission to continue the fight against drugs, and to protect
the civil rights of all Americans."
This budget request includes $2 billion in new program funding for ongoing
counter terrorism efforts initiated since September 11th, and further new
efforts proposed for FY 2003. The portion of the Department's spending
directed at preventing and combating terrorism increases from $1.2 billion in
FY20002 (pre-CT Supplemental) to over $3 billion in FY 2003. This budget
fulfills the Administration's commitment to combat terrorism by ensuring that
United States law enforcement has sufficient resources to address two critical
tasks: 1) to prevent terrorism, and; 2) to bring terrorists to justice. This
increased funding would improve border security, enhance operational support
for field investigations, and further upgrade information technology.
The Department also remains dedicated to fighting the war on drugs. The
Department's budget upholds this commitment with $74 million in new and
expanded initiatives to combat the trafficking of drugs in communities and
along our borders, as well as support programs aimed at reducing drug use.
In addition to these priorities, other key budget increases are provided to
ensure vigorous enforcement of civil rights laws; to compensate victims of the
September 11th terrorist attacks; to improve the management and services of
the Immigration and Naturalization Service; and to increase federal detention
and incarceration capacity.
The following highlights the Department of Justice's FY 2003 program
improvements:
Preventing and Combating Terrorism, Including Border Security
"With a focus on antiterrorism and securing our borders, law enforcement
will protect and defend our families, our values, and our rights as
Americans," said Ashcroft.
- The Department received $2.1 billion in supplemental counterterrorism
resources this year. Many of the items funded within the supplemental are for
one-time costs that do not require further funding in FY 2003. Of the $2
billion in new counterterrorism spending included in the FY 2003 budget,
$539.2 million supports ongoing activities (such as new F.B.I. Agents, New INS
Border Inspectors, U.S. Attorneys for the Joint Terrorism Taskforces, and
equipment and technology) that were initiated through the FY 2002
Counterterrorism Supplemental.
- In addition to supporting these newly funded efforts, the budget also proposes
new increases of $1.5 billion to further enhance counterterrorism efforts. Key
elements of this package include:
- $412 million in additional funds for the Federal Bureau of Investigation
(FBI).
- Operational Support of Counterterrorism Field Investigations - $223
million to increase intelligence and surveillance capabilities, response
capabilities, and additional equipment and support personnel.
- Information Technology (IT) Projects - $109 million to enhance various
FBI information technology projects, including digital storage of documents,
data management and warehousing, collaborative capabilities, IT support for
Legal Attaches, continuity of operations, video teleconferencing capabilities,
and Trilogy support and mainframe data center upgrades.
- Personnel and Information Security - $78 million to harden FBI
information systems against inappropriate and illegal use and intrusion, and
to conduct background investigations.
- The total proposed FY 2003 budget for the FBI ($4.3 billion) is a 19% increase
over FY 2002 ($3.6 billion pre-CT Supplemental). With these increases, the FBI
budget has increased by almost one-third over the past two years (29%).
- $734 million in additional funds to improve Border Security - including
more than doubling the number of Border Patrol agents on the Northern border -
in the budget of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS). The
total proposed FY 2003 budget for INS is 23 percent over the budget enacted in
FY 2002 pre-CT Supplemental (including detention funding under the Detention
Trustee's Office in FY 2003). Border Security funding increases consist of:
- Entry/Exit System - $362 million to fund a multi-year effort to provide
a comprehensive land, sea, and air entry/exit system for the United States.
The system will provide enhanced information technology and upgraded
facilities along America's borders.
- Border Security - $372 million and 570 positions (570 agents) to
enhance border security. This includes $76.3 million to hire, train, and
deploy an additional 570 Border Patrol agents. This increase in Border Patrol
fulfills the President's commitment to increase the Patrol to over 11,000
agents as authorized in 1996. This increase also supports $25 million to
redeploy approximately 285 Border Patrol agents to the Northern Border; $10
million for twin engine helicopters; $28 million to enhance Border Patrol's
ENFORCE database and add biometric equipment; and $86 million and 1,225
positions to enhance security at air, land, and sea ports-of-entry with
additional resources to hire, train, and deploy 1,160 inspectors
- $60 million to continue the investment in a federal law enforcement radio
infrastructure for key areas such as New York and the northern and southwest
borders.
- $24.1 million and 81 positions (45 agents) to increase the number of Joint
Terrorism Task Forces (JTTF) to 56. These resources include $15.7 million
for the FBI to support task force costs, and $6 million and 59 positions (48
agents) for the INS and $2.4 million and 22 positions for the USMS for task
force participation.
Increasing the Commitment to the War on Drugs
"The war on drugs is a war we must win to protect America's children from
the devastating affects of drug abuse," Ashcroft said. "The centerpiece of our
strategy in this war is to curtail the availability of drugs by dismantling
the entire infrastructure of the largest supply networks, from the
international supply, through the national transportation cells, and down to
the regional and local distribution organizations."
- The budget proposes a total of $1.6 billion including $74 million to
increase programs combating drug crime. The new elements of this package
are as follows:
- $24.6 million and 133 new positions to increase the DEA'S drug diversion
program. This funding will strengthen the Drug Enforcement
Administration's (DEA) enforcement capabilities to prevent, detect, and
investigate the diversion of controlled substances, particularly OxyContin.
- $17.4 million, redirected from resources available to DEA, to implement
Operation Containment, an Afghanistan Initiative. This initiative will
employ a multi-faceted approach to identify, target, investigate, disrupt and
dismantle transnational heroin trafficking organizations in Central Asia.
- $14.8 million and 66 positions (35 agents and 6 attorneys) for field
support of Special Operations Division (SOD) Coordinated Investigations.
This funding will enhance the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces'
capabilities to conduct complex, multi-district investigations developed from
SOD intelligence and coordination. These resources will be used by DEA and the
Criminal Division, and will also fund state and local overtime
- $4.1 million and 27 positions (20 agents) to strengthen DEA's financial
investigations to disrupt the international and domestic flow of illicit
money, provide financial investigations training, and enhance regulatory and
cooperative public-private efforts to prevent money laundering
Ensuring Civil Rights
"Essential to our republic is the right of every citizen, from every walk
of life, to be free from racial hatred and discrimination," said Ashcroft.
"The Department of Justice will direct significant resources to protect the
Constitutional rights of all Americans."
- The FY 2003 budget includes an increase of $405.8 million for the vigorous
enforcement of civil rights laws. The highlights of the new initiatives
include:
- $3 million and 25 positions for the review of complaints alleging civil
rights abuses against Department employees, and for the oversight of
departmental counter terrorism programs.
- $400 million for States to improve the voting process, a new three-year
program, totaling $1.2 billion. The funds would be used for technical and
procedural improvements to state and local voting systems.
- $2.8 million to promote the effective investigation, prosecution, and
response to hate crimes, within the Office of Justice Programs budget.
Other Key Budget Initiatives
- Rounding out the initiatives funded in the Departments FY 2003 budget request
are the following:
- $102 million in additional funds for improving the management and service
of the INS, including $50.5 million to process and adjudicate immigration
benefits applications and $40 million to support the restructuring of INS.
- $446.9 million to fund additional prison construction and the opening of
new federal prisons, as well as additional detention beds and the improved
management and oversight of departmental detention programs. The budget
centralizes detention funding in the newly created Office of the Detention
Trustee
- $2.7 billion is included in the FY 2003 budget for the Department's
September 11th Victim Compensation Fund.
State and Local Assistance
- Transfer of $234.5 million from DOJ's Office of Domestic Preparedness to
FEMA for "First Responder" Assistance. While state and local assistance in
the budget of the Justice Department decreases in FY2003, overall state and
local support in the entire Federal budget increases dramatically, and is
refocused on emergency first responders, whose funding is redirected and
consolidated within the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) budget.
FEMA's budget provides a total of $3.5 billion for first responders
- COPs budget of $1.38 billion including a new $800 million provided for a
new Justice Assistance Grant Program, which consolidates the Local Law
Enforcement Block Grant and the Byrne Formula Grant Program into a single
simplified grant program. This amount also includes $15 million to facilitate
neighborhood watch programs' terrorism preparedness, and $60 million earmarked
for the Boys and Girls Clubs.
- Finally, the FY 2003 budget provides $65.6 million in targeted assistance
to police. This amount includes an increase of $15.6 million for Police
Corps, a scholarship program designed to address violent crime by increasing
the number of officers on the beat with advanced education and training; and
$50 million for a COPS Information Technology Program that will allow police
departments to purchase much-needed technology without requiring the
redeployment of officers.
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