Adopted at the 119th Annual Conference

San Diego, CA
October 3, 2012

Recognizing Significant Contributions of the National Guard Counterdrug Program
Submitted by: Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Committee
NDD.013.a12

WHEREAS, the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) recognizes the significant contributions made annually by the National Guard Counterdrug Program (NGCP), which adds invaluable expertise to our nation's efforts to detect, interdict, disrupt and curtail the illicit flow of drugs throughout the United States; and

WHEREAS, the NGCP was first authorized by Congress in 1989 and is a cooperative effort, implemented by the governors in all 54 states and territories of the United States; and

WHEREAS, the NGCP provides critical investigative resources to their federal, state, and local law enforcement counterparts to combat the illicit drug trade, at no cost to their counterparts; and

WHEREAS, during fiscal year 2011, the NGCP program was able to support 65,449 law enforcement agency cases with over 700 field analysts; and

WHEREAS, the NGCP's counterdrug aviation program has provided its law enforcement counterparts with over 500,000 flight hours of aerial observation and photo imagery and communications support since 1991. Notably, in fiscal year 2011, NGCP provided 126 aircraft to support counterdrug operations within the continental United States, logging 23,776.25 flight hours; and

WHEREAS, the NGCP provides translation and transcription support services, which process thousands of hours of recorded conversations captured during counternarcotic investigations; in addition, the NGCP provides linguistic skills in nearly 40 different languages; and

WHEREAS, the NGCP operates five training centers within the United States which provide instruction for interdiction and disruption of illicit drug activity; and WHEREAS, the NGCP created the "Stay on Track" program which focuses drug education and demand reduction efforts towards middle school students; as of April 2010, the NGCP had implemented the program in 1000 middle and junior high schools, boys and girls clubs and after-school programs, providing approximately 400,000 students with an awareness of risks relating to the abuse of drugs; and

WHEREAS, in addition to the support provided directly to state and local law enforcement entities, the NGCP provides expertise and support to our federal counterparts, in air defense, air security planning, radar surveillance, communications, intelligence analysis, as well as interdiction, which further strengthens counterdrug efforts within the United States and abroad; and

WHEREAS, despite its essential role in drug detection, interdiction, disruption, and curtailment, the NGCP's budget may be substantially decreased, with a proposed appropriation for fiscal year 2013 that is almost 50 percent less than that appropriated in fiscal year 2012; and

WHEREAS, a drastic reduction in NGCP funding will have devastating effects on the efficiency and effectiveness of the nation's combined counterdrug efforts, particularly on state law enforcement entities that rely heavily upon NGCP's expertise and resources; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, that the IACP, duly assembled at its 119th Annual Conference in San Diego, California, urges Congress to appropriate sufficient funds to continue to fund fully the National Guard Counterdrug Program.