Washington, D.C. — U.S. Congressman Steve King is calling upon his colleagues in the House of Representatives to protect Byrne-JAG grants given to local law enforcement departments to fight drugs. Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grants (Bryne-JAG) are used in local Iowa police departments to prevent, locate and eradicate methamphetamine production, distribution and use.

King, a member of the House Caucus to Fight Meth, is joining with a bipartisan coalition of colleagues to call on key appropriators to fully fund the Byrne-JAG program at $900 million and help law enforcement officers combat methamphetamine in our communities. This June, during House consideration of the Fiscal Year 2006 Department of Justice spending bill, King co-sponsored an amendment to continue Byrne-JAG funding at the current level, $634 million. That amendment failed and the funding was cut by 45 percent. The bill is currently in conference committee with House and Senate negotiators.

“Every single local law enforcement officer in Iowa knows how important this funding is to fight the meth problem that infests Iowa, hurting our kids and crippling our communities,” said King. “Working with Iowa’s law enforcement, my colleagues in Congress and House and Senate appropriators, I will continue to do everything I can to see Byrne-JAG funding restored so we can finally kill the nation’s number-one drug epidemic. Lives are on the line.”

Iowa has approximately 25 police task forces funded by Bryne grants. According to the U.S. Attorney General, the number of meth cases nationwide has quadrupled over the last ten years.