I

105TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 956

To amend the National Narcotics Leadership Act of 1988 to establish a

program to support and encourage local communities that first demonstrate a comprehensive, long-term commitment to reduce substance

abuse among youth, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

MARCH 5, 1997

Mr. PORTMAN (for himself, Mr. HASTERT, Mr. LEVIN, and Mr. RANGEL) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight, and in addition to the Committee on

Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker,

in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

A BILL

To amend the National Narcotics Leadership Act of 1988

to establish a program to support and encourage local

communities that first demonstrate a comprehensive,

long-term commitment to reduce substance abuse among

youth, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Drug-Free Commu5 nities Act of 1997’’.
2

•HR 956 IH

1 SEC. 2. NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL PROGRAM.

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The National Narcotics Leader3 ship Act of 1988 is amended—

4 (1) by inserting between sections 1001 and

5 1002 the following:

6 ‘‘CHAPTER 1—OFFICE OF NATIONAL DRUG

7 CONTROL POLICY’’;

8 and

9 (2) by adding at the end of such chapter the

10 following:

11 ‘‘CHAPTER 2—DRUG-FREE COMMUNITIES

12 ‘‘SEC. 1021. FINDINGS.

13 ‘‘The Congress finds the following:

14 ‘‘(1) Substance abuse among youth has more

15 than doubled in the last four years, with substantial

16 increases in the use of marijuana, inhalants, cocaine,

17 methamphetamine, LSD, and heroin.

18 ‘‘(2) The most dramatic increases in substance

19 abuse over the last four years are among younger

20 Americans—13 and 14 year olds.

21 ‘‘(3) Casual or periodic substance abuse by

22 youth today will contribute to hard core or chronic

23 substance abuse by the next generation of adults.

24 ‘‘(4) Substance abuse is at the core of other

25 problems, such as rising violent teen and violent
3

•HR 956 IH

1 gang crime, increasing health care costs, HIV infec2 tions, teenage pregnancy, high school dropouts, and

3 lower economic productivity.

4 ‘‘(5) Increases in substance abuse among youth

5 are due in large part to an erosion of understanding

6 among youth of the high risks associated with sub7 stance abuse, and to the softening of peer norms

8 against use.

9 ‘‘(6) Substance abuse is a preventable behavior

10 and a treatable disease; in fact, between 1979 and

11 1992, monthly use of illegal drugs among 12 to 17

12 year olds declined over 70 percent; and data sug13 gests that if parents would simply talk to their chil14 dren regularly about the dangers of substance abuse,

15 use among youth could be expected to decline by as

16 much as 30 percent.

17 ‘‘(7) Community anti-drug coalitions through18 out the Nation are successfully developing and im19 plementing comprehensive, long-term strategies to

20 reduce substance abuse among youth on a sustained

21 basis.

22 ‘‘(8) Intergovernmental cooperation and coordi23 nation through national, State, and local or tribal

24 leadership and partnerships are critical to facilitate
4

•HR 956 IH

1 the reduction of substance abuse among youth in

2 communities throughout the Nation.

3 ‘‘SEC. 1022. PURPOSES.

4 ‘‘The purposes of this chapter are—

5 ‘‘(1) to help reduce substance abuse among

6 youth in communities throughout the Nation, and

7 over time, to reduce substance abuse among adults;

8 ‘‘(2) to strengthen collaboration among commu9 nities, the Federal Government, and State, local,

10 and tribal governments, and to enhance intergovern11 mental cooperation and coordination on the issue of

12 substance abuse among youth;

13 ‘‘(3) to serve as a catalyst for increased citizen

14 participation and greater collaboration among all

15 sectors and organizations of a community that first

16 demonstrates a long-term commitment to reducing

17 substance abuse among youth;

18 ‘‘(4) to rechannel existing resources from the

19 Federal drug control budget to provide technical as20 sistance, guidance, and financial support to commu21 nities that demonstrate a long-term commitment in

22 reducing substance abuse among youth;

23 ‘‘(5) to disseminate to communities timely in24 formation regarding the state-of-the-art practices
5

•HR 956 IH

1 and initiatives that have proven effective to reducing

2 substance abuse among youth;

3 ‘‘(6) to enhance, not supplant, local community

4 initiatives for reducing substance abuse among

5 youth; and

6 ‘‘(7) to encourage the creation of and support

7 for community anti-drug coalitions throughout the

8 Nation.

9 ‘‘SEC. 1023. DEFINITIONS.

10 ‘‘For purposes of this chapter—

11 ‘‘(1) the term ‘Administrator’ means the Ad12 ministrator appointed by the Director pursuant to

13 section 1031(c); and

14 ‘‘(2) the term ‘Director’ means the Director of

15 the Office of National Drug Control Policy.

16 ‘‘SEC. 1024. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

17 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be

19 appropriated to the Office of National Drug Control

20 Policy to carry out this chapter, $10,000,000 for fis21 cal year 1998, $20,000,000 for fiscal year 1999,

22 $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2000, $40,000,000 for

23 fiscal year 2001, and $43,500,000 for fiscal year

24 2002.
6

•HR 956 IH

1 ‘‘(2) OFFICE OF NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL

2 POLICY.—The authorizations provided in paragraph

3 (1) shall be effective only to the extent that amounts

4 are appropriated for each fiscal year for the Office

5 of National Drug Control Policy.

6 ‘‘(b) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Not more than the

7 following percentages of the amounts authorized under

8 subsection (a) may be used to pay administrative costs:

9 10 percent for fiscal year 1998; six percent for fiscal year

10 1999; four percent for fiscal year 2000; three percent for

11 fiscal year 2001; and three percent for fiscal year 2002.

12 ‘‘Subchapter I—Drug-Free Communities

13 Support Program

14 ‘‘SEC. 1031. ESTABLISHMENT OF DRUG-FREE COMMUNITIES

15 SUPPORT PROGRAM.

16 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Director of the Office

17 of National Drug Control Policy shall establish a program

18 to support communities in the development and implemen19 tation of comprehensive, long-term plans and programs to

20 prevent and treat substance abuse among youth (referred

21 to in this chapter as the ‘Program’).

22 ‘‘(b) PROGRAM.—The Program shall include grant

23 making and tracking, technical assistance and training,
7

•HR 956 IH

1 data collection and dissemination on state-of-the-art prac2 tices which have proven effective in reducing substance

3 abuse, and general administration.

4 ‘‘(c) ADMINISTRATION.—Not later than 30 days after

5 receiving recommendations from the Advisory Commission

6 established under title II, the Director shall appoint an

7 Administrator to carry out the Program.

8 ‘‘SEC. 1032. PROGRAM AUTHORIZATION.

9 ‘‘(a) GRANT ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive

10 a grant under this chapter, a coalition shall meet the fol11 lowing criteria:

12 ‘‘(1) APPLICATION.—A coalition that desires to

13 receive a grant or to renew a grant under this chap14 ter shall submit an application at such time and in

15 such manner and form as the Administrator shall

16 reasonably require.

17 ‘‘(2) MAJOR SECTOR INVOLVEMENT.—A coali18 tion shall consist of one or more representatives of

19 youth, parents, businesses, the media, schools, orga20 nizations serving youth, law enforcement, the faith

21 community, civic and fraternal groups, health care

22 professionals, State and local or tribal government

23 agencies with expertise in the field of substance

24 abuse, including, if applicable, the single State au25 thority for substance abuse, and other organizations
8

•HR 956 IH

1 involved in reducing substance abuse, and, if fea2 sible, an elected official from each of local or tribal,

3 State, and the Federal Government.

4 ‘‘(3) COMMITMENT.—A coalition shall also dem5 onstrate that its representatives have worked to6 gether on substance abuse reduction initiatives for

7 not less than six months through entities such as

8 task forces, subcommittees, or community boards

9 and shall demonstrate substantial participation from

10 volunteer leaders in the community, especially

11 among individuals involved with youth such as par12 ents, teachers, coaches, youth workers, and clergy.

13 ‘‘(4) MISSION AND STRATEGIES.—A coalition

14 shall—

15 ‘‘(A) have as its principal mission the re16 duction of substance abuse in a comprehensive

17 and long-term fashion, with a primary focus on

18 youth in the community;

19 ‘‘(B) describe and document the nature

20 and extent of the substance abuse problem in

21 the community;

22 ‘‘(C) provide a description of existing sub23 stance abuse prevention and treatment pro24 grams and activities and identify substance
9

•HR 956 IH

1 abuse program and service gaps in the commu2 nity;

3 ‘‘(D) develop a strategic plan to reduce

4 substance abuse among youth in a comprehen5 sive and long-term fashion; and

6 ‘‘(E) work to develop a consensus regard7 ing the priorities of the community to combat

8 substance abuse among youth.

9 ‘‘(5) SUSTAINABILITY.—A coalition shall dem10 onstrate that it is an ongoing concern, by having a

11 structure (such as a 501(c)(3) organization de12 scribed in title 26, United States Code or a division

13 of an existing entity), non-Federal financial support

14 (including, within the discretion of the Adminis15 trator, in-kind contributions), and a strategy to

16 identify and solicit substantial non-Federal funding

17 sources to ensure that the coalition and its programs

18 are self-sustaining.

19 ‘‘(6) ACCOUNTABILITY.—The coalition shall—

20 ‘‘(A) establish a system approved by the

21 Administrator to measure and report outcomes

22 consistent with common indicators and evalua23 tion protocols established by the Administrator,

24 in consultation with the Advisory Commission;
10

•HR 956 IH

1 ‘‘(B) conduct an initial benchmark survey

2 of drug use among youth (or use local surveys

3 or performance measures already available or

4 accessible in the community) and conduct sur5 veys (or incorporate existing local surveys into

6 its evaluation) to measure the progress and ef7 fectiveness of the coalition on a biennial basis;

8 and

9 ‘‘(C) provide assurances that the entity

10 conducting the evaluation, or upon which the

11 coalition is relying for its information, has expe12 rience in gathering data related to substance

13 abuse among youth or in evaluating the effec14 tiveness of community anti-drug coalitions.

15 ‘‘(b) GRANT AMOUNTS.—

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—

17 ‘‘(A) GRANTS.—The Administrator is au18 thorized to provide an amount not to exceed the

19 amount of non-Federal funds raised by the coa20 lition, including in-kind contributions, in any

21 fiscal year and is authorized to renew such

22 grant awards annually for a period not to ex23 ceed four years. Each such grant award may

24 not exceed $100,000 in any fiscal year.
11

•HR 956 IH

1 ‘‘(B) COALITION AWARDS.—The Adminis2 trator is authorized to make grants to not more

3 than one eligible coalition representing a com4 munity, except that the Administrator has the

5 discretion to make grants to more than one eli6 gible coalition in each community that has a

7 population that exceeds 2,000,000 people, ex8 cept that coalitions receiving such grants shall

9 demonstrate that they are collaborating with

10 one another and have independently met the re11 quirements set forth in section 1022(a).

12 ‘‘(2) RURAL COALITION GRANTS.—In order to

13 stimulate the development of coalitions in sparsely

14 populated and rural areas and to any tribal govern15 ment, the Administrator is authorized to provide

16 grants, not to exceed $50,000 in any fiscal year, to

17 coalitions representing a county, a parish, a bor18 ough, or a census area that has a population that

19 does not exceed 30,000 people and is authorized to

20 renew such grant awards annually for a period not

21 to exceed four years. The Administrator is author22 ized to make grants to not more than one coalition

23 representing a county, a parish, a borough, or a cen24 sus area.
12

•HR 956 IH

1 ‘‘SEC. 1033. INFORMATION COLLECTION AND DISSEMINA2 TION WITH RESPECT TO GRANTEES.

3 ‘‘(a) COALITION INFORMATION.—

4 ‘‘(1) GENERAL AUDITING AUTHORITY.—The

5 Administrator shall have access for the purpose of

6 audit and examination to any books, documents, pa7 pers, and records that are pertinent to any grant or

8 grant renewal request under this title and may peri9 odically request information from a grantee to en10 sure that the criteria set forth in section 1022(a) are

11 being met.

12 ‘‘(2) APPLICATION PROCESS.—The Adminis13 trator shall issue rules and regulations regarding the

14 application process, grant renewal, and suspension

15 or withholding of any renewal grant awards. All ap16 plications shall be in writing and shall be subject to

17 bona fide review by the Administrator initially and

18 upon renewal.

19 ‘‘(3) REPORTING.—The Administrator shall

20 make every effort, consistent with existing law, to

21 minimize reporting requirements by a grantee and to

22 expedite any grant renewal requests.

23 ‘‘(b) DATA COLLECTION AND DISSEMINATION.—The

24 Administrator may collect data from national substance

25 abuse organizations working with coalitions, community

26 anti-drug coalitions, departments or agencies of Federal,
13

•HR 956 IH

1 State and local or tribal governments and any other entity

2 or organization whose activities relate to the purposes of

3 the Program. The Administrator may evaluate the utility

4 of specific initiatives, engage in research and development

5 activities related to the Program, and disseminate such in6 formation to eligible coalitions, any other substance abuse

7 organization, or the general public.

8 ‘‘SEC. 1034. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND TRAINING.

9 ‘‘The Administrator may offer technical assistance

10 and training, enter into contracts and cooperative agree11 ments, and coordinate programs with any grantee or other

12 organization. The Administrator may train any represent13 atives designated by a grantee in coalition building, task

14 force development, mediation and facilitation, direct serv15 ice, assessment and evaluation or any other activity relat16 ed to the purposes of the Program.

17 ‘‘Subchapter II—Advisory Commission

18 ‘‘SEC. 1041. ESTABLISHMENT OF ADVISORY COMMISSION.

19 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the ‘Ad20 visory Commission on Drug-Free Communities’ (referred

21 to in this chapter as the ‘Advisory Commission’).

22 ‘‘(b) PURPOSE.—The President shall appoint mem23 bers to the Advisory Commission pursuant to section 1043

24 to advise, consult with, and make recommendations to the
14

•HR 956 IH

1 Administrator concerning matters related to the activities

2 carried out under the Program.

3 ‘‘SEC. 1042. DUTIES.

4 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Advisory Commission—

5 ‘‘(1) shall, within 30 days after its first meet6 ing, make recommendations to the Director regard7 ing the selection of an Administrator;

8 ‘‘(2) may review any grant, contract, or cooper9 ative agreement proposed to be made by the Pro10 gram;

11 ‘‘(3) may make recommendations to the Admin12 istrator regarding the activities of the Program;

13 ‘‘(4) may review any policy or criteria estab14 lished by the Administrator to carry out the Pro15 gram;

16 ‘‘(5) may collect, by correspondence or by per17 sonal investigation, information as to initiatives,

18 studies, services, programs, or other activities of coa19 litions or organizations working in the field of sub20 stance abuse in the United States or any other coun21 try and, with the approval of the Administrator,

22 make such information available through appropriate

23 publications or otherwise for the benefit of coalitions

24 and for the general public; and
15

•HR 956 IH

1 ‘‘(6) may appoint subcommittees and convene

2 workshops and conferences.

3 ‘‘(b) RECOMMENDATIONS.—If the Administrator re4 jects recommendations of the Advisory Commission, the

5 Administrator shall notify the Advisory Commission and

6 the Director in writing of the reasons for so doing not

7 later than 15 days after receiving such recommendations.

8 ‘‘(c) CONFLICT OF INTEREST.—A member of the Ad9 visory Commission shall recuse himself or herself from any

10 decision that would constitute a conflict of interest.

11 ‘‘SEC. 1043. MEMBERSHIP.

12 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The President shall appoint 15

13 members to the Advisory Commission as follows:

14 ‘‘(1) Six members shall be appointed from the

15 leading representatives of national substance abuse

16 reduction organizations, of which at least four must

17 have extensive training or experience in drug preven18 tion.

19 ‘‘(2) Six members shall be appointed from the

20 general public and shall include leaders in fields of

21 youth development, public policy, law, business, or

22 private foundations that fund substance abuse pro23 grams.
16

•HR 956 IH

1 ‘‘(3) Three members shall be appointed from

2 the leading representatives of substance abuse reduc3 tion organizations in the States.

4 ‘‘(b) CHAIRPERSON.—The Advisory Commission shall

5 elect a chairperson or co-chairpersons from among its

6 members.

7 ‘‘(c) EX OFFICIO MEMBERS.—The ex officio mem8 bership of the Advisory Commission shall consist of any

9 two officers or employees of the United States as the Di10 rector determines necessary for the Advisory Commission

11 to effectively carry out its functions.

12 ‘‘SEC. 1044. COMPENSATION.

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Members of the Advisory Com14 mission who are officers or employees of the United States

15 shall not receive any compensation for service on the Advi16 sory Commission. The remaining members of the Advisory

17 Commission shall receive, for each day (including travel

18 time) they are engaged in the performance of the functions

19 of the Advisory Commission, compensation at rates not

20 to exceed the daily equivalent to the annual rate of basic

21 pay payable for GS–10 of the General Schedule.

22 ‘‘(b) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—Each member of the Advi23 sory Commission shall receive travel expenses, including

24 per diem in lieu of subsistence, in accordance with sections

25 5702 and 5703 of title 5, United States Code.
17

•HR 956 IH

1 ‘‘SEC. 1045. TERMS OF OFFICE.

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The term of office of a member

3 of the Advisory Commission shall be three years, except

4 that—

5 ‘‘(1) of the members first appointed under sec6 tion 1043(a)(1), two shall be appointed for a term

7 of two years, and of the members first appointed

8 under section 1043(a)(2), two shall be appointed for

9 a term of two years, and of the members first ap10 pointed under section 1043(a)(3), one shall be ap11 pointed for two years, as designated at the time of

12 appointment; and

13 ‘‘(2) any member appointed to fill a vacancy for

14 an unexpired term shall serve for the remainder of

15 such term.

16 ‘‘(b) VACANCY.—A member of the Advisory Commis17 sion may serve after the expiration of such member’s term

18 until a successor has been appointed and taken office.

19 ‘‘SEC. 1046. MEETINGS.

20 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—After its initial meeting, the Ad21 visory Commission shall meet at the call of the Chairman

22 or a majority of its members or upon the request of the

23 Director or Administrator of the Program for which the

24 Advisory Commission is established.

25 ‘‘(b) QUORUM.—Eight members of the Advisory

26 Commission shall constitute a quorum.
18

•HR 956 IH

1 ‘‘SEC. 1047. STAFF.

2 ‘‘The Advisory Commission may elect its own execu3 tive secretary to facilitate the conduct of business. The

4 Administrator shall make available to the Advisory Com5 mission such staff, information, and other assistance per6 mitted by law as it may reasonably require to carry out

7 its functions.

8 ‘‘SEC. 1048. TERMINATION.

9 ‘‘The Advisory Commission shall terminate on the

10 date that is five years after the date of the enactment of

11 this chapter, except that the Advisory Commission shall

12 be authorized to conduct its business only to the extent

13 that amounts are appropriated to carry out the Pro14 gram.’’.

15 (b) REFERENCE.—Every reference in Federal law to

16 subtitle A of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988, with the

17 exception of section 1001 of such subtitle, shall be deemed

18 a reference to chapter 1 of the National Narcotics Leader19 ship Act of 1988.

Æ