Drug Enforcement Administration

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is a law enforcement agency that works for the United States Department of Justice that enforces the United States drug laws. The DEA is the agency with the most responsiblility for drug enforcement in the U.S. and also shares its responsibilities with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It also has complete responsibility (duty to do something) for U.S. drug enforcement investigations in other countries.

 History 

In 1999, the DEA opened the Drug Enforcement Administration Museum in Arlington, Virginia. In February 2003, the DEA started a Digital Evidence Laboratory in its Office of Forensic Sciences.

 Organization 
The DEA is run by an Administrator of Drug Enforcement who is given the job by the President of the United States and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. The Administrator's direct boss is the Attorney General through the Deputy Attorney General. It has its own training centre called the DEA Academy on the United States Marine Corps base at Quantico, Virginia with the FBI Academy. It has 21 domestic divisions inside the U.S. with 227 field offices and 86 foreign offices in 62 countries. With a budget of over 2.415 billion U.S. dollars, the DEA employs over 10,800 people, including over 5,500 Special agents.

 Narcotics registration 
The DEA has a system in place which allows doctors and other people, such as dentists, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners, to prescribe medicines, researchers and manufacturers access to "Schedule I" drugs, as well as Schedules 2, 3, 4 and 5.

Related pages
 List of United States federal law enforcement agencies

 References 

 Other websites 

 DEA official web site
 The History of the DEA from 1973 to 1998
 List of former DEA Administrators
 Agency of Fear - The History of the origins of the DEA in the Nixon White House
 Results of Prohibition  The financial costs of drug use and drug prohibition in the U.S., impact on levels of drug use and prices.
 A response to the DEA web site

 Major Studies of Drugs and Drug Policy Full text of major government commission reports on the effects of drug enforcement
 The Drug Hang-Up by Rufus King A history of the drug laws with special emphasis on the predecessors to the DEA
 DEA Watch - A dissenting view of the DEA 
 Drug Enforcement Administration Meeting Notices and Rule Changes  from The Federal Register RSS Feed 
 DEA Lookup.com Commercial DEA number database search service
 Office of Diversion Control 
Reorganization Plan No. 2 of 1973 - Appendix to Title 5, U.S. Code 
 Get Smart About Drugs - A DEA Resource for Parents
 DEA Demand Reduction - Street Smart Prevention

Category:1973 establishments in the United States
Category:Federal law enforcement agencies of the United States
Category:Drug control law