|
[an error occurred while processing this directive] |
| Bush: Scrap Public Housing Drug Push |
|
Posted by FoM on March 11, 2001 at 14:14:07 PT By The Associated Press Source: New York Times 
Since the first Bush administration, federal dollars have paid for security officers, alarm systems and after-school activities for youngsters in poor public housing projects.President Bush, however, has proposed scrapping the Public Housing Drug Elimination Program, saying it has had ``limited impact'' and that ``regulatory tools such as eviction are more effective at reducing drug activity in public housing.'' Program supporters are worried about the message it would send to public housing residents, who themselves fear it may imperil their safety. In his proposed budget for 2002, the president wants to give public housing leaders about half of the $310 million allocated this year for the program for security, higher utility rates or other needs. Part of Bush's approach is getting religious groups involved in neighborhoods. The Department of Housing and Urban Development, which oversees a variety of housing programs mainly for the poor, ``is going to be one of the lead agencies in the faith-based efforts,'' said Robert Woodson Jr., deputy chief of staff at HUD. A program supporter, Rep. John LaFalce, D-N.Y., said Bush's idea would, in effect, tell families trying to raise their children in public housing that ``drug dealers are welcomed back'' and that combating crime no longer is a priority. But Woodson said Congress spends hundreds of millions yearly on the drug initiative and ``we still have a lot of problems and crime in public housing. Maybe we need a different approach here.'' During the week in February when Bush proposed his budget, a Kentucky police officer was shot in the chest and nearly died while trying to arrest a suspected drug dealer in a Louisville housing project. Louisville has used the federal program to pay for 14 lawmen to patrol housing complexes and would be concerned about losing the money, said Tim Barry, acting director of the housing authority. Advocates for the 1.3 million families who live in government housing projects defend the program started in 1989 under then-HUD Secretary Jack Kemp in the administration of Bush's father. An aide to Kemp said Kemp would not discuss the program. ``It's just absolutely insane to say it hasn't worked,'' said Richard Nelson, director of the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials. Nelson said the substitute spending recommended by Bush would not even cover half the expected increase in utility costs. Ethel Velez, 52, a lifelong public housing resident in New York, says that while the drug program has not solved problems, scrapping it would add to crime worries in housing projects. ``If they're going to get less (protection) than they get now, they're going to be mad -- and very scared,'' said Velez, the president of her Harlem neighborhood association of more than 3,000 people. In all, Bush proposed cutting an estimated $1.3 billion next year from programs overseen by HUD, according to an analysis by LaFalce, who held a news conference last week with other Democratic congressman to criticize the spending plan. ``Reducing funds needed to improve the lives of the poorest children in America, those who live in public housing, is a very odd way to show compassion,'' said Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass. LaFalce, the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, said a proposed $700 million reduction in a repair fund would mean that public housing residents' ``leaky roofs may never be fixed, and that their dilapidated 30-year-old stoves won't be replaced.'' Bush said the reduction would have no immediate impact because most housing authorities have a backlog in repair money. ``People should not feel it at all,'' said HUD's Woodson. Woodson said the fund is often used for major renovation projects on unoccupied buildings, so ``you're not talking about families who don't have running water because a boiler unit was not fixed.'' On the Net: Department of Housing and Urban Development: http://www.hud.gov National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials: http://www.nahro.org Related Article: HUD's Drug Rule Overturned Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help |
 |
| Comment #4 posted by RAS JAMES RSIFWH on March 14, 2001 at 15:15:14 PT |
| Booze store don't work just fine. Drunk driving is a major threat to us all. Most youth die from alcohol abuse...binge drinking on college campuses is out of control. Cannabis Sativa would not have the same controls as hard drugs since it is a soft drug like coffee. Loose your stash and go buy another stash at a coffee house...just like you buy a cup of coffee today. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #3 posted by ripper on March 11, 2001 at 18:46:00 PT |
| ras james rsifwh 1. and 2. I can agree with. If you give government power they will abuse it. Booze stores work fine. Lets keep it at that. A larger government checking on how much and what substance I am using does not appeal to me. Such records could be used against you. What if you lose your stash, or someone rips you off. Do you have to wait a month to beg the government for more? No, three and four don't work for me at all. Give them an inch and they will take a mile. Freedom comes with responsabilty attached. The government telling you what you can, and how much you can put in your body is not freedom. Its tyrrany. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #2 posted by ras james rsifwh on March 11, 2001 at 15:48:22 PT |
| 1. Hard drugs like cocaine, alcohol, tobacco, and heroin must be purchased with photo I.D. at licensed facilities. 2. All taxes on the sale of these drugs must go to drug education programs and treatment centers. 3. All hard drug packaging must have a government I.D. number which can be traced to manufacture, store, and/or individual purchaser if found in the hands of minors. 4. Individual citizens would be limited to drug amounts for personal use. All sales would record the purchaser and amount. Monthly limits would be set and instantly checked by store owners with computers. If this was done, the gang drug wars would vanish. Public Housing would be safe for families; So the question is why? Why isn't this done immediately? [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #1 posted by jAHn on March 11, 2001 at 15:00:23 PT |
| Send the 1.3 million to another country. America doesn't need it, isn't that what this is saying? These Lawmakers just look at people of America as if they're a flock of sheep. We only matter when we have an argument that sides with them. These days, the number of "thems" are slowly dropping, thank effing goodness! Come on, Stop This War on People! Stop using people like slaves! There are too many Sick and Dying people to just turn a blind eye! Peoples' lives are at stake. It's no longer a matter of who is ingesting what. I'm only 24 FRICKIN years old!!! Employment Conditions Suck! World Leaders Suck! Mainstream Entertainment Sucks! The "News" Is A Fraud, therefore, anyone who OBEYS is a Fraud. Turn off that T.V. All of the good stuff is on: Outside!!! Where Nature Roams, Unfreely, temporarily! [ Post Comment ] |
| Post Comment |  |
 |  |