What is everybodys feelings on this??

[radioxkiss]

Do you believe it should be shutt back,ect... look at the article

Justice Dept. Ends Drug-Testing in Jails By CURT ANDERSON Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) -- Citing budget cutbacks, the Justice Department is dropping a testing program for accused drug offenders that has been used to measure drug use and track the emergence of new illegal drugs. The National Institute of Justice, the department's research arm, has run the Arrestee Drug Abuse Monitoring program, or ADAM, since 1986. The program tests people arrested for drug violations at jails in 35 cities and uses the data to develop national patterns of drug use, trends, markets and treatment needs for offenders. The program involves a urine test and a confidential interview with the accused person. An institute statement said that, despite the widespread use of the information collected, "it would be imprudent" to continue the program "in light of anticipated reductions in appropriations." The spending bill signed last week by President Bush for the fiscal year that began Oct. 1 included just $6 million for discretionary Justice Department research programs, down sharply from $20 million the year before. Officials said the jail drug tests alone cost $8.4 million a year and there are number of other research priorities, including reducing domestic violence and assisting prosecutors in the management of heavy caseloads. Bush's initial fiscal 2004 budget request did include enough to pay for all these programs. The statement said discussion are under way to develop a replacement drug testing data collection system "that is better positioned to provide national estimates" of drug use among accused drug offenders. The institute did little to draw attention to the decision to end the program, posting a four-paragraph announcement on its Web site two weeks ago.