Peter Reuter testifies before Congress

In testimony before the House Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on Domestic Policy, Faculty Associate Peter Reuter pointed out that "It has become increasingly hard to justify the highly punitive nature of current U.S. policies, which contrast so sharply with other Western nations." In lengthy testimony, he addressed three issues:

• The importance of distinguishing among broad classes of drugs in making policy decisions;
  
• The evidence and arguments for the claim that large reductions in the number of incarcerations for drug offenses would have minimal effect on the price and availability of drugs; and
  
• The reasons for skepticism that efforts in producer countries will reduce the availability of cocaine and heroin in the United States and and argument for doing much less overseas.
  

He concluded by recommending: "On the demand side raising both the availability and quality of treatment for drug dependence is clearly a first order priority. Finding better ways of funding effective prevention programs so that less is spent on programs that are known to be ineffective is also important. These are long-term priorities.

"In the shorter run, cutting unnecessary incarceration and ensuring that US efforts overseas are more sensibly focused are both well worth the Director's attention. Helping push federal policy in these areas would benefit not only the nation but also the standing of the Office of National Drug Control Policy."

See the complete testimony in Congressional Quarterly.

Dr. Reuter is a Professor of Public Policy and of Criminology and Criminal Justice. He is known internationally as an expert resource on drug policy.