Rep. McNally announces $145,000 for local law enforcement and disrupting drug trades

COLUMBUS – State Rep. Lauren McNally (D-Youngstown) today announced the awarding of $145,000  in state funds for local law enforcement in Ohio’s 59th district as part of the 2024 RecoveryOhio Law Enforcement Funding Awards, administered by the Office of Criminal Justice Services within the Ohio Department of Public Safety.

“Our goals in government should be system driven and that’s precisely what we intend with these dollars. We want law enforcement to have the resources they need to take on illegal drug activity at the top so we can truly stop the harm as it trickles down,” said Rep. McNally. “I’m glad our Columbiana and Mahoning County Sheriff’s will have more bandwidth to help put an end to the drug activity that has done a ton of harm throughout our state.”

The RecoveryOhio Law Enforcement Fund provides funding to units of local government for defrayment of expenses that a drug task force organization incurs in performing its functions related to the enforcement of the state’s drug laws and other state laws related to illegal drug activity as well as activities related to the RecoveryOhio Initiative which seeks to increase awareness of substance use and mental health issues, implement age-appropriate prevention education in schools, connect those who need help with treatment, and promote recovery. This helps officers identify high-level drug traffickers, dismantle large drug trafficking organizations, interrupt the flow of money and drugs from international cartels, and prevent the sale of illegal narcotics. 

Funding for the program, which was included in the Ohio General Assembly’s House Bill (HB) 33, went to 35 local drug task forces around the state for a total of $2,139,390.50 in support law enforcement’s work in disrupting the drug trade and promoting substance use awareness, prevention, and recovery.

Departments within Ohio’s 59th district received $145,000 in funds: 

·       $135,000 for Columbiana County Sheriff Office

·       $10,000 for Mahoning County Sheriff Office

Grantees are required on a biweekly basis to enter drug stats in the online Drug Incident Summary Overview (DISCO) program through the El Paso Intelligence Center (EPIC),  a national model for a data collection partnership between Ohio’s drug task forces and  the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.