In hearings chaired in September in my Senate district, in Chillicothe and Ironton, I learned first-hand of the problem. In both cities, local officials told me they strongly support more state funding for anti-drug proposals and more emphasis on drug education. In Chillicothe, for example, Ross County Common Pleas Judge Val Mowrey, Jr., said the solution to the drug problem is starting with drug education at an early age in school. In Ironton, Ron James, a former state representative who is now chief investigator for the city prosecutor's office, said he strongly supports increasing funding for drug investigations at the state and local

levels.

The money needed to solve the drug problem, however, doesn't come out of thin air. I was pleased to learn that the U.S. Congress and President Bush were able to agree on an emergency drug spending package that will distribute nearly $3.2 billion nationwide for various aspects of the drug

war effort.

Now, it is up to the Ohio General Assembly to come up with a responsible and comprehensive plan to take advantage of whatever additional federal money is available. For the past six months, Senate Minority Leader Harry

Meshel has been promoting legislation that I believe would take the most comprehensive look at the problem. His bill, which I am co-sponsoring, would set up an Ohio Drug Enforcement Agency to coordinate the statewide effort, would set up an Ohio Drug Advisory Board, and calls for construction of additional prisons and the addition of prosecutors and judges.

The hearings I spoke of earlier, in Chillicothe and Ironton, were part of a series of 12 hearings across the state sponsored by Senator Meshel and other senators, such as myself. I would like to submit a copy of the report Senator Meshel released November 14 on these hearings. I believe the hearings were an example of democracy in action. We in the state Senate took a proposal to the people, got comments from them at town meetings and solicited written testimony from leading public officials. We heard from sheriffs, prosecutors, mayors, youth program leaders, ministers, judges, school officials, youth program leaders and housing officials. Everywhere we went we heard the same message from local leaders give us help in solving the drug problem.

However, the plan wasn't adopted by the state Senate, although a similar proposal that contained many of the key elements of the Meshel plan was passed by the Senate. This bill, with my support, and in fact unanimous Senate support, proposes building six new prisons and giving each county a minimum of $50,000 to use in their anti-drug efforts.

Presently, the Senate proposal is pending further action by the House, while it discusses this and other drug legislation. With a final decision probably resting in a House-Senate Conference Committee.

It is difficult to argue, however, that the drug war is going to be easily won, either in Ohio or in the nation. According to the National Institute of Justice, in 14 of the nation's major cities, between 54 and 82 percent of men arrested for serious offenses tested positive for the use of illicit drugs. Also, according to Chief Justice Thomas J. Moyer, at least 45 percent of those arrested and charged with violent crimes or incomegenerating crimes tested positive for the use of one or more drugs. National statistics show that 70 to 80 percent of all juveniles involved in criminal acts do so while using alcohol or drugs.

Few Ohioans, I believe, would dispute the fact that drug abuse has become a major problem. The governor's Office of Criminal Justice Services last month released an informational overview of substance abuse in the state

that found the overwhelming majority of Ohio adults see drug abuse as the most serious problem troubling today's youth.

Finding solutions won't be easy. Illegal drug use is so common in our culture today that there are no quick fixes. However, I strongly believe that better drug education in the schools is one constructive approach that needs to be explored. Unless we send a stronger message to our young people early in life that drug use is unacceptable, they won't be able to resist the peer pressure that comes about during the teenage years.

I would be glad to answer any questions you might have about the state's anti-drug effort, and I look forward to listening to the experiences of

other witnesses.

A year ago, I asked the children of the Columbus Public Schools to write to me about drugs. The problem of drug abuse is difficult for any of us, but a child faces it through a bewildering mess of emotion: parents or relatives who use or sell, friends, schoolmates

them what they saw and how they felt.

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I wanted to ask

The response was stunning. More than 7,500 children wrote back. Their responses were sometimes tragic, often angry and always thoughtful. The Ohio State University performed an extensive content analysis of the letters last spring. We have made copies of the analysis summary available to the committee.

But the dominant theme

should solve the problem.

Through most of this year, my staff and I have met with hundreds of people from all walks of life to ask what we should be doing to meet this challenge.

Their answers

and the thoughts and comments of more than a thousand people