WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions announced today that a Fort Payne-area substance abuse group will be awarded a $75,000 Drug-Free Communities grant to battle drug, alcohol and tobacco abuse among youth. The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy grant will go to the Partnership for a Drug-Free DeKalb County. “Anti-drug efforts, such as combating methamphetamine abuse, are crucial to healthy communities in Alabama,” said Sessions, a member of the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control. “This drug-free communities grant recognizes the hard work and dedication of the Partnership for a Drug-Free DeKalb County. The grant will allow the coalition to reach more people in an effort to prevent and reduce substance abuse.” Fort Payne was among 107 communities across the country to receive a grant. An Anniston group also received a grant for $100,000. The Drug-Free Communities program provides matching grants of up to $500,000 over five years to community organizations that serve as catalysts for citizen participation in local drug prevention efforts. The 107 new grantees were selected from 353 applicants through a competitive peer review process. To qualify for the matching grants, awardees must have at least a six-month history of working together on substance abuse prevention initiatives, develop a long-term plan to reduce substance abuse and participate in a national evaluation of the Drug-Free Communities Program. Coalitions in seven other Alabama communities – Huntsville, Mobile, Dothan, Hoover, Prattville, Guntersville and Bessemer – are already receiving Drug-Free Communities continuation grants. “Today, 700,000 fewer youths are using drugs than in 2001,” said John Walters, director of National Drug Control Policy. “Together, as a nation, we have made significant progress in our efforts against substance abuse. Federal funding programs like the Partnership for a Drug-Free DeKalb County help us to leverage that progress with initiatives that are tailored to the local community’s needs.”
