House passes drug measure

WASHINGTON — Legislation by Rep. William L. Owens to create a national strategy against drug trafficking on the northern border advanced in the House Tuesday.

By a 403-0 vote, the House passed the Northern Border Counternarcotics Strategy Act, which had advanced through the House Homeland Security Committee, on which the congressman sits.

Mr. Owens's legislation requires the federal government to craft a strategy for fighting drug smuggling along the Canadian border, mirroring its approach along the Mexican border. Smuggling of some types of illegal drugs has increased by more than five times since 2004, Mr. Owens, D-Plattsburgh, said in a prepared speech on the House floor.

The legislation requires the government to submit to Congress an outline of various agencies' responsibility toward the northern border strategy. It also specifically requires a government plan to end drug trafficking across Indian reservations on the northern border, an indirect reference to the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation.

In his remarks during debate Tuesday — there was no opposition — Mr. Owens cited the north country's reliance on smooth trade and easy travel with Canada, as well as the need for a secure border. He noted that the Mohawk reservation has increasingly been exploited by traffickers.

Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., has introduced a companion bill in the Senate, which was referred to the Judiciary Committee, on which he sits.

In a separate development Tuesday, a Senate Appropriations panel rejected the Obama administration's proposal to cut funding for the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area program, which directs funding toward parts of the north country and other areas. The funding helps local law enforcement agencies fight drug trafficking; parts of the north country are part of the New York-New Jersey High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area.