Federal authorities notified the Drug Strike Force on Wednesday that they have until the summer to spend a $300,000 congressional earmark to fight methamphetamine in Northwest Missouri.

The money has funded the salaries of two meth-fighting officers for the past three years. In June, the Department of Justice notified the Strike Force that remaining monies would no longer be available since it had not all been used within three years.

U.S. Rep. Sam Graves asked the department to reconsider, and they accepted — as long as the Congressional appropriation is used this June.

The Tarkio, Mo., Republican secured the one-time block amount in late 2003 when the meth epidemic entered a nationwide peak.

For full story: http://www.sjnp.net/news/2007/dec/13/graves-intercedes-anti-meth-operations/?local