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Mr. Chairman, Congressman Hoyer, members of this Committee, it is a pleasure to speak with you today about the Administration's FY 1999 budget request for Treasury's law enforcement functions. Let me preface my remarks by noting that we in the Treasury Department deeply appreciate the support this Committee has given Treasury, both generally and in the law enforcement area. I am joined today by Under Secretary Kelly and the heads of Treasury's law enforcement Bureaus. We've had some very good people leave us, but as with any strong organization, we have also had very good people come along to take their place. In that regard, I am here today with Lew Merletti, who took over as head of the Secret Service last year, and Ralph Basham, the new Director of the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC). And let me add that George Weise did a terrific job as Customs Commissioner and Sam Banks as acting Commissioner. And I look forward to having Ray Kelly, once nominated and confirmed, take the helm at Customs.
As the members of this Committee know well, Treasury has wide-ranging law enforcement responsibilities, from protecting the President and other public figures, to preventing the flow of drugs into the country, enforcing federal firearms laws, investigating violent crimes such bombing in Atlanta at the Olympics, enforcing the tax laws, investigating financial crimes, counterfeiting, and money laundering. Treasury is unique in law enforcement in that, in almost all of these areas, there is a mutually reinforcing interrelationship between regulation, revenue collection and law enforcement. The men and women who serve the public in these law enforcement capacities -- and who often place their lives in danger by doing so -- do an extraordinary job.
To strengthen these critical efforts, the President's FY 1999 budget for Treasury law enforcement bureaus totals $3.204 billion, an increase of $172 million or 5.7 percent above last year. We need this increase to meet certain mandatory cost increases, to enhance initiatives in combating narcotics trafficking, reduce illegal firearms trafficking to young people, improve Presidential protection and White House security, investigate financial crimes, and train law enforcement officers. The heads of each of the law enforcement agencies can provide more detail on these budget requests, but I just wanted to take a moment to highlight a few items.
First, we need additional resources to help the Customs Service with the critical mission of drug interdiction. In cooperation with the Office of National Drug Control Policy, the U.S. Customs Service has formulated a 5-year technology plan which is designed to deploy an array of technologies that enables Customs to effectively fulfill both of its missions: preventing the entry of illegal products, particularly drugs, and processing the large flows of trade that play a central role in our economy. Funding for implementation of the first phase of this plan has been requested for FY 1999.
Second, a major priority at Treasury is combating money laundering. Our anti-money laundering efforts provide a vantage point for getting at the leadership of organized crime and drug lords by going after their Achilles Heel -- the profits from their illegal activities. In addition, since money laundering poses a real economic danger by affecting markets and undermining financial systems, especially in developing countries, our promotion of stronger measures internationally will strengthen those systems.
Money laundering is a very sophisticated business that is international and utilizes state of the art technology. To be effective, our efforts need to be international and to use state of the art technology. FINCEN is applying state of the art technology to tracing flows of money that are exceedingly complex. Its budget includes an expansion of the Gateway program to coordinate federal, state and local efforts. We need the resources to stay on the cutting edge in this effort through more innovative technologies and techniques and through better international cooperation, especially since money laundering is increasingly difficult to detect and enforce because of constantly evolving technologies and the fluidity and globalization of capital markets.
Third, we are asking for resources to support an effort that the Department and ATF have led over the past two years to prevent violent firearms crime by our nation's youth. The Youth Crime Gun Interdiction Initiative is a collaborative law enforcement effort between ATF, local police departments, and prosecutors. Its goal is to develop and share better information about how juveniles and gang offenders are illegally obtaining firearms, and thereby reduce the illegal supply of firearms to youth by investigating, arresting, prosecuting, and incarcerating illegal gun traffickers. A preliminary analysis indicates this program shows significant promise. With these resources, ATF will be able to expand its initiative to the 27 cities to be covered this year and potentially to more cities next year. It will also permit the ATF to field new agents in each of the 27 participating cities to work with police departments in arresting the illegal traffickers supplying firearms to juveniles, gang offenders, and other violent criminals in those jurisdictions.
Fourth, in FY 1999, the Secret Service must begin to build its capacity to protect candidates and nominees for the Presidential election in the year 2000. Increased funds have been requested to meet this mandatory workload increase, in addition to ongoing White House security and other protection initiatives.
Finally, we are asking for additional resources to support the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in its critical work. Over the last two years FLETC has seen an unprecedented increase in its workload and current projections indicate that this increase will continue for the foreseeable future. We need to continue construction of FLETC's sites at both Glynco, Georgia and Artesia, New Mexico in order to meet this need.
Mr. Chairman, let me conclude by saying that when I came to Treasury I had a lot of experience in the financial issues of Treasury, but I had very little experience in the law enforcement areas. In the time I've been here I've developed a deep appreciation of the importance of Treasury's law enforcement functions, and I have gotten to know the people who head the law enforcement bureaus as well as some people in the bureaus. I think the members of this Committee can feel very good about the leadership at these bureaus and the capabilities, esprit and commitment of the brave men and women who are serving in the wide range of law enforcement activities at Treasury. I look forward to working with you in the days and weeks ahead as we support and advance their critical efforts. Thank you very much.