NCJ Number
148601
Date Published
1994
Length
273 pages
Annotation
This volume examines drug policy in the United States during 1984-89 in terms of its economics, focusing on the opportunity costs of law enforcement; the common-pool aspects of the system, in which none of those involved have explicit incentives to use resources efficiently; and the incentives that influence policymakers in criminal justice issues.
Abstract
The analysis emphasizes the need to discuss all costs, both direct and indirect, of drug policy alternatives. It notes that criminal justice policy is sometimes formed in legislative and agency self-interest that systematically obscures its true costs. The analysis also indicates why providing more resources into law enforcement will not lead to effective drug control efforts. The discussion concludes with an analysis of the Federal Government's role in drug policy and the appropriate relationship among the various levels of government for the formulation of drug policy in a federalist environment. It addresses opportunities for drug policy to control drug abuse by affecting various components of the full price of drugs, as well as ways to reshape the incentives of policymakers. Tables, figure, chapter notes, index, and about 300 references