NEWS: Polk County may join regional drug trafficking task force

♦ Commissioners to decide on working with Rome Floyd High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area.

The Polk County Commission will be deciding whether to send a member of the Drug Task Force to join the large regional Rome Floyd High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area.

County Commissioners on the public safety committee heard the request from Polk County police during their January session and will decide on sending the officer upward to work in Rome with the group mainly funded by the federal government.

It would require one officer and a vehicle to use along with it, but officials pointed out that if Polk County were to join the efforts, the benefits coming back for investigatory manpower on more than just street level dealers is worth the cost.

High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas, or HIDTAS, are regions across the United States that provide resources from federal agencies to tackle drug trafficking and use. They help local agencies with investigating criminal organizations in the business of dealing narcotics.

The program began 1990 after the Anti-drug Abuse Act was passed in 1988, and the Drug Enforcement Agency has classified 49 states, as well as in Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the District of Columbia.

The Rome Floyd HIDTA seeks to cover a large swath of North Georgia, Southeast Tennessee and parts of South Carolina to bring together a large amount of resources to combat the drug trade.

Before now, the closest HIDTA was the Atlanta metro area, which would provide resources if called upon to help. But it hasn’t specifically coordinated efforts since Polk County is outside the more than 10 counties that are part of the metro zone.

The commission meets on Feb. 3 and 4 this month and will get an opportunity to discuss whether to send an officer assigned to the Drug Task Force up to join the effort. They’ll additionally have to replace that officer among the local task force ranks.