Attorney General Kaul announces grants for 48 counties to 'help fight drug trafficking'
MADISON – Attorney General Josh Kaul on Thursday, Feb. 14 announced that law enforcement agencies and multijurisdictional drug enforcement groups in 48 Wisconsin counties will benefit from grants made available by 2017 Wisconsin Act 261.
“These funds will help law enforcement officers who are working to fight drug trafficking,” said Attorney General Josh Kaul in a news release. “While we need to continue expanding access to substance-abuse treatment, we also must ensure that investigators have the resources they need to dismantle drug-trafficking organizations.”
According to the release, the legislation, authored by Rep. John Nygren and former Sen. Leah Vukmir, provided $1 million to the Wisconsin Department of Justice to award law enforcement agencies for the investigation and response to drug trafficking.
“Last session I was proud to author my 29th and 30th HOPE Agenda bills which provided the funding for these grants,” said Rep. John Nygren in the release. “This allowed law enforcement across the state to apply for grant funding to combat high-level drug traffickers who are facilitating the deadly flow of drugs into our state and communities. Because of our bipartisan action, we are providing our law enforcement the tools to keep our neighborhoods safe.”
Funds provided to the applicant organizations will support local law enforcement agencies and multijurisdictional drug enforcement groups in 48 counties.
All organizations that applied were awarded funds up to $50,000. Less than $85,000 in grant funds remained available as of Thursday, and would be distributed through a separate grant process.
A list of grant recipients is below:
| Awarded Organization | Partner Agencies | Amount Awarded |
| Barron County Sheriff's Office | $25,000 | |
| Calumet County Sheriff's Office | $25,794 | |
| Central Wisconsin Drug Task Force | Law enforcement in Adams, Green Lake, Juneau, Marquette, Portage, Waupaca, Waushara, and Wood Counties | $50,000 |
| Columbia County Sheriff's Office | $32,266 | |
| Dane County Narcotics Task Force | Madison Police Department, Dane County Sheriff’s Office, UW-Madison Police Department | $50,000 |
| Florence County Sheriff's Office | $28,024 | |
| Glendale Police Department | $50,000 | |
| La Crosse Police Department | $50,000 | |
| Lake Winnebago Area Multijurisdictional Enforcement Group | Sheriff’s Offices of Calumet, Fond du Lac, Outagamie, and Winnebago Counties; Police Departments of Appleton, Fond du Lac, Grand Chute, Kaukauna, Menasha, Neenah, New London, Oshkosh, Town of Menasha, and North Fond du Lac | $50,000 |
| Manitowoc County Metro Drug Unit | Manitowoc County Sheriff’s Office, Manitowoc Police Department | $50,000 |
| North Central Drug Enforcement Group | Law enforcement in Oneida, Forest, Langlade, Lincoln, Price, Taylor, and Vilas Counties; |
$26,000 |
| Ozaukee County Sheriff's Office | $32,500 | |
| Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Police Department | $40,090 | |
| Richland-Iowa-Grant County Drug Task Force | Law enforcement in Grant, Iowa, and Richland Counties | $50,000 |
| Rusk County Sheriff's Office | $25,000 | |
| Sheboygan County Multijurisdictional Enforcement Group | Sheboygan County Sheriff’s Office, Plymouth Police Department | $50,000 |
| South East Area Drug Operations Group | Law enforcement in Kenosha, Racine, Walworth, Dodge, and Jefferson Counties. | $50,000 |
| Sparta Police Department | Partner agency: Monroe County Sheriff’s Office | $24,508 |
| St. Croix Valley Drug Task Force | Law enforcement in Polk, Pierce, and St. Croix Counties | $50,000 |
| Washington County Multijurisdictional Drug Enforcement Group | Law enforcement in Washington County | $33,951 |
| West Allis Police Department | $23,587 | |
| West Central Drug Task Force | Law enforcement in Clark, Chippewa, Eau Claire, Dunn, Buffalo, and Pepin Counties, including UW-Stout and UW-Eau Claire Police Departments | $50,000 |
| Wisconsin Department of Justice - Division of Criminal Investigation | $50,000 |