Appropriations and Budgeting for Law Enforcement

The U.S. government contains a vast number of law enforcement agencies within the executive, legislative, and judiciary branches. Although most people are familiar with the larger agencies, such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and some of the newer agencies that have developed through the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), many people are unaware of the many different forms of law enforcement within this one level of government.

The layered nature of American government, combined with the large number of federal law enforcement agencies, makes it virtually impossible to determine with any degree of accuracy the total value of funds spent by the federal government on its various law enforcement services. It is possible, though, to describe the costs associated with a number of the larger, more prominent agencies and those for whom law enforcement is a major cost center.

Federal law enforcement agencies share with state and local agencies that their major expenditures are for personnel, which is the costliest item in virtually all law enforcement budgets. Personnel costs are generally understood to include salary, fringe benefits (health insurance and retirement), and, in some agencies, overtime. Other costs associated with maintaining an investigative or uniformed law enforcement cost include training and equipment. Since federal agencies not only operate throughout the United States but often assign personnel outside the country, travel, housing, and a variety of costs that are unique to their mandates add to their budgets. Some agencies also provide services for smaller federal law enforcement units and for state and local police. Examples are the [Page 544]FBI's extensive laboratory and record-keeping facilities, and the U.S. Marshal Service's air transport of prisoners.

The most visible of the federal law enforcement agencies are housed within the executive branch. Each of the 15 departments that make up the executive branch is headed by a chief executive who reports directly to the president of the United States. The best known law enforcement entity of these departments is the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), which provides such high-profile services as those of its leader, the attorney general and the U.S. attorneys, the FBI, and the DEA. Because law enforcement functions are so thoroughly spread throughout all areas of the government, the appropriations of executive branch agencies are used as indications of the wide range of functions and costs associated with policing at the federal level. In addition to its other, varied law enforcement functions, each of the executive branch agencies has its own Office of the Inspector General, each of which is funded out of agency resources.

The budget outlay for the DOJ for fiscal year 2003 was $30.2 billion. Included among the major expenditures were $4.2 billion for the FBI; $1.5 billion for the DEA; $1.5 billion for the Office of the U.S. Attorney; $802 million for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and $706 million for the Marshals Service.

A relatively new agency with law enforcement responsibilities is the DHS, which was created in January 2003 in direct response to the terrorist acts of September 11, 2001. Because it is so new, and it is comprised of a number of law enforcement agencies that were previously administered by other departments, it is difficult to determine what percentage of the 2003 budget of $32.2 billion was allocated to law enforcement functions.

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