Reading Room Document

Application of the Federal Grant and Cooperative Agreement Act of 1977 to the Components of the Department of Justice

This document is a legal opinion regarding the application of the Federal Grant and Cooperative Agreement Act of 1977 to the Department of Justice, specifically the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). The opinion concludes that the DEA lacks authority to provide assistance by grant under 21 U.S.C. § 873(a)(2), but is authorized to fund experimental enforcement projects by State or local agencies through either a grant or a cooperative agreement. The document raises questions about the effect of the Act on the general authority of the Department of Justice to enter into contracts, grants, or cooperative agreements, as well as the extent to which the Attorney General has delegated authority derived from the Act and to the components of the Department. It also presents the particular question of whether the Act and Department regulations authorize the DEA to enter grant agreements with State and local governments under 21 U.S.C. § 873(a).

January 24, 1979