---
kind: "section"
citation: "6 U.S.C. § 458"
title: "6"
title_heading: "Domestic Security"
number: "458"
heading: "Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement"
release: "119-102"
date: "2026-07-12"
url: "https://uscodex.org/usc/6/458"
units:
  - "Chapter 1 — Homeland Security Organization"
  - "Subchapter VIII — Coordination with Non-Federal Entities; Inspector General; United States Secret Service; Coast Guard; General Provisions"
  - "Part H — Miscellaneous Provisions"
---

# §458. Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement

- (a) **Office—** There is established in the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) an Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement, which shall be headed by a [Director](/usc/6/677a.md?p=3) appointed by the President.
- (b) **Assignment of personnel—**
  - (1) **In general—** The [Secretary](/usc/6/101.md?p=16) shall assign permanent staff to the Office, consistent with effective management of [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) [resources](/usc/6/311.md?p=11).
  - (2) **Liaisons—** The [Secretary](/usc/6/101.md?p=16) shall designate senior employees from each appropriate subdivision of the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) that has significant counternarcotics responsibilities to act as a liaison between that subdivision and the Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement.
- (c) **Limitation on concurrent employment—** The [Director](/usc/6/677a.md?p=3) of the Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement shall not be employed by, assigned to, or serve as the head of, any other branch of the Federal Government, any [State](/usc/6/101.md?p=17) or [local government](/usc/6/101.md?p=13), or any subdivision of the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) other than the Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement.
- (d) **Responsibilities—** The [Secretary](/usc/6/101.md?p=16) shall direct the [Director](/usc/6/677a.md?p=3) of the Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement—
  - (1) to coordinate policy and operations within the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5), between the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) and other Federal [departments](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) and [agencies](/usc/6/311.md?p=2), and between the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) and [State](/usc/6/101.md?p=17) and local [agencies](/usc/6/311.md?p=2) with respect to stopping the entry of illegal drugs into the [United States](/usc/6/101.md?p=19-A);
  - (2) to ensure the adequacy of [resources](/usc/6/311.md?p=11) within the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) for stopping the entry of illegal drugs into the [United States](/usc/6/101.md?p=19-A);
  - (3) to recommend the appropriate financial and [personnel](/usc/6/101.md?p=15) [resources](/usc/6/311.md?p=11) necessary to help the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) better fulfill its responsibility to stop the entry of illegal drugs into the [United States](/usc/6/101.md?p=19-A);
  - (4) within the Joint [Terrorism](/usc/6/101.md?p=18) Task Force construct to track and sever connections between illegal drug trafficking and [terrorism](/usc/6/101.md?p=18); and
  - (5) to be a representative of the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) on all task forces, committees, or other [entities](/usc/6/301c.md?p=2) whose purpose is to coordinate the counternarcotics enforcement activities of the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) and other Federal, [State](/usc/6/101.md?p=17) or local [agencies](/usc/6/311.md?p=2).
- (e) **Savings clause—** Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize direct control of the operations conducted by the Directorate of Border and Transportation Security,[^1] the Coast Guard, or joint [terrorism](/usc/6/101.md?p=18) task forces.
- (f) **Reports to Congress—**
  - (1) **Annual budget review—** The [Director](/usc/6/677a.md?p=3) of the Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement shall, not later than 30 days after the submission by the President to Congress of any request for expenditures for the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5), submit to the Committees on Appropriations and the authorizing committees of jurisdiction of the House of Representatives and the Senate a review and evaluation of such request. The review and evaluation shall—
    - (A) identify any request or subpart of any request that affects or may affect the counternarcotics activities of the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) or any of its subdivisions, or that affects the ability of the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) or any subdivision of the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) to meet its responsibility to stop the entry of illegal drugs into the [United States](/usc/6/101.md?p=19-A);
    - (B) describe with particularity how such requested [funds](/usc/6/677a.md?p=5) would be or could be expended in furtherance of counternarcotics activities; and
    - (C) compare such requests with requests for expenditures and amounts appropriated by Congress in the previous fiscal year.
  - (2) **Evaluation of counternarcotics activities—** The [Director](/usc/6/677a.md?p=3) of the Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement shall, not later than February 1 of each year, submit to the Committees on Appropriations and the authorizing committees of jurisdiction of the House of Representatives and the Senate a review and evaluation of the counternarcotics activities of the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) for the previous fiscal year. The review and evaluation shall—
    - (A) describe the counternarcotics activities of the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) and each subdivision of the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) (whether individually or in cooperation with other subdivisions of the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5), or in cooperation with other branches of the Federal Government or with [State](/usc/6/101.md?p=17) or local [agencies](/usc/6/311.md?p=2)), including the methods, procedures, and systems (including computer systems) for collecting, analyzing, sharing, and disseminating information concerning narcotics activity within the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) and between the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) and other Federal, [State](/usc/6/101.md?p=17), and local [agencies](/usc/6/311.md?p=2);
    - (B) describe the results of those activities, using quantifiable data whenever possible;
    - (C) [state](/usc/6/101.md?p=17) whether those activities were sufficient to meet the responsibility of the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) to stop the entry of illegal drugs into the [United States](/usc/6/101.md?p=19-A), including a description of the performance measures of effectiveness that were used in making that determination; and
    - (D) recommend, where appropriate, changes to those activities to improve the performance of the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) in meeting its responsibility to stop the entry of illegal drugs into the [United States](/usc/6/101.md?p=19-A).
  - (3) **Classified or law enforcement sensitive information—** Any content of a review and evaluation described in the reports required in this subsection that involves information classified under criteria established by an Executive order, or whose public disclosure, as determined by the [Secretary](/usc/6/101.md?p=16), would be detrimental to the law enforcement or national security activities of the [Department](/usc/6/101.md?p=5) or any other Federal, [State](/usc/6/101.md?p=17), or local [agency](/usc/6/311.md?p=2), shall be presented to Congress separately from the rest of the review and evaluation.

## Footnotes

[^1]: See References in Text note below.

## Source credit

(Pub. L. 107–296, title VIII, § 878, Nov. 25, 2002, 116 Stat. 2245; Pub. L. 108–458, title VII, § 7407(a), Dec. 17, 2004, 118 Stat. 3851; Pub. L. 109–469, title I, § 103(f)(2), Dec. 29, 2006, 120 Stat. 3510; Pub. L. 112–166, § 2(f)(3), Aug. 10, 2012, 126 Stat. 1284.)

## Notes

### Editorial Notes

### References in Text

The Directorate of Border and Transportation Security, referred to in subsection (e), was abolished by section 802(g)(2) of Pub. L. 114–125, which repealed section 201 of this title. Section 211(a) of this title established U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

### Amendments

2012—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 112–166 struck out “, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate” before period at end.

2006—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 109–469, § 103(f)(2)(A), substituted “The” for “Except as provided in subsection (d) of this section, the”.

Subsecs. (d) to (g). Pub. L. 109–469, § 103(f)(2)(B), redesignated subsecs. (e) to (g) as (d) to (f), respectively, and struck out heading and text of former subsec. (d). Text read as follows: “The Director of the Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement may be appointed as the United States Interdiction Coordinator by the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, and shall be the only person at the Department eligible to be so appointed.”

2004—Pub. L. 108–458 amended section catchline and text generally. Prior to amendment, text read as follows: “The Secretary shall appoint a senior official in the Department to assume primary responsibility for coordinating policy and operations within the Department and between the Department and other Federal departments and agencies with respect to interdicting the entry of illegal drugs into the United States, and tracking and severing connections between illegal drug trafficking and terrorism. Such official shall—

“(1) ensure the adequacy of resources within the Department for illicit drug interdiction; and

“(2) serve as the United States Interdiction Coordinator for the Director of National Drug Control Policy.”

### Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

### Effective Date of 2012 Amendment

Amendment by Pub. L. 112–166 effective 60 days after Aug. 10, 2012, and applicable to appointments made on and after that effective date, including any nomination pending in the Senate on that date, see section 6(a) of Pub. L. 112–166, set out as a note under section 113 of this title.