A state official of the Governor's Executive Cabinet stopped in Barren County on Friday to announce community investments for highway safety, drug task force operations and agricultural development.

Robbie Rudolph, secretary of Gov. Ernie Fletcher's Executive Cabinet, presented about $300,000 in federal highway safety funding to law enforcement agencies and health care facilities that serve Allen, Barren, Logan, Monroe, Simpson and Warren counties.

The funding will go toward efforts to curb speeding and impaired driving, as well as to promote seat belt use.

The funding will go to the following:

Simpson County Sheriff's Department - $7,000 for police traffic services,

Bowling Green Police Department - $7,500 for police traffic services,

Western Kentucky University Police Department - $12,200 for impaired driving projects,

Franklin Police Department - $14,900 for impaired driving projects,

Scottsville Police Department - $15,000 for occupant protection programs,

Logan County Sheriff's Department - $16,000 for impaired driving projects,

Russellville Police Department - $20,000 for police traffic services,

Tompkinsville Police Department - $22,800 for occupant protection,

Glasgow Police Department - $43,000 for impaired driving projects,

T.J. Samson Community Hospital - $50,000 for safe communities programs,

Barren River District Health Department - $82,000 safe communities programs.

“This type of funding allows Bowling Green Police officers to go out and focus on traffic enforcement,” said Barry Pruitt, public information officer for the Bowling Green Police Department. “What we look for is vehicles that are exceeding speed limits, running stop signs or red lights, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.”

A lot of Bowling Green's congestion and traffic problems are mainly due to infrastructure, Pruitt said - as some parts of the city grow, the cars on the road exceed what those roads were designed to handle which causes accidents.

“With this grant we will go into high-accident areas, look at causation factors of the collision, and take enforcement action to address those issues,” he said.

The Barren County Drug Task Force received $135,000 to help combat drug abuse in Barren and Edmonson Counties.

The grant money is being funded by the Kentucky Office of Drug Control Policy and Byrne/JAG Federal funds, according to Brown.

The money essentially makes up the operational budget for the drug task force, according to the office.

Based in Glasgow, the task force has been in operation since 2003.

In 2005, the task force initiated 255 investigations that resulted in 205 arrests, the seizure of $38,839 in drug proceeds and assets, and the discovery of 15 meth labs.

The Barren County Agricultural Development Council received $429,319 for agricultural diversification efforts. The money is expected to go to Barren County Cattlemen's Association, the Barren County Conservation District and the Barren River Area Development District.