LIHU'E, Kaua'i — Anti-drug abuse programs on Kaua'i can expect $1.7 million in funding during the coming year, which will be spent in support of projects outlined in the Kaua'i Community Drug Response Plan, Mayor Bryan Baptiste said on Tuesday.

Baptiste thanked U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye for helping secure $1.5 million in federal money. Another $200,000 was provided this year by the state Legislature.

Some of the key programs to be financed through the money are $400,000 to provide scholarships to Kaua'i residents who attend off-island residential drug treatment programs, $500,000 for community grant funding to support home-grown programs, and more than $250,000 to support Kaua'i police and prosecuting attorney programs to combat drugs, said Roy Nishida, the county's anti-drug coordinator. Additional funding goes to various youth activity programs, publications, community planning efforts and more.

There are no residential drug treatment centers on Kaua'i, but the Hina Mauka program has had an office on the island for two months, funded in part with federal grants, Nishida said. The program assesses applicants with substance abuse problems, including alcohol, and finds them places in treatment centers on other islands.

"The network ensures that affected individuals and families are connected to the appropriate, licensed and accredited residential services that best match their specific needs," said Alan Johnson, chief financial officer for Hina Mauka.

With some of its federal funding for the past year, the county has launched in Kekaha and Kilauea towns a program patterned after the Justice Department's Weed and Seed program. It's called Waele A Ola Hou, and it involves community members in combating drug abuse, violent crime and gang activities in their own neighborhoods.

"It's like having 40 police officers in one community," Baptiste said. He said he hopes to extend Waele A Ola Hou to Hanama'ulu in the near future, and to other interested communities.

Reach Jan TenBruggencate at jant@honoluluadvertiser.com.