GRANT COUNTY — Grant County was on Thursday designated a High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area by the federal government, making it eligible for additional federal resources and opening the door to increased cooperation with national law enforcement agencies.

The designation, made by the White House’s Office of National Drug Control Policy, requires that an area be a significant center of illegal drug trafficking, and where state and local law enforcement has invested resources but been unable to adequately respond to the issue.

“This designation showcases the strength of our investigators, and makes the Interagency Narcotics Enforcement Team eligible for greater resources to fight drug crimes in Grant County,” Sheriff Tom Jones wrote in a statement.

William D. Hyslop, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, congratulated Grant County on the designation, which he said would significantly boost efforts to stem drug trafficking in the region.

“The law enforcement agencies working in Grant County earned this designation through hard work, collaboration and leadership committed to a team approach,” Hyslop wrote in a statement. “The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Washington was happy to assist throughout the designation process.”

“HIDTA provides unprecedented national connectivity to access drug threats and trends throughout the country,” Hyslop said. “Through HIDTA, we will be able to share information and intelligence so those individuals who are polluting our communities with drugs will be held accountable.”

Created by Congress in 1988, the HIDTA task force program, which is under the ONDCP, creates a mechanism for additional coordination of federal, state, local and tribal resources to combat drug trafficking and reduce the supply of illegal drugs in designated regions of the country.