The acting director of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and other officials say that cuts to federal grant programs for local law enforcement has helped spark an increase in violent crime in some communities, the Associated Press reported May 13.

"Some of these jurisdictions that have seen an uptick with regard to violent crime -- it's coming at a time when their budgets have been pretty strapped," said acting ATF head Michael J. Sullivan. "Some of the jurisdictions have seen a decrease with regard to patrol officers who are available or detectives available to follow up on some of these incidents, and that obviously is a compounding effect with regard to what's going on, with regard to crime."

On the one hand, Sullivan maintained that violent crime rates are at a record low; on the other, he said lack of funding in cities like Chicago and Detroit "contribute to the potential of an uptick with regard to violent crime, because they don't have as many resources to respond as quickly to it as they once did."

The Bush administration, of which ATF is a part, has cut back on anticrime funding in order to pay for the war in Iraq.

"Every time we turn around, the staffing pressures that most of us are dealing with are having an impact in these others areas," said Ron Ruecker, president of the International Association of Chiefs of Police . "You definitely can tie the decrease in funding with an uptick in crime, including violent crime."