[JURIST] US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales [official profile; JURIST Newsmaker archive] presented the FY 2006 Justice Department budget [White House budget overview] Tuesday to the US House Committee on Appropriations [official website]. Gonzales testified that the FBI's counterterrorism workload has tripled [US Info press release with Gonzales' remarks] since the 2001 terrorist attacks. The requested FY 2006 DOJ budget includes funding for the National Counterterrorism Center [executive order establishing NCTC; White House fact sheet], which is meant to provide a comprehensive intelligence analysis of terrorist threats, and the Terrorist Screening Center [DOJ fact sheet], which will consolidate terrorist watch lists. Responding to the requested budget, several lawmakers expressed concern over the proposed budget cuts for drug control programs [JURIST report]. Critics say the cuts will seriously hurt state and local law enforcement efforts to battle drug sales and create drug prevention program. AP has more.