Gov. Mark Sanford's budget plan would add hundreds of new officers to patrol South Carolina's roads and waterways, investigate crime, analyze evidence and guard prisoners.

Wednesday's spending blueprint from the governor's office was welcome news to area law enforcement, though many said it was a long time coming.

Sanford wants to add 100 troopers, 40 Department of Natural Resource officers, 10 State Law Enforcement Division agents and 10 crime lab employees. His budget also would add 124 correctional officers and 126 new officers at the Department of Juvenile Justice.

The governor's proposal dedicates almost $31.7 million in recurring funds for officers and other critical needs at the departments of Public Safety, Corrections and Juvenile Justice. It also provides more than $22.2 million in one-time money to those state agencies for equipment, facilities and maintenance, including renovating the Criminal Justice Academy, building a new substance abuse center and replacing a 40-year-old dormitory for juvenile offenders.

"We applaud the governor's proposal" because it would help to offset dwindling ranks of recent years, DPS spokesman Sid Gaulden said Wednesday.

In the past four years, trooper ranks have dropped 18 percent from 961 in 2000 to 788 today, according to the governor's office.

Gaulden said DPS hasn't had a trooper class since earlier this decade. The last class graduated about 25 new troopers, compared with 40 or 50 in previous years.

As the number of troopers has decreased, law enforcement response times to collisions have increased, according to the proposed budget. Response time was about 28 minutes in 2001 and was close to 33 minutes in 2003.

"The response time has gotten to a dangerous level. This is going to make an immediate, direct impact on that, we hope. The governor always felt the first step to the quality of life is protecting life. Part of that is making sure we've got enough law enforcement personnel on the road," spokesman Will Folks said.

Gaulden said the response time does not apply to major collisions. Troopers worked about 8,000 more collisions in 2003 than 2001, according to the most recent traffic collision fact book compiled by DPS.

Equally in need of more officers is DNR, which has felt the pinch from recent budget cuts and increased homeland security duties, the governor's office said.

Agency officials are evaluating the proposed budget and will have an "open dialogue" with the agency board and governor's office on items outlined in the proposed budget, DNR spokesman Charles Farmer said.

Municipal and county law enforcement agencies would benefit from staffing increases at SLED, which would be able to analyze evidence in a more timely manner, SLED spokeswoman Kathryn Richardson said.

SLED is running about 40 agents short, Richardson said. More agents would "help ease the heavy caseload that SLED is now experiencing and will allow the agency to be more effective in assisting law enforcement across the state."