Lawrence County commissioners voted Sept. 30 to approve a contract with the Alliance for Nonprofit Resources of Butler County to provide required developmental services under county oversight.

Scott Baldwin, director of the county’s Mental Health and Developmental Services office, told the board the contract runs from July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026, and is funded through human services block grant funds. Baldwin said the contract is for $125,000 and that the county incurs no direct cost from its general fund for the services.

Baldwin described three primary services the vendor will provide: certified investigations when incidents occur at residential homes; a family liaison position for outreach and identifying families that need services; and transportation when families or children need to travel to programs outside the county. “They provide county required services that we contract with them to do, which would be certified investigations,” Baldwin said. “They also do a service called a family liaison…They also do transportation.”

The board moved to approve the contract by motion and recorded a roll-call vote in which Commissioners Sonata, Kennedy and Vogler voted yes. No amendments to the contract were made at the meeting.

Baldwin said the county values the vendor as a partner for these required services. The county did not specify at the meeting whether additional monitoring or reporting conditions will be attached to the contract beyond standard oversight.