Supervisors approve participation in several opioid settlement agreements

The Des Moines County Board of Supervisors voted to approve county participation in new opioid litigation settlement agreements brought by additional defendants, and authorized the county attorney to sign the necessary participation documents.
County legal staff told the board that settlements with additional manufacturers and distributors recently became available after bankruptcy and other processes concluded; allocations follow the same formula used in earlier settlements, with roughly 60% of funds designated for the state and 40% for local governments, to be distributed by a formula the settlement administrators use.
The resolutions were listed in the transcript (including an item identified as Resolution 2025-44) and staff said documents must be signed by the end of the month to finalize county participation. Supervisors moved and seconded approval; voice votes recorded the measure as approved by the supervisors present.
The board did not discuss any specific dollar amounts for the county's allocation in open session; staff said the local share will be determined by the settlement allocation formula used in prior distributions.