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Council discusses potential uses for opioid settlement funds, including reentry and trail maintenance jobs
Summary
Council members described about $100,000 currently available from opioid settlements and discussed using funds for reentry programs, AED lockers in parks and training for officers working with people with substance use disorder.
Athens City Council heard an update Sept. 2 on anticipated funds from national opioid settlements and early ideas for how to spend those dollars locally.
A council member said Athens has already received roughly $100,000 from prior opioid settlements and that additional money may arrive as other manufacturers and distributors meet settlement obligations. The council member outlined possible uses that fit the statute-limited purposes for opioid settlement money, including reentry employment programs, seasonal work crews for cemetery or trail maintenance, and partnerships with entities that already provide services to people recovering from substance use disorder.
The member said the city had used settlement funds to purchase AED lockers for parks and to fund a law enforcement officer to complete training focused on helping people with substance use disorder. “We have roughly $100,000 in there,” the council member said, and added that continued receipts may be uncertain depending on bankruptcies or other issues in the settlement pipeline.
Council and staff said they were collaborating with Athens County Jobs and Family Services and local nonprofit providers to design programs that meet the allowable uses for settlement funds and provide workforce and recovery supports for returning citizens and people in recovery. One suggested idea was to create trail maintenance jobs on the 88-mile mountain bike trail network as a reentry employment pathway.
No formal action was taken; councilmembers said they will continue planning and bring proposals that comply with settlement terms to future meetings.
