Las Cruces City Council voted unanimously to approve a plan to spend an initial $2,945,053 from opioid settlement funds on treatment, prevention and evaluation of opioid-related harms.

The resolution, approved on Aug. 18, 2025, directs roughly 30% of the city's expected settlement distributions into a two-year tranche. The city has received about $3.8 million so far and is expected to receive just under $10 million through 2038. The proposal earmarks $82,000 to purchase naloxone for first responders, roughly $1.5 million for contracted treatment services, $175,000 for Las Cruces Public Schools' social-emotional learning prevention programming and $175,000 for Las Cruces Police Department prevention programming in schools, with roughly $500,000 allocated for other contracted prevention work.

The advisory process that produced the plan included the opioid settlement advisory council, a community needs assessment, workshops and coordination with Dona Ana County. Barbara Bencomo, City Attorney, told the council the strategy is structured around the settlement's Exhibit E allowable strategies and that the advisory council recommended focusing on medication-assisted treatment, warm handoff and recovery services, prevention programs and data collection and evaluation.

Jamie Michael, director of Dona Ana County Health and Human Services, said the county is coordinating parallel spending and that the county will consider a similar 30% tranche next week; combined, city and county proposals would make about $7.3 million available locally over two years.

Councilors asked about governance, transparency and evaluation. Councilor Coran (first reference: Councilor Coran) urged that the advisory council remain engaged in evaluation and that council members not be excluded from the process. Bencomo and Jamie Michael described plans for joint evaluation teams, a public pre-proposal workshop in September and an October RFP release. Bencomo said the city and county expect a joint evaluation of proposals and that advisory-council members may participate in reporting and outcome design.

Council members also pressed on specific programs proposed for schools. The police department described "Keeping It Real," an updated prevention curriculum aimed mainly at upper elementary grades; police said it is not the old DARE-style scare tactic but an evidence-based program with training and evaluation components and that officer-instructors would be screened and trained before teaching.

The resolution passed with Councilor McClure, Councilor Matisse, Councilor Graham, Councilor Kran, Councilor Bencomo and Mayor Eric Enriquez voting yes; Councilor Flores was absent.

The city will solicit community proposals via grants/RFPs and expects awards in January, pending county coordination and council approval of awards.