Johnson County keeps coalition funding at $100,000, forms working group to map opioid funding strategy

The Johnson County Board of County Commissioners on March 27 voted 7-0 to keep a $100,000 annual allocation for the county’s Prevention and Recovery Coalition and to create a three-commissioner working group to develop an asset map and outcomes framework for spending the county’s opioid settlement funds.

Deputy County Manager Julie Kearns told the board that national Centers for Disease Control data predict a 24 percent drop in drug overdose deaths in the 12 months ending September 2024 and that Johnson County saw a decline in accidental and intentional drug-poisoning deaths for the first time since 2017. Kearns said the county’s revised estimate from the attorney general’s office is $9,630,000 in settlement receipts over 17 years and that staff recommend a steady annual spending target “around $600,000” to smooth unpredictable yearly receipts.

The vote followed presentations by department and agency representatives describing how prior opioid-settlement allocations have been used and requests for 2026 funding. Department requests included a full-time substance abuse counselor in the Department of Corrections to expand licensed therapeutic-community capacity from 50 to 62 beds and shift the program from a mandatory 180-day term to a…