Calcasieu Parish staff told the Police Jury on June 26 that the parish will begin accepting prequalification proposals for an opioid-abatement grant program, starting Monday, with a 30-day prequalification window and a potential first-year allocation capped at $500,000.

The presentation, given by Reno, a parish staff member, outlined the program as a reimbursement-based grant that will use opioid settlement funds to support treatment and related services. "It's a serious business," Reno said, adding that overdose deaths “kill more than breast cancer, guns, and car crashes combined” and that only "one in 10 that need addiction treatment really receive it." He described the prequalification stage as a screening step to avoid requiring full applications from organizations that do not qualify.

Why it matters: Parish officials said the settlements give a rare opportunity to fund local programs at scale and to target services where access is limited by insurance or other barriers. Reno told jurors and the public that the program could help organizations that cannot accept Medicaid or Medicare and that the parish intends to steer money toward proposals that match state-established funding categories.

Details and next steps: Reno said the initial phase will be a prequalification period running roughly one month; applicants who pass prequalification will be invited to complete a full grant application. "We're gonna give them a solid month to send those in, and then we're gonna, review those," Reno said when asked about the July 30 prequalification deadline. Juror Mister Barty asked to confirm that the prequalification phase would last until July 30; Reno replied that the parish could consider an extension if response levels suggested more time was needed.

Reno said communications will include a morning press release and social media outreach by the parish communications and media department. He gave a landing page and email for inquiries during the presentation (landing page listed in the meeting as "www.calcu.gov/opioid" and an email address for questions). He emphasized that this meeting was informational and that no vote or formal action was required that night.

Questions from jurors focused on outreach and eligibility. A juror asked whether public entities such as the Calcasieu Parish School Board could apply; Reno said public entities may apply if they qualify under program stipulations and the parish will evaluate eligibility case by case.

What the jury decided: The Police Jury received the staff report; Reno said there was no action required at the meeting. The parish will open the prequalification intake and return later in the grant-review process to present vetted applications for funding decisions.

Context: Reno said opioid settlement funds create an opportunity to affect change over a multi-year period and described major barriers to treatment access. He estimated national addiction-related costs in the presentation and described local priorities for the grant program but did not commit parish matching funds or a specific award schedule beyond the stated first-year maximum.

For people interested in applying: parish staff will provide a prequalification form after initial contact; applicants who qualify will be directed to the fuller application. The parish asked potential applicants to contact the address provided on the landing page for assistance through the process.