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Court considers Tri‑County request, discusses using opioid settlement funds for local counselor position
Summary
Commissioners discussed a Tri‑County request for funding a position and whether Walker County can use opioid-settlement money for local counseling; court added the request to contingency and asked for a formal proposal.
Walker County commissioners on Tuesday discussed a Tri‑County funding request that would fund a counseling position serving Walker County, and considered whether restricted opioid-settlement funds could be used to cover part of the position’s cost.
Budget presenter Donna told the court that the county has an opioid-related pool of funds set aside and that those funds have restricted allowable uses. She said the county currently has roughly $12,030,000 in that set-aside and that the Tri‑County request included a request that the county fund a position that would operate in Walker County.
Why it matters: Commissioners said the county could either fund a local position directly or ask Tri‑County to reframe the request so the position’s duties and funding could match allowable uses of the opioid settlement funds. The court favored receiving a formal written proposal describing the position’s duties and how it could be paid with restricted opioid funds before committing ongoing county general-fund dollars.
Court action and next steps: Commissioners directed staff to add the Tri‑County request’s one-time allocation to the budget contingency and asked Tri‑County to submit a proposal that would allow the county to consider using opioid-settlement money — which has limits on eligible activities — for the requested post. Commissioners said, if Tri‑County can reframe the position to align with opioid-funds rules, the county could consider budgeting ongoing or one-time money at a later date. The court did not approve any hiring or new ongoing funding at the workshop.
Context: Commissioners and staff noted youth mental-health services had growing demand and referenced the idea of creating an 18‑month or multi‑year program to make the position sustainable and better positioned for large program grants, rather than one-off small grants.
Attribution and documentation: Commissioners asked Tri‑County to return with a written proposal and staff to place the current request funds into contingency pending formal submission. No formal appropriation was recorded during the workshop.
