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Commissioners approve interlocal agreement to expand STAT sobering and triage services with $400,000 city co-investment
Summary
Spokane County commissioners unanimously approved consent-item 3I, an interlocal agreement with the City of Spokane to expand sobering triage and transition (STAT) services, including a $400,000 city investment to grow treatment slots to 24 and co-invest with STARS expansion efforts.
At the Spokane County Board of Commissioners' June 3 consent meeting, commissioners voted unanimously to approve items 3A through 3N on the consent agenda, which included item 3I: an interlocal agreement with the City of Spokane to expand sobering triage and transition services known as STAT. A commissioner who spoke to item 3I described it as a regional co-investment in response to the opioid and fentanyl crisis.
"This item is about saving lives," the commissioner said, praising Mayor Brown's administration and the City Council for a unanimous vote the prior evening to contribute $400,000 toward expansion. The commissioner said the county and city investment will co-invest in the STARS expansion and allow STAT treatment slots to grow to 24. He attributed data about overdose deaths to the county medical examiner: "we had 352 individuals in the county pass away last year as a result of a drug overdose; 76 percent of those deaths were fentanyl related."
The commissioner credited the county's community services team and named leadership: "John Justin Johnson's leadership" was singled out for overseeing the work. He characterized STAT as a pathway that keeps people engaged in next steps of treatment by co-locating services and emphasized interjurisdictional cooperation.
The motion to approve the consent agenda was moved and seconded during the meeting; the chair called the vote and the motion passed unanimously. The approval included the interlocal agreement (agenda item 3I) as part of the consent package. No amendments or recorded dissent occurred during the vote. The transcript indicates commissioners then cleared the room to hold a closed session on labor discussions.
Implementation details conveyed in the meeting record include the city contribution of $400,000, the intended growth of STAT slots to 24, and involvement of the county's community services team; no additional budget appropriation numbers beyond the city's $400,000 were discussed on the record during this meeting.
