Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Behavioral Health topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Residents urge Sweetwater County not to reappoint two Southwest Counseling board members; commissioners, staff discuss opioid settlement money
Summary
A Southwest Counseling employee urged the commissioners not to reappoint two board members, citing reduced transparency; commissioners later discussed using opioid settlement funds to offset county support for counseling services.
Kim Bramwell, an employee of Southwest Counseling and a long-time community member, used the county resident comment period on June 3 to urge the commissioners not to reappoint two members of Southwest Counseling’s board when terms end July 1.
"I'm both an employee of Southwest Counseling, and I'm a committed member of this community," Bramwell said. She criticized a perceived decline in transparency at board meetings and said, "I'm asking you not to reappoint Kaylene Logan and Christie Coffey to your board of Southwest Counseling because, coincidentally, the decline in transparency is during their tenure." Bramwell said she and others have circulated and signed a petition that asks the county not to reappoint those two members.
Commissioners acknowledged the public comment. Commissioner Richards noted the agency’s leadership change separately in his report: "Linda Acker, CEO of Southwest Counseling, sent out an email announcing her pending retirement from that organization." Richards and other commissioners said they had met with Southwest Counseling and discussed possible uses for opioid settlement funds.
During the afternoon budget workshop, commissioners and staff discussed whether opioid settlement money could be used to reduce the county’s operating support for Southwest Counseling. Commissioner Jones said the county and Christina Marshall, the county’s grants manager, had discussed targeting some opioid funding to counseling services and suggested a possible range of $250,000 to $300,000. Commissioners did not adopt a formal funding change at the workshop; they noted only that using settlement funds in part to offset operating requests is under consideration and would require additional planning and agreement on allowable uses.
The county did not take action on the board appointments during the meeting. Commissioners said they would take public comments into advisement as they consider reappointments. Southwest Counseling’s board and staff were not present for a vote; the commission did not announce any changes to the agency’s allocation in the approved preliminary county budget at the June 3 workshop.
County staff and commissioners said they will continue discussions with Southwest Counseling and with the grants office about whether and how opioid settlement dollars might be used in the coming fiscal year. Any reallocation would require a future formal budget action and, for settlement funds, documentation of permitted program uses.
