County establishes opioid advisory committee to guide use of settlement funds

The commission approved creation of an opioid advisory committee to provide stakeholder input and recommend distribution and allocation of opioid-settlement funds.

Committee composition and role: Public-health staff proposed a committee that includes the mayor or mayoral appointee, fire chief, police chief, coroner, a hospital or health-care representative, a judicial representative, a recovery/rehab representative, a mental/behavioral-health representative, an impacted family member and public-health staff. The committee would participate in any local request-for-proposal process and prioritize projects consistent with federal settlement guidance.

Accountability and process: Staff said the committee will provide quarterly reporting, meeting minutes and defined roles; allocations will be subject to the settlement terms and must be approved through the appropriate county administrative processes. The mayor indicated that the advisory body will likely be ongoing while settlement funds continue to be distributed.

Administrative points: Members of the committee will be appointed per standard committee practices and should complete the county talent-bank/special-committee processes; committee members must be Richmond County residents and committee structure will be codified with roles and reporting requirements.

Next steps: The commission approved establishing the advisory committee and asked staff to manage appointments and application procedures consistent with established committee processes.