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Nassau task force revises grant scoring ranges, sets May 9 application deadline and May 22 presentations
Summary
The task force voted to adjust the application scoring matrix to reduce barriers for new applicants, decided on a May 9 application deadline with applicant presentations May 22 and left grants at one-year awards while planning further briefings on the CORE program.
The Nassau County Opioid Settlement Task Force on April 10 approved changes to the scoring matrix used to rank grant applications and set a timeline for next year’s awards. The board directed staff to publish the application with changes and set applications due May 9, applicant presentations May 22 and final funding decisions at the June 12 meeting.
Members revised the cost-estimate scoring to reduce the penalty on projects with start-up costs. Under the change the board discussed and approved, the highest-penalty category (0 points) applies to projects with estimated implementation costs greater than $75,000; 1 point applies to $50,000–$75,000; 2 points to $15,000–$50,000; 3 points to costs under $15,000; and 4 points remains for projects with no quantifiable cost. A motion to make these changes was moved and seconded on the record; the transcript records "Motion passes." The meeting transcript does not provide a roll-call vote total or the names of the mover and seconder.
Staff also proposed procedural changes to the application: adding the state Schedule A/B dropdown options to the online form so applicants can identify the state category they plan to report (Schedule A categories include evidence-based data collection, syringe services expansion, warm handoff/medication-assisted treatment and prevention for pregnant/postpartum populations; Schedule B includes treatment for incarcerated populations and other categories); permitting attached PDF supplements when the online character limits are insufficient; and providing an email fallback to receive applications when the form malfunctions. Presenters and applicants who had used the form encouraged the task force to allow attachments and to provide help for users who experience technical issues.
Board members discussed whether to offer multi-year awards. After considering projected declines in some state CORE funding and the uncertain long-term revenue stream, the task force decided to continue with one-year awards for the next cycle and reassess later. The task force discussed CORE — the state Coordinated Opioid Response Efforts program — and heard that CORE funding is frontloaded in year one (about $800,000 in an example cited for another county) and declines in later years; the task force noted the potential funding gap if CORE becomes an ongoing local service.
Task force staff said they would add a question in the application asking applicants that received year-one funding to explain how the new request would provide continuity with prior-year services. Staff also indicated they would include the Schedule A and Schedule B list in the application to reduce ambiguity when reporting to the state.
The board set the application timeline and interview schedule: publish the application immediately, applications due May 9, applicant presentations to the task force May 22 (special meeting), and final decisions June 12. Staff will email submitted applications in advance of the May 22 presentations so members can prepare questions in advance.
No formal dollar awards were approved at the April 10 meeting; the action was limited to scoring-matrix changes, application instructions and scheduling.
