Subcommittee approves DHHS director's office budget closings; rejects one opioid-funded position

The Joint Senate Committee on Finance and the Assembly Committee on Ways and Means Subcommittee on Human Services closed multiple budget items for the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) directoroffice on a series of voice votes, approving contractual support and corrections to opioid and tobacco settlement funding but voting not to recommend one new opioid-funded position.

The subcommittee voted to approve $320,000 in general fund appropriations over the 2025to2727 biennium to support contractual program evaluation, training, project management, data analysis and report development for the DHHS director's office, as recommended by staff. The panel also approved technical budget amendments to correct overstated opioid project allocations and several transfers tied to the Fund for Resilient Nevada (opioid settlement funds) and the Fund for Healthy Nevada (tobacco settlement funds).

Morgan Barlow, program analyst with the Legislative Counsel BureauFiscal Analysis Division, presented the director's office materials and described those technical corrections and contingent adjustments. Fiscal staff repeatedly noted that several changes are contingent on companion decision units in receiving budget accounts and on enabling legislation related to a proposed departmental restructuring described in the hearing as bill draft request 11 16 (referred to in documents as BDR 40-11 16).

The subcommittee approved reserve reductions and transfers to support enhancements to opioid-related programs after staff identified and corrected an overstatement in the base budget that reduced projected opioid allocations by $14,900,000 across the 2025to2727 biennium. The panel also approved a set of reserve reductions totaling approximately $363,490 to support an infants-impacted-by-gestational-exposure program and approved $1,300,000 in reserve reductions to fund six full-time positions in the Fund for Resilient Nevada budget account to expand administrative capacity.

Separately, the subcommittee voted not to recommend the governor's request to transfer $190,185 in opioid settlement funds over the biennium to create a new Health Program Specialist (grade 37) in the Nevada Office of Minority Health and Equity. The agency had described the position as responsible for outreach to faith-based organizations in African American and Hispanic communities; members raised concerns about adding new recurring positions during uncertain economic conditions and moved to withhold recommendation.

On tobacco settlement funds, fiscal staff described updated revenue projections from the state treasurer showing a continuing downward trend. The governor submitted 12 budget amendments to reduce spending plans in response; the subcommittee approved the grants management unit's spending plan of $13,000,000 in Fund for Healthy Nevada allocations for the 2025to2727 biennium, including the submitted amendments. The agency projection included a reduction in the fund reserve from about $35.9 million at the end of fiscal 2025 to $24.3 million at the end of fiscal 2027 if the recommended expenditures proceed.

Other approved items included the transfer of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Part C office (Early Intervention Services lead agency) from the DHHS director's office to the Aging and Disability Services Division, implemented as cost allocation reductions of approximately $243,490 over the biennium, and several staff-closed budget accounts where fiscal staff recommended approval. The Office of Analytics received approval for two new health-resource-analyst positions (grade 35) funded via transfers from the Division of Public and Behavioral Health and for a funding-source change to put one administrative assistant (grade 27) on the general fund, accompanied by a subcommittee letter of intent directing the agency to develop a long-term cost-allocation plan and report to the Interim Finance Committee by April 30, 2026.

Several approvals and cost-allocation adjustments were explicitly made contingent upon passage of bill draft request 11 16 (the proposed reorganization legislation) or the approval of companion decision units in receiving accounts; fiscal staff repeatedly sought authority to make technical adjustments consistent with those approvals.

Votes at a glance

- Approve $320,000 general fund for contractual support in DHHS director's office (motion carried).

- Do not recommend approval of $190,185 in opioid settlement funds to add one Health Program Specialist for the Nevada Office of Minority Health and Equity (motion carried; request not recommended).

- Approve Governor's budget amendment correcting overstated opioid allocations (A25'/decision described in staff materials; ~$14.9 million correction across biennium) and approve related reserve reductions and technical adjustments (motion carried).

- Approve reserve reductions totaling ~$1,300,000 to add six full-time positions in the Fund for Resilient Nevada (motion carried); the subcommittee also explicitly did not approve a related decision unit described in staff materials (motion carried).

- Approve reserve reduction of ~$363,490 for infants-impacted-by-gestational-exposure program in Fund for Resilient Nevada (motion carried).

- Approve grants management unit spending plan of $13,000,000 in tobacco settlement funds for the 2025to2727 biennium, including submitted budget amendments to reduce allocations (motion carried).

- Approve transfer of IDEA Part C office to Aging and Disability Services Division (cost allocation reduction ~$243,490; motion carried).

- Approve two health-resource-analyst positions in the Office of Analytics via transfers from the Division of Public and Behavioral Health and approve a general fund shift of $192,019 for one administrative assistant; subcommittee also requested a cost-allocation study and report by 04/30/2026 (motion carried).

What it means

Committee approval advances technical corrections and staffing expansions for administration of opioid- and tobacco-settlement-funded programs and maintains the subcommittee's authority to require companion approvals or enabling legislation before some transfers take effect. Several actions were expressly contingent on future companion decision units or passage of enabling legislation for the proposed DHHS reorganization (bill draft request 11 16). The subcommittee declined one new opioid-funded outreach position due to concerns about creating recurring obligations amid budget uncertainty.

Provenance: first related remarks recorded when the chair opened the session and directed staff to present budget closings for the Department of Health and Human Services director's office; final related remarks at the end of the public comment and adjournment closing the budget hearings for the day.