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Warr Acres officials say $45,000 opioid grant arrived with unclear allowable uses; council pulls item from consent docket
Summary
City officials told the council the $45,000 opioid abatement grant already received may not match the paperwork and its allowed uses are uncertain; the council removed the related consent item from tonight’s appropriations to get clarity from the attorney general’s office and grant administrators.
City officials told the Warr Acres City Council on March 18 that paperwork for a $45,000 opioid-related grant required clarification and that the council should not appropriate the funds until staff and the city attorney can confirm allowable uses.
The item — listed on the consent docket as Item F — was pulled for separate discussion after police and fire chiefs raised questions about whether the grant could be spent on Narcan vending machines or only on training, overtime and Narcan distribution. Pam (last name not recorded), who handles the city’s finances, told council members the paperwork “is not exactly what they know was supposed to be” and recommended removing the item from the consent vote until the allowable expenditures are confirmed.
Mayor and staff said the city had already received $45,000 up front. City manager/administrative staff and department chiefs described a mix of sources: an individual settlement amount the city previously received, and a separate state-administered opioid abatement grant program for which the state awarded distributions. City officials said the two streams are distinct but sometimes related in recordkeeping.
Chiefs at the meeting said parts of the grant program had changed since application: a pill-dispensing vending machine option for Narcan was discontinued and replaced with direct distribution of Narcan, and training funds were available but many staff already had comparable training. Chief speakers asked whether the $45,000 could be repurposed for equipment if the original program changed; city staff said the attorney general’s office had signaled flexibility if a consolidated request for changes is submitted in one package.
City clerk/finance staff said the grant is a reimbursement program in its normal form, and staff did not expect to receive all funds up front. “They gave us $45,000 of that money upfront, which surprises me,” a staff member said. Council agreed to remove the item from the consent docket so staff can discuss permitted uses with the attorney general’s office, the grant administrator and the chiefs and return with a report at the next meeting.
