Henry County approves restricted opioid settlement allocations to fund jail recovery program requests
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Summary
The Henry County Board of Commissioners approved use of restricted opioid settlement funds to support jail recovery assistance program (JRAP) requests and directed staff to preserve state correspondence and documentation for audit. The board also discussed forming an advisory board to manage settlement funds.
Henry County commissioners voted Nov. 12 to allocate restricted opioid settlement funds to local jail recovery assistance program requests and directed staff to maintain documentation of the decisions. Angela (county staff), who briefed the board on outreach with state officials, said Shelby Thomas of the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute described Henry County’s work with settlement funds as a model worth highlighting to peers.
Angela told the board the state’s Commission to Combat Substance Use Disorder invited Henry County to present at a quarterly meeting in Indianapolis and described plans to create an advisory board to oversee how restricted and unrestricted settlement dollars are spent. She said the advisory board would produce a long-range plan and help project incoming settlement funding, including future receipts from the Purdue Pharma settlement.
The board discussed a cutback version of Angela’s original request that would fund a full-time licensed mental health counselor, a full-time community health worker/peer recovery coach, payroll costs (FICA, PERF), group insurance and programming supplies. Angela said the reduced request in that contingency would total $173,004.37 if the full amount were not available.
Commissioner Susan moved to approve the opioid settlement allocations as presented; the motion carried by voice vote (3-0). County staff and a commissioner asked Angela to keep email copies and attachments documenting that the county’s approach followed the model program described by the state in case the State Board of Accounts reviews expenditures.
The board did not adopt additional restrictions or reporting requirements at the meeting beyond the existing guidance; Angela said the proposed advisory board would help the county plan long-range uses of settlement funds and handle monthly updates as money is deposited into the restricted and unrestricted accounts.
Next steps: staff will retain the state correspondence and the spreadsheet attachments Angela referenced and will continue work to finalize membership and a charter for the advisory board before the next funding decisions.
