Klamath County officials discuss using opioid settlement funds to cover juvenile detention shortfall

Commissioner Minty and other commissioners heard a request from Dan Golden, the juvenile director, to use opioid settlement money to cover a shortfall at the county juvenile detention center after an expected grant did not come through. Golden said the prior grant would have supplied substantial personnel and program funding; the county has used a $250,000 grant to stand up an electronic medication management system but now faces a revenue gap.

A staff member who reviewed the opioid settlement guidance said the funds can be used for juveniles with substance-use and mental-health problems so long as the county can document and track those needs. "It looked to me like as long as we can track drug use and mental health problems within that facility that there is a use there," the staff member said. County counsel also reviewed the language and indicated the same condition: expenditures must be directly related and backed by documentation.

Commissioners asked about available balances and future receipts. Meeting speakers cited a recent receipt figure stated as "255,000" and an available amount spoken in the meeting as "We have $3.87 available." Staff and Golden described plans to produce a reliable intake and assessment data stream; Golden noted the detention center already uses a questionnaire but that the county lacks a dedicated staff member to administer an approved screening tool and capture standardized data. Golden said community partners including Clannett Basin Behavioral Health and Lutheran Community Services expressed support for connecting detained youth to treatment and handoffs to community providers.

Board members supported using opioid-settlement funds both as a stopgap for the current year and potentially for ongoing program costs if the county can document need and outcomes. No formal budget resolution was taken at the meeting; commissioners requested that Golden and staff provide the documentation needed to substantiate the population with substance-use needs for annual reporting and to return with proposed tracking and reporting procedures.

The board directed staff to provide the requested documentation and data tools and to outline the reporting requirements needed to justify use of opioid settlement funds for juvenile detention.