Adams County commissioners approve $300,000 opioid-settlement grant for jail reentry program run by Project Connect

A majority of the Adams County commissioners voted to direct $300,000 in opioid‑settlement money to Project Connect to support a jail reentry and navigation program.

Judge Conrad and program representatives including Rob Parker of Project Connect and Sheriff Bay described a model that begins contact with people at booking or early pretrial detention and continues navigation and support after release. Speaker 6 (presenter) said the county no longer qualifies for the state IRACS recovery community organization certification and therefore cannot participate in the state IRACS grant, but added that "we still wanna pick commissioner's blessing to use that opioid settlement money to do a jail reentry" through Project Connect. The commissioners moved to reassign the previously dedicated funds to Project Connect; Speaker 4 said, "I'll make that motion," and Speaker 2 seconded. The motion was carried by voice vote.

Why it matters: county and criminal‑justice officials framed the program as an early intervention designed to reduce recidivism by connecting people with housing, employment, mental‑health care and case navigation before and after release. Presenters emphasized pretrial contact and at least six months of post‑release navigation as program components: "There’s a chance that this goes well, then under judge's authority... they can bring people back... so they can get into this program," one presenter said.

What was approved and next steps: The board approved reallocating $300,000 to Project Connect to start the reentry program and asked staff and partners to finalize contracts and deliverables. Commissioners discussed oversight and accountability — presenters said the sheriff would have operational control and a steering committee and that the program would coordinate with existing community‑corrections and judicial partners. No detailed performance metrics or contract terms were recorded in the transcript; commissioners requested follow‑up coordination and implementation details before full program rollout.

Quotes and attributions: Rob Parker (Project Connect) and "Speaker 6" (program representative) described services and community partnerships. Sheriff Bay and Judge Conrad participated in the presentation. Commissioners used voice votes to approve the motion; the transcript records the motion being made, seconded and the chair stating "Motion carries." The precise roll‑call tally was not recorded in the transcript.

Limitations: The board and presenters repeatedly noted that the IRACS state grant is not available because the county is not a certified RCO; the approved funding reallocates local opioid‑settlement resources rather than restoring state grant eligibility. The transcript does not include contract language, a budget breakdown beyond the $300,000 figure, or a timeline for measurable outcomes.

The board voted to proceed; staff were asked to finish contract steps and return with recommended oversight and implementation details at a later meeting.