Brevard County lays out opioid‑abatement funding, priorities and RFA timeline
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Summary
Brevard County staff summarized how multi‑year opioid settlement funds will be distributed locally, identified treatment and outreach priorities, and set an RFA timeline aimed at starting contracts Oct. 1; the committee also agreed on a recommendations committee to review applications.
Brevard County officials on Jan. 28 briefed the Together in Partnership Committee on how opioid‑settlement dollars will be apportioned locally and when organizations can expect to apply for those funds. Melissa Brandt of Brevard County Housing and Human Services described funding streams from nationwide settlements and the county’s planned spending priorities.
Brandt said the national settlements will be distributed over 18 years and that Florida’s allocation will be substantial. “Brevard’s funding is about 44,000,000 over the total of 18 years,” Brandt told the committee, outlining a breakdown the county expects: roughly 45% from a state fund, about 40% to regional entitlement counties and approximately 15% to city and county allocations.
Why it matters: the county plans to use the dollars for public‑education and marketing, expanded medication‑assisted treatment, warm‑handoff services and programs targeting justice‑involved people — areas the review committee identified as priorities for this round of awards.
Juanita Jackson of Housing and Human Services described the procurement schedule and review process. Jackson said the RFA is in final review and staff aim to have contracts ready to begin on Oct. 1. “It is our plan to have contracts ready October 1,” she said, adding that applications will be solicited once the RFA is finalized and that awards may be retroactive to the planned start date.
Staff told agencies to register on the county’s Vendorlink procurement portal so they will receive automatic alerts when the RFAs are posted. County staff also said they plan to issue separate RFAs separated by the review committee’s priorities to reduce conflicts of interest and make evaluation clearer for applicants.
What’s next: the committee voted to appoint a recommendations committee to evaluate incoming applications and accepted the sheriff’s nomination of Undersheriff Douglas Waller as a TIP representative. Staff said the recommendations committee will receive application notebooks and convene to score and recommend awards when sufficient applications arrive.
The presentation and discussion made clear the county is moving from planning to active procurement; agencies that want to apply were urged to complete Vendorlink registration so they receive the RFA notices.