York County outlines plan to use multiple federal grants for youth mental‑health services and adult substance‑use diversion

York County officials told commissioners that the county has won and is implementing several federal grants aimed at youth mental-health services, diversion and adult substance-use treatment work.

County Attorney Gary Olsen and Tristan Perry described a $650,000 youth justice/mental-health collaboration grant and a $1.3 million Comprehensive Opioid, Stimulant and Substance Use (COPSU) site-based grant for adult services. Olsen said the county also received a separate ‘reaching rural’ award of $100,000 and is using planning funds to design a countywide continuum of care for people under 18.

Olsen and Perry said the county plans to subaward portions of the grants to experienced regional partners, including the Well‑Being Initiative and Four Corners, and to the Center on Children, Families and the Law (CCFL) at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln for planning work. Deliverables cited include a countywide needs and services assessment, expanded juvenile diversion capacity, school‑based prevention work with ESU partners, rapid access to adult substance‑use services and peer-support specialist positions for the county.

Perry said several positions funded by the grants are already in process: a community enhancement director (initially funded by the grants), a youth community navigator and an adult services coordinator. He described early subaward payments: “what is currently in that ASAP account is 10% of each of these — so there’s $130,000 from the KOSA, $50,000 from the youth mental-health and $42,500 from the planning group,” figures county staff said are available now to begin implementation work and subaward setup.

Commissioners discussed administrative safeguards: the need for clear grant coding in the treasurer’s office, audit expectations, reimbursement timing, and paperwork required for subawards. Staff said the federal process allows requesting reimbursement shortly before planned expenditures and emphasized upfront documentation and contracts with subgrantees to ensure compliance.

Officials also discussed practical steps for program delivery: partnering with local nonprofits, sharing or leasing office space with YC3 and child‑support offices, and using subawards to ensure that providers with clinical capacity (for example, licensed alcohol and drug counselors) deliver adult services. Staff said interviews for key hiring were planned in early February and that many program elements could be in place by March if grant processes progress as expected.

The board did not take new fiscal action in the meeting beyond receiving the implementation update; commissioners asked staff to continue contract, audit and reimbursement planning.