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Board approves opioid-settlement reconciliation, directs restoration and tighter contracts
Summary
After finding about $2.3 million of opioid-settlement dollars had been commingled, Lake County supervisors voted to accept a reconciliation and restoration plan, direct behavioral health to restore the funds on a monthly schedule and tighten contract protections for nonprofit partners.
The Lake County Board of Supervisors on July 28 accepted a reconciliation and restoration framework for the county's opioid settlement funds after staff said the county had not maintained those funds in a separate account and must restore roughly $2.3 million.
Alyce Jones, director of Behavioral Health Services, told the board the county expects to receive just over $22 million under the settlement and has received about $8 million to date. Jones said staff's reconciliation found opioid-settlement funds were commingled in the county's SUD account, and the department recommends creating a dedicated fund, monthly restoration payments and ongoing public reporting. "We will pull through all of our accounting, identify the OSF dollars and establish a separate fund and governance framework," Jones said.
Supervisor Sabatier said he had pressed for this review and expressed concern about contracts that avoid protections for the county. He urged contract amendments to prevent nonprofit partners from selling financed assets immediately after construction. "We fronted money with no expectations," Sabatier said, asking for amendments within 30 days to protect county investments.
The board voted 5-0 to accept the reconciliation and restoration framework, and separately approved the planning categories for OSF spending (infrastructure expansion, community-based grants and county-operated remediation) while instructing Behavioral Health to return with detailed spending plans and monthly or quarterly reports on receipts, expenditures and restoration progress. The board also directed staff to work with County Counsel to strengthen contract language so that county-financed assets or other investments include recapture or other protections.
Jones recommended, as a working allocation concept, 40% of new OSF dollars for infrastructure expansion, 30% for grants to community organizations and 30% for county-operated remediation and programs. She said some projects already under way used OSF as match for licensed facility renovations and that construction on a South Shore Clinic renovation was expected to start soon.
Board members and public speakers asked for faster restoration if possible and for monthly tracking tools. Jones said the county can begin a monthly restoration plan (the staff example was $180,000 per month) and will seek to minimize impacts on existing contractor payments. The board also asked staff to present options for ensuring long-term return on investments, including whether the county could own some facilities instead of funding contractor-owned assets.
Next steps include establishing a dedicated OSF fund, completing historical-review of allowable uses, amending contracts for stronger protections, and quarterly reporting back to the board on progress and outcomes.
