You need to be signed in to add your comment.

You cannot leave comment in this blogpost unless you are a part of the project panel.

BL2026-1452: Opioid Settlement Steering Committee

This discussion topic was requested by Council Member Erin Evans, relative to a proposed Opioid Settlement Steering Committee.


From CM Evans:

This week, the Metro Council will consider BL2026-1452, legislation I filed in response to Metro Internal Audit’s review of Nashville’s opioid settlement funds.

The audit found that the funds are supporting allowable treatment and harm-reduction efforts, but it also raised concerns about oversight, transparency, financial controls, payroll documentation, and whether Metro is consistently measuring program results.  You can read the full audit here: https://bit.ly/OpioidSettlementAudit

Among the findings:

• Metro has no formal body providing ongoing oversight of opioid settlement spending.
• The Board of Health [the charter-mandated oversight of the Metro Health Department] met 45 times during the audit period, but opioid settlement activities were mentioned only once.
• Auditors identified weaknesses in invoice review, grant reporting, financial reporting, and payroll documentation.
• About $1.5 million, or 51% of the spending reviewed, went toward payroll.

BL2026-1452 would establish a formal Opioid Settlement Steering Committee (like other counties have established) and require clearer funding plans, measurable outcomes, quarterly financial reports, public hearings, a transparency dashboard, and a follow-up audit.

On Tuesday, I plan to begin the conversation in the Public Health and Safety Committee and then defer the bill for at least one meeting. That will give councilmembers, the administration, service providers, people with lived experience, and other stakeholders time to review the proposal and offer feedback.  On Wednesday I will be meeting with the Health Department to discuss this further.

These funds exist because of the devastating impact of the opioid crisis. These funds don’t belong to the Health Department.  MPHD was simply designated to be the financial stewards of the funds under the Cooper administration.

If you’d like to see an example of what I believe we should be striving for, check out what Maury County created:  https://www.maurycounty-tn.gov/645/Maury-County-Opioid-Abatement-Committee

We owe it to the public to make sure funds are spent transparently and responsibly and have an impact on residents experiencing the damaging effects of substance use disorder.