Vernon County committee approves three-year settlement funding commitment for human services; tables wider allocation decisions

The Vernon County Opioid Prevention and Steering Committee approved a three-year commitment for a Human Services and Health Department request from opioid settlement funds during its Jan. 14 meeting in the Vernon County Board Room.

Human Services Director Jill Bender presented a plan asking for a five-year commitment of $45,000 per year for Human Services and $5,000 per year for the county health department. Cassandra Hanan, the county administrative coordinator, told the committee settlement distributions run over 17 years and can vary annually. Committee members asked for regular program updates if funding is approved.

Members noted existing allocations: the committee was told $284,000 has been allocated and an additional $96,000 has been appropriated from settlement funds. After discussion, Mary Henry moved to approve the Human Services/Health Department request as a three-year commitment; Dr. Steve Micheals seconded and the motion passed unanimously.

The committee previously voted to table parts of the settlement-funds agenda pending review of another grant application before returning to the Human Services/Health Department request. Grants administrator Amy Oliver confirmed the committee can accommodate annual updates from Human Services and the health department if the funding is approved.

Dr. Martha Karlstad, discussing ask amounts, said the committee should avoid "under ask[ing]" for needs. The meeting record shows members requested recurring program reports if the committee approves multi-year commitments.

The committee also invited Vernon Health to present a Mental First Aid training proposal at its next meeting so members can review details of that separate application before finalizing broader settlement allocations. The next meeting is set for Feb. 11 at 2:30 p.m. in the Vernon Sheriff’s Training Room and remotely via Teams.