TITLE
Title
BUDGET AMENDMENT: FY25-28 COMPREHENSIVE OPIOID, STIMULANT AND SUBSTANCE USE PROGRAM (COSSUP) GRANT
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SPONSOR
Sponsor
Sheriff Danny H. Rogers (Capt. Wes Mecham)
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BACKGROUND
Background
Guilford County, along with the rest of society, has seen a noticeable increase in opioid related deaths and health issues. The Sheriff's Office has recognized over the last several years the opioid epidemic plaguing our county and society at large. In an effort to be part of the solution and the improvement of lives, the Sheriff's Office has created services to assist those affected by opioids. Some of these services are the issuing of Naloxone (Narcan) and operation of the Re-entry and Diversion programs. To further assist in these endeavors, the Sheriff's Office applied and has been awarded the Comprehensive Opioid, Stimulant and Substance Use Program (COSSUP) grant. This grant is provided through the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) program.
With this grant, BJA seeks to develop, implement, or expand comprehensive programs in response to the overdose crisis and the impacts of illicit opioids, stimulants, or other substances. The program provides resources to support state, local, tribal, and territorial efforts to respond to illicit substance use and misuse, reduce overdose deaths, promote public safety, and support access to prevention, harm reduction, treatment, and recovery services in the community and justice system. Since 2018, Guilford County has experienced a 102% increase in the number of opioid overdose deaths, with our jails having on average of thirty (30) people every day, who are recovering from opioid addiction. The Sheriff's Office has been awarded $1,589,826 with a period of performance of October 1, 2024 through September 30, 2027 and will be utilized in both our Greensboro and High Point Detention Centers.
A portion of the funds will be used for diversion or deflection from the criminal justice system through programming in jails and during reentry. All of these strategies also seek to improve access to harm reduction methods, substance use disorder (SUD) treatment and recovery support services, including peer recovery. Funding would also provide for purchasing Naloxone for law enforcement, first responders, jail staff, and other justice system practitioners.
This grant also provides for treatment opportunities, such as medication assisted treatments (MAT). These treatment options are intended to facilitate reduction activities and recovery support service engagement with the pre-trial and post-trial populations in and reentering the community from local or regional jails or secure residential treatment facilities, transitional or recovery housing and recovery support services, including access to physical and behavioral health care benefits, counseling services, employment services, and education services, and peer support services for those reentering the community from jails or secure residential treatment facilities.
MAT is considered the gold standard for opioid treatment and is highly encouraged in the MOA for opioid settlement funds.
To add to that, counties receiving opioid settlement dollars are encouraged to combine those funds with other funding opportunities to expand the work being done. This grant is a great opportunity to combine with opioid settlement funds to address several of the recommendations for spending. Namely expanding access to MAT, addressing housing needs for justice-involved people, expanding harm reduction efforts, and increasing recovery supports.
Other goals and purposes of this grant is to embed social workers, peers, and/or persons with lived experience at any intercept of the Sequential Intercept Model to assist persons with justice involvement and their families to navigate the justice system and to increase their connection to treatment and recovery support services. The team of criminal justice professionals engaged in this process includes law enforcement, pretrial and probation agencies, prosecutor-led programs, legal defense agencies, child welfare agencies, courts, and jails to support community reentry. For a comprehensive list of program goals, please review the attached list.
One of the goals of the Sheriff's Office is to reduce opioid deaths and recidivism in Guilford County.
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BUDGET IMPACT
Budget Impact
Grant Projects Fund
FY25-28 DOJ COSSUP Grant (adopt)
$1,589,826 appropriation to Grant Project
$1,589,826 in Federal/State Funds
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REQUESTED ACTION
Requested Action
Accept receipt of FY25-28 DOJ COSSUP Grant in the amount of $1,589,826 and adopt grant project ordinance for FY25-28 DOJ COSSUP Grant in the amount of $1,589,826 with $1,589,826 in Federal/State Funds.
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