The city of ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä will distribute more than $1 million of its opioid settlement funds through an Opioid Community Council overseen by the United Way.
The ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä City Council unanimously approved the plan, which had 19 co-sponsors, Monday night. Ward 16 Councilman John Gianola abstained because of a conflict of interest.
Funds
Under the agreement with the United Way of Central West Virginia, the city will transfer $600,000 to the United Way immediately to disburse. Then, the city will transfer an additional $100,000 each year through 2029. Additionally, all interest on the opioid settlement funds will be transferred to the United Way for this initiative.
The United Way can retain an administrative fee of no more than 10% of the funds it receives each year.
According to Andy Wood, the city's finance director, ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä already has received $5.2 million in funds from lawsuits against opioid manufacturers, distributors and wholesalers, including interest. He estimates the city will receive $8 million to $9 million total.
The United Way will oversee the Opioid Community Council, an advisory board that will review funding applications and recommend how the funds should be distributed through grants of $10,000 to $50,000. The United Way can reject a recommendation, but the Opioid Community Council can reallocate the funding.
Opioid Community Council
The Opioid Community Council will develop the funding application and a grading rubric for applications. It will have public meetings with details posted on ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉäWV.Portal.CivicClerk.com.
Funds will be allocated evenly between projects for prevention, treatment and recovery. However, if fewer qualifying applications are received in one category, the remaining funds can be redistributed to other categories.
Mayor Amy Shuler Goodwin will appoint five to nine people to the Opioid Community Council, with staggered one- or two-year terms. The appointments must be confirmed by City Council.
The Opioid Community Council will have at least one:
Professional with experience in opioid abuse prevention
Professional with experience in opioid abuse treatment
Professional with experience in opioid abuse recovery
Person in long-term recovery from an opioid-use disorder
Mayor Amy Shuler Goodwin speaks at a ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä City Council meeting on Feb. 18, 2025.
CHRISTOPHER MILLETTE | Gazette-Mail file photo
Goodwin said she got the idea for this arrangement from calling mayors and city council members in other municipalities. She plans to use the rest of the funds for funding ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä’s CARE Office, which provides resources to many people in ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä, including those with a substance use disorder.
"It's still going to be a challenge to fund some of these amazing group[s] that have boots on the ground and [are] doing great work, because of the cuts in funding that we're seeing,†Goodwin said. “So, hopefully, we can turn that trend around.â€
Goodwin said grant funding through city government is “tricky,†especially with limited funds.
This is an undated contributed photo of ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä City Councilperson Becky Ceperley.
Courtesy photo
At-large Councilwoman Becky Ceperley was the vice-chairwoman of the city committee that distributed American Rescue Plan Act funds. She also is the retired CEO of the Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation. She said fund disbursement through the ARP committee was a "little cumbersome," as people weren't used to grant funding.
"Giving away money is sometimes harder than raising money to make sure you make the right decision," she said.
The United Way will screen applicants and ensure they have proper documentation, Ceperley said.
"This is what they do for a living," she said.
Margaret O’Neal, president of the United Way of Central West Virginia, said she thinks the partnership will work because the United Way’s review process is “very strong.†The United Way will be able to tell the committee what questions its members should ask of applicants and what documents they should collect.
Annually, the United Way of Central West Virginia grants $700,000 to $900,000 in funds a year.
“We have a long history of being able to look at outcomes and applications,†O’Neal said.
ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä City Council member Joe Solomon is shown at a City Council meeting on Feb. 18, 2025.
CHRISTOPHER MILLETTE | Gazette-Mail file photo
At-large Councilman Joe Solomon has been working on the idea with Goodwin since spring. He said he thinks the idea is a model for the rest of the state.
“This bill doesn't just open up money," he said in a statement. "It puts accountability and transparency guardrails up. The first step wasn't just to write checks — it was to set up a system where we can listen to experts and people who've lived this crisis, where applicants know what to expect, and where anybody can be in the room where the decisions are being made. This bill provides that framework.â€
Solomon said he hopes groups apply for funding for harm reduction efforts, such as education, “safer use supplies†and naloxone outreach.
Ashley McElwee, a ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä resident in long-term recovery from substance use disorder, has been working with Goodwin on the project. She helped host two community events to get ideas on how the opioid funds could be used. She mentioned that some ideas included a low-barrier shelter and prevention efforts focused on children.
“I feel very grateful to live in ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä, where this kind of process is possible,†she said.
Having someone on the Opioid Community Council with experience of having an opioid use disorder “goes so far,†McElwee said.
" The ability to relate to someone who is still struggling — to understand what is meaningful, what is valuable in those moments — is incredibly powerful,†she said.
In other business Monday
The City Council also approved:
A sewer project on Magazine Branch that will be funded by bonds paid by the ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Sanitary Board
Contracts to purchase Portland cement, stone, asphalt and demolition services, as needed
$58,000 from a federal grant to purchase office supplies for the CARE Office
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