# Advisory Bodies

### **Has the state established an advisory body for settlement funds?**

**Yes.** Oklahoma state law establishes the [Oklahoma Opioid Abatement Board](https://oklahoma.gov/oag/resources/meetings/opioid-abatement-board.html) to develop, implement, and monitor a grant process for the disbursement of monies from the Oklahoma Opioid Abatement Revolving Fund to political subdivisions in the state.\[1] Specifically, the Abatement Board is authorized to:

* Establish procedures to disburse grants to “eligible participants” (i.e., political subdivisions)\[2]
* Develop and implement a grant application, submission, and evaluation process\[3]
* Establish an appeals process for denials of grant applications and “denials of specific fund use requests”\[4]
* Oversee political subdivisions’ grant expenditures “to ensure grant proceeds are used exclusively for approved purposes”\[5]
* Suspend grant awards if a political subdivision fails to comply with Board procedures or use grant funds for nonapproved purposes\[6]

Information about Abatement Board meetings, including meeting agendas and minutes, is available on the Board’s [website](https://oklahoma.gov/oag/resources/meetings/opioid-abatement-board.html).

### **Is the state advisory body required to include member(s) with lived and/or living experience?**

**No.** The Abatement Board is not required to include any member(s) with lived and/or living experience.

### **What is the overall membership of the state advisory body?**

The composition of the nine-member (9) Oklahoma Opioid Abatement Board is defined by state law:\[7]

* One member appointed by the governor
* One member appointed by the state auditor and inspector
* One member appointed by the state treasurer
* One member appointed by the state superintendent of public instruction
* Two members appointed by the Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives
* Two members appointed by the President Pro Tempore of the Oklahoma Senate
* The state attorney general or their designee, who serves ex-officio and only votes in instances of a tie

You can view a list of current Abatement Board members [here](https://oklahoma.gov/oag/resources/meetings/opioid-abatement-board.html).

**Terms:** Members of the Abatement Board serve at the pleasure of their appointing authority and can be removed without cause.\[8]

### **Are local governments required to establish a settlement advisory body? If so, are local advisory bodies required to include member(s) with lived and/or living experience?**

**No (up to each locality).** Local governments in Oklahoma are not required to establish opioid settlement advisory bodies. However, localities may choose to establish advisory councils that include members with lived and/or living experience to help ensure that settlement spending reflects community priorities.

### **What else should I know?**

Each member of Oklahoma Opioid Abatement Boad is prohibited from voting on any issue in which they have a direct or indirect financial interest.\[9]

### **Citations**

1. Okla. Stat. tit. 74, Sec. 30.7(A), (C). Political subdivisions are defined to include municipalities, counties, school districts, and public trusts “where the sole beneficiary or beneficiaries are a city, town, school district or county.” Okla. Stat. tit. 51, Sec. 152(11)(a)-(d); Okla. Stat. tit. 74, Sec. 30.5(9). ↑
2. Okla. Stat. tit. 74, Sec. 30.7(C)(1); Okla. Stat. tit. 74, Sec. 30.5(3) (defining “eligible participant” to mean “any political subdivision impacted by the opioid crisis”). ↑
3. Okla. Stat. tit. 74, Sec. 30.7(C)(2). ↑
4. Okla. Stat. tit. 74, Sec. 30.7(C)(3). ↑
5. Okla. Stat. tit. 74, Sec. 30.7(C)(4). ↑
6. Okla. Stat. tit. 74, Sec. 30.7(C)(5) (“the Board shall resume such allocations once the Board has determined the eligible participant has adequately remedied the cause of such suspension”). ↑
7. Okla. Stat. tit. 74, Sec. 30.7(A)(1)-(7). ↑
8. Okla. Stat. tit. 74, Sec. 30.7(B). ↑
9. *Id.* ↑