50% state share: Yes (not required). Though the state is not required to seek public input on uses of this share, the Utah Opioid Task Force’s is conducting an “to understand the community’s perspective on how to best address the [overdose] crisis.”[1]

50% local share: Up to each locality (not required). Local governments are not required to seek public input on uses of their shares. However, each may choose to seek such input. Watch for opportunities to weigh in on city and county spending decisions, such as city council meetings and town halls. Contact information for Utah’s cities and towns is available .[2]

It depends. As of September 1, 2024, the state has not established any grant opportunities for the 50% state share. Local governments may create grant programs to distribute funds from the 50% local share. The existence, parameters, and processes for local settlement grant programs will vary by locality, so stay alert for new opportunities. Visit (OpioidSettlementTracker.com and Legal Action Center) for the most up-to-date information on settlement grant opportunities for community organizations.

For updates on the state share, visit the Utah Opioid Task Force’s website, which links to the . You can also review the Utah Office of Substance Use and Mental Health’s website, which contains information on legislative sessions and approved funding and links to its .

For updates on the local share, visit the Utah Association of Counties’ .[3] For other updates on the local share, check the websites for your county commission or local health department.

“The state of Utah and its counties agreed to a 50/50 split of Utah’s settlement funds between the state and participating counties. Each county is responsible for planning and tracking their funds, please seek more information on their plans through the county commissioners for any county. Utah Department of Health & Human Services website. Accessed September 1, 2024. ↑

“UAC does not have any official authority over the opioid settlement or how counties use their money. UAC does not receive any portion of the opioid settlement. Money is not passed through UAC to the counties but instead comes directly from the National Settlement Fund Administrator BrownGreer.” . Utah Association of Counties. December 2023. Accessed September 1, 2024. ↑

50% state share:

:

(January 2024)

Office of Substance Use and Mental Health:

Funding Approved in , ,

, incl.

(December 2023)

This share is distributed directly to participating counties according to of Utah’s MOU.[1] Counties can work with their constituent municipalities to allocate their county shares amongst themselves “in any manner they choose,”[2] with each able to combine funds with surrounding local governments to jointly provide services.[3]

With limited exceptions,[4] this share must be spent on the approved uses described in of Utah’s MOU,[5] which is identical to the national settlement agreement’s (non-exhaustive) and includes prevention, harm reduction, treatment, recovery, and other strategies. Reimbursement uses of opioid settlement funds are prohibited statewide.[6]

The Utah Opioid Task Force’s has created a that identifies priorities, includes subject matter expert-recommended strategies, and is intended to “assist ... state and local communities in utilizing funds” without requiring their specific uses.[7]

Counties decide autonomously (but must report planned uses). Decisionmakers for the counties will ultimately decide for themselves how to spend their monies on approved uses,[8] and county legislative bodies (i.e., council or commission) have final say over how these shares are spent.[9] However, settling local governments must annually file proposed plans describing anticipated uses of funds with the .[10] Counties must also report their expenditures, among other items, to the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Substance Use and Mental Health.[11]

Yes (public reporting required). View DHHS’ annual reports on its page.[13] DHHS must publish detailed expenditure reporting on its website for both the state and local shares.[14] Legislative changes in 2024 increased the level of required detail in these reports.[15]

Visit OpioidSettlementTracker.com’s for an updated collection of states’ and localities’ available expenditure reports.

3 (50% of the Settlement Funds shall be allocated to the Settling Party Counties”), (defining Settling Party Counties to mean counties that have accepted a settlement and are signatories to the MOU), and (“The Settling Party Local Governments’ Share shall be distributed by the National Settlement Fund Administrator directly to each settling County pursuant to the percentages set forth in Exhibit B”). See also . Utah Association of Counties (UAC). Updated July 2023. Accessed August 27, 2024. ↑

. ↑

“Counties can combine their funds with surrounding counties or municipalities to provide combined services in the region.” See . Utah Association of Couties presentation. Accessed August 27, 2024. ↑

(providing that local governments’ shares are distributed directly to each participating county or to the “Utah attorney fee and expense fund established in Section 6”), (requiring creation of “Utah attorney fee and expense fund” funded by localities’ shares without requiring a specific percentage set-aside), and (“Out of any Settlement Funds, administrative expenses shall not exceed 1% of the Settlement Funds recovered by the State or any Settling Party”). See also I.SS (“Exhibit E provides a non-exhaustive list of expenditures that qualify as being paid for Opioid Remediation. Qualifying expenditures may include reasonable related administrative expenses”). ↑

(defining “Approved Uses” to mean “those uses identified in Exhibit A, Opioid Settlement Funds – Approved Uses”) and (“All Settlement Funds, other than those directed to attorney fees and costs, regardless of allocation, shall be utilized consistent with the Approved Uses”). See also I.SS (“Exhibit E provides a non-exhaustive list of expenditures that qualify as being paid for Opioid Remediation. Qualifying expenditures may include reasonable related administrative expenses”). ↑

. Utah Opioid Task Force, Opioid Settlement Advisory Committee. January 2024. Accessed August 27, 2024 (“The [Committee] is composed of subject matter experts from a broad range of fields and has the singular task of providing guidance on utilizing settlement funds expected from various opioid litigations”). ↑

(describing Settling Party Counties’ direct receipt of their allocations for uses consistent with approved uses). See also . UAC. December 2023. Accessed August 27, 2024 (“The State cannot direct counties to use their opioid settlement funds in any way”). The same resource goes on to advise that “[i]f you have questions about how to use your opioid funds, please consult with your County Commission/Council, your County Sheriff, your County Attorney, and your Local Mental Health/Substance Use Authority”). ↑

. UAC. Accessed August 27, 2024. (“Who gets the final say in how to spend the funds?” “The county legislative body, i.e. the Council or Commission. But attorneys, law enforcement, and behavioral health professionals should provide input and help to guide the decision”). ↑

. For more explanation, see UAC’s (“UAC does not have any official authority over the opioid settlement or how counties use their money. UAC does not receive any portion of the opioid settlement. Money is not passed through UAC to the counties but instead comes directly from the National Settlement Fund Administrator BrownGreer. UAC was selected by the Utah County and District Attorneys Association to be the reporting Administrator as detailed in the MOU”). Note that the MOU refers simply to “the Administrator” and does not offer additional detail. ↑

Utah Code Ann. Sec. 26B-5-211(4)-(5) (requiring political subdivisions to annually report several measures to the DHHS Office of Substance Use and Mental Health). This statute, enacted after the MOU, ostensibly supersedes the expenditure reporting requirements in (requiring Settling Party Local Governments to report their Distributor and Janssen expenditures to the “Administrator,” which subsequent guidance identifies as the Utah Association of Counties); see . UAC. December 2023. Accessed August 27, 2024 (“The MOU does not identify an Administrator to report to. The Utah County and District Attorneys Association suggested that UAC should act as the reporting Administrator”). ↑

See, e.g., . Utah Department of Health and Human Services. September 30, 2024. Accessed September 1, 2024. ↑

(with an effective date of May 1, 2024). ↑

Yes. The Utah Opioid Task Force’s 17-member (OSAC) is tasked with providing guidance on effective uses of opioid settlement funds to state and local leaders.[1] The OSAC is part of the Utah Opioid Task Force, which was formed within the Utah Attorney General’s office in 2017.[2]

The OSAC currently has 17 members and is comprised of experts from a range of fields related to the overdose crisis, e.g., public health, harm reduction, justice system, pharmacy, lived experience.[3] Current OSAC members can be found on the Utah Opioid Task Force’s .

See . Utah Opioid Task Force website. Accessed September 1, 2024. See also . Utah Opioid Task Force Opioid Settlement Advisory Committee. January 2024. Accessed September 1, 2024 (“The [Committee] is composed of subject matter experts from a broad range of fields and has the singular task of providing guidance on utilizing settlement funds expected from various opioid litigations”). ↑

Utah Opioid Task Force website. Accessed September 1, 2024. ↑

See Utah Opioid Task Force Opioid Settlement Advisory Committee. January 2024. Accessed September 1, 2024. ("Areas of expertise represented include: Treatment and Recovery, Addiction Medicine, Treatment Systems, Public Health, Harm Reduction, Law Enforcement/Public Safety, Legal and Justice Systems, Pharmacy, Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT), Health Systems, Education, Public Policy, Opioid Overdose Prevention, Family Members, and Lived Experience with Substance Use”). ↑

With limited exceptions,[2] this share must be spent on the approved uses described in of Utah’s MOU,[3] which is identical to the national settlement agreement’s (non-exhaustive) and includes prevention, harm reduction, treatment, recovery, and other strategies. Reimbursement uses of opioid settlement funds are prohibited statewide.[4]

The Utah Opioid Task Force’s has created a that identifies priorities, includes subject matter expert-recommended strategies, and is intended to “assist ... state and local communities in utilizing funds” without requiring specific uses.[5]

Opioid Task Force and Opioid Settlement Advisory Committee recommend, state legislature decides. The ultimately decides specific appropriations of the Opioid Litigation Proceeds Restricted Account.[6]

As described by the state in an , the writes appropriations of funds into the budget with “guidance through the and the .”[7] The makes the final determinations of appropriations to programs and projects from this share.

For fiscal year 2024, the legislature appropriated $2.8 million from this share to the (DHHS) for “integrated healthcare services.”[8]

Yes (public reporting required). View DHHS’ annual reports on its page.[10] DHHS must publish detailed expenditure reporting on its website for both the state and local shares.[11] Legislative changes in 2024 increased the level of required detail in these reports.[12]

Visit OpioidSettlementTracker.com’s for an updated collection of states’ and localities’ available expenditure reports.

(“50% of the Settlement Funds shall be allocated to the State (‘State Share’)”), (“The State Share shall be deposited by the National Settlement Fund Administrator into the Opioid Litigation Settlement Restricted Account and disbursed pursuant to the terms of that statute”). Utah Code Ann. Sec. 51-9-801(1) (creating Opioid Litigation Proceeds Restricted Account within the general fund). ↑

(“Out of any Settlement Funds, administrative expenses shall not exceed 1% of the Settlement Funds recovered by the State or any Settling Party”) and (“no portion of the State Share shall be used for the payment of Settling Party Local Government attorney fees and no portion of the State Share shall be used to established the Utah Fund”). See also I.SS (“Exhibit E provides a non-exhaustive list of expenditures that qualify as being paid for Opioid Remediation. Qualifying expenditures may include reasonable related administrative expenses”). ↑

(defining “Approved Uses” to mean “those uses identified in Exhibit A, Opioid Settlement Funds – Approved Uses”) and (“All Settlement Funds, other than those directed to attorney fees and costs, regardless of allocation, shall be utilized consistent with the Approved Uses”). See also I.SS (“Exhibit E provides a non-exhaustive list of expenditures that qualify as being paid for Opioid Remediation. Qualifying expenditures may include reasonable related administrative expenses”). ↑

. Utah Opioid Task Force, Opioid Settlement Advisory Committee. January 2024. Accessed August 27, 2024 (“The [Committee] is composed of subject matter experts from a broad range of fields and has the singular task of providing guidance on utilizing settlement funds expected from various opioid litigations”). ↑

Utah Code Ann. Sec. 51-9-801(4) (money in the Opioid Litigation Proceeds Restricted Account is “[s]ubject to appropriation by the Legislature”). See also (“The State Share shall be … disbursed pursuant to the terms of th[e Opioid Litigation Settlement Restricted Account] statute”). See also . Utah Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). Accessed August 27, 2024 (“[F]unding decisions at the state level [are] being made by the legislative appropriation process”). ↑

. Utah Department of Health and Human Services. Accessed August 27, 2024 (“The funds are allocated through the Social Services Appropriations Committee with guidance through the Opioid Task Force and the Opioid Settlement Advisory Committee. While not given a formal role in the settlement spending process by the state’s legislation or memorandum of understanding, the Opioid Settlement Advisory Committee, a subcommittee of the Utah Opioid Task Force that was formed by the state attorney general in 2017, has created a with high-level spending recommendations for both county and state policymakers. Ultimately the Legislature's Executive Appropriation Committee determines how much funding will be allocated to identified programs and projects from the Opioid Litigation Settlement Restricted Account”). Cf . Utah Association of Counties. December 2023. Accessed August 27, 2024 (“The State can only access its own money through Legislation. The Social Services Appropriations Subcommittee discusses what to do with the money during the Legislative Session and then writes it into the budget. The Office of Substance Use and Mental Health, the Opioid Task Force, and other entities can suggest to the Subcommittee what state opioid settlement monies should be used for”). ↑

, Item 104. ↑

See, e.g., . Utah Department of Health and Human Services. September 30, 2023. Accessed September 1, 2024. ↑

(with an effective date of May 1, 2024). ↑