The Boulder County Regional Opioids Council is one of 19 councils in the State of Colorado with the responsibility and authority to determine what approved purposes to fund with the region’s allocation of Colorado’s portion of the nationwide opioids settlement funds. (See Opioid Response from the Colorado Office of the Attorney General (COAG) website for information about the statewide effort to combat opioid addiction.) Boulder County is Region 6 as shown on the COAG Opioids Dashboard.
Boulder County Regional Opioids Council
Boulder County Region Opioids Funding Decisions
List of First Round Opioid Funded Projects
The purpose of the BCROC is to guide and determine how proceeds from the State of Colorado’s share of opioid settlement funds should be spent. These abatement funds are to provide regions with infrastructure, programming, and workforce enhancements to address the damages caused by the increasing prevalence of Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) or Substance Use Disorder (SUD) within our communities.
Jan. 13, 2023 — Boulder County Begins Disbursement of Opioid Abatement Funds
Leadership council approves 25 local programs for funds from national settlements with opioid manufacturers and distributors. The Boulder County region will receive $1.8 million in the first year of what will be an 18-year distribution timeline for opioid abatement funds. Read more…
The term “opioid litigation” is used to describe several lawsuits by state and local governments against pharmaceutical manufacturers and distributors. States are seeking damages for harm caused to the State of Colorado for deceptive marketing of opioids. In recent years, nationwide settlements have been reached with the “Big 3” opioid distributors (McKesson, Cardinal Health, and AmerisourceBergen) and Johnson & Johnson to resolve claims that these companies contributed to the opioid epidemic.
The State of Colorado is divided into 19 recipient regions, each with their own allocation of the state’s settlement funds. Boulder County was designated as its own recipient region and includes Boulder County; the cities of Lafayette, Longmont, Louisville, and Boulder; and the towns of Erie, Jamestown, Lyons, Nederland, Superior and Ward).
The allocations to each Region are based on three factors that address the relative severity of the opioid crisis: (a) the number of persons suffering from Opioid Use Disorder in the county; (b) the number of opioid overdose deaths in the county; and (c) the amount of opioids distributed within the county.
On August 26, 2021, Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser signed the Colorado Opioids Settlement Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which designated the terms under which Colorado regions may receive funds. The Colorado MOU established five broad “Approved Purpose Areas” that direct the use of funds. These are: Prevention and Education, Harm Reduction, Criminal Justice, Treatment, and Recovery. Under the MOU, the region receives 60% of the total allotment with 40% allocated on a percentage basis to the County and municipalities. Under the current settlement, funds are provided over an 18 year timeframe with an estimated $17,078,153 coming to the region. Additional dollars will be provided as other settlements are reached.
Each region must designate a regional leadership council, with elected officials and senior regional leadership (In the Boulder Region this is called the Boulder County Region Opioid Council or BCROC). A primary goal of Councils is to develop a 2-year plan that identifies where allocated funds will be used across the approved purpose areas. This plan is then reviewed by the State’s Abatement Council for approval and release of funds.
The Boulder Region also developed a local Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) to be signed by all municipalities receiving an allocation and Boulder County government officials as a working agreement under the MOU. This IGA further describes the creation of an Opioid Operations Board comprised of non-profits, government representatives, and persons with lived experience. This group is tasked with developing recommendations for consideration by the BCROC.
First Round Opioid Funded Projects
Treatment Programs: | |
Boulder County Sheriff’s Office | |
Jail Medication Assisted Treatment Program - $157,116.61 | |
Boulder County Jail: Jail Opioid Case Manager - $61,150.51 | |
City of Longmont | |
Rebuilding Expectations and Walking in New Directions (REWiND) - $100,648.00 | |
Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion Program (LEAD) - $75,000.00 | |
Boulder County Community Service, Community Justice Services Division | Comprehensive Opioid Abuse Program/Medicated Assisted Treatment Support - $140,000.00 |
RestART Studio | $45,000.00 |
Mental Health Partners | |
Community Health Worker - $80,600.00 | |
Medication Assisted Treatment Expansion Project - $198,000.00 | |
Lyons Emergency & Assistance Fund (LEAF): | Mental Wellness & Addiction Recovery - $84,894.00 |
Out Boulder County | Pride in Recovery - $75,000.00 |
Adventure Recovery | $50,000.00 |
Natural Highs | Natural Highs: AccuDetox - $18,032.00 |
Prevention Programs: |
Youth in Recovery - $45,511 |
City of Longmont: Parenting Support - $40,000.00 |
Boulder County Community Services Department: Substance Use Advisory Group - 13,985.98 |
Boulder County Public Health: |
Public Service Announcement and Awareness Building campaigns - $11,000 |
Harm Reduction Coordinator - $142,994.47 |
Community Narcan Web - $126,773.82 |
Harm Reduction Staff at Crisis Center (Boulder County Public Health) - $93,495.43 |
Overdose Prevention Vending Machines (Boulder County Public Health) - $44,000 |
Harm Reduction Supplies and Servicing (Boulder County Public Health) - $16,500 |
Additional Areas: | |
Boulder County Sheriff’s Office: | |
Investigation Equipment: Cellebrite Premium - $32,085 | |
Investigation Equipment: Nighthawk LEO - $45,000 | |
Investigation Equipment: Magnet Axiom- $6000 | |
Investigation Equipment: Graykey - $10,570 | |
Community Health Worker Training - $15,000.00 |
Upcoming Meetings
Virtual Meeting via Zoom
Date: Tuesday, March 28 | 11 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Video Meeting link: https://www.zoomgov.com/j/1616825744
To join by phone (audio only):
- One touch:+16692545252,,1616825744#
- Manual: 669-254-5252 Webinar ID: 161 682 5744
Note: The public is invited to attend and observe.
Meeting Notes, Recordings, and Documents
February 2023 – Fourth Meeting of the BCROC
- Boulder County Regional Opioid Council 2023-02-06 (Video recording)
- Office of the Colorado Attorney General’s presentation (PDF/slide deck)
December 2022 – Third Meeting of the BCROC
- Boulder County Regional Opioid Council 2022-12-13 (Video recording)
October 2022 – Second Meeting of the BCROC
- Boulder County Regional Opioid Council 2022-10-21 (Video recording)
- Oct. 21, 2022 presentation
September 2022 – First Meeting of the BCROC
- Boulder County Regional Opioid Council 2022-09-22 (Video recording)
- Sept. 22, 2022 presentation
Please email Kelly Veit, Behavioral Health Hub Program Manager, Boulder County Community Services, with questions and suggestions.
Membership
BCROC Membership
The BCROC* oversees the procedures by which the Boulder County Region may request Opioid Funds from the Abatement Council and the procedures by which the allocation of its Region’s Share of Opioid Funds is administered.
Name | Agency |
Claire Levy, County Commissioner (Chair) | Boulder County Board of Commissioners |
Robin Bohannan, Director | Boulder County Community Services Department |
Lexi Nolen, Interim Director | Boulder County Public Health |
Susan Caskey, Director | Boulder County Housing & Human Services |
Curtis Johnson, Sheriff | Boulder County Sheriff’s Office |
Anjali Nandi, Chief Probation Officer | 20th District Court, Colorado |
Nuria Rivera-Vandermyden, City Manager | City of Boulder |
Harold Dominguez, City Manager | City of Longmont |
Miranda Fisher, Town Clerk | Town of Nederland |
*According to the Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) establishing the BCROC, the membership is to be made up of the following:
- 1 County Commissioner
- 1 representative appointed from the County Community Services Department
- 1 representative appointed from the County Public Health Department
- 1 representative from the County Human Services Department
- 1 representative appointed from Law Enforcement Within Region (Sheriff, Police, District Attorney, etc.)
- 1 representative appointed from a County Court System within the Boulder Region
- 3 representatives (total) appointed by cities and towns within the county, at least one of which shall be from a city or town with a population of less than 10,000 residents
Operations Membership
The Operations Board makes funding and policy recommendations to the BCROC. Membership includes non-profits, government reps, persons with lived experience.
Name | Representing |
Lisa Moreno | Community Services, Behavioral Health Planning Team |
Kelly Veit | Community Services, Community Justice Services |
Jim Adams-Berger | Community Services, Strategic Initiatives |
Marcy Campbell | Community Services, Behavioral Health Planning Team |
Tucker Eurman | Community Services, Behavioral Health Planning Team |
Georgia Babatsikos | Public Health, Harm Reduction |
Shannon Bryan | HHS - IMPACT |
Allison Bayley | Public Health |
Nico Goldberger | Drug Task Force |
Ronnie Vasquez | MHP - Director of Acute Services |
Wendy Schwartz | City of Boulder |
Hilda Zamora Hursh | City of Longmont |
Elaina Shively | DA |
Trina Faatz | SUAG |
Monica Rotner | CJS |
Janet Rasmussen | Clinica |
Jennine Hall | Co-Responder |
Ashley McDonald | HHS - IMPACT |
People with Lived Experience: | Perspective |
Becky Milanski | PWLE, Peer Support, Harm Reduction, Recovery, Working in field |
Mila Long | PWLE |
Joel Ricklefs | PWLE |