Yes. Administrative Order No. 324 established the 13-member Governor’s Advisory Council on Opioid Remediation (GACOR) to oversee the state’s 85% share of funds. An Opioid Settlement Steering Committee, whose role is to “help guide the distribution of funds to communities,” was created in response to GACOR recommendations.[1]
GACOR is responsible for submitting a report each year to the Commissioner of the Department of Health.[2] This report must include input and recommendations on:
Allocation of opioid settlement funds
Process(es) for receiving input from communities
Ways to implement “efficient, evidence-based approaches to opioid remediation statewide”[3]
No. GACOR is not required to include member(s) with lived and/or living experience.
GACOR consists of 13 members, nine (9) of whom are governor-appointed voting members:
Director of Public Health or their designee (to serve as GACOR’s chair)
Commissioner of the Department of Revenue or their designee
Chair of the Mental Health Trust Authority or their designee
Representative from “the leadership of an organization that monitors health policy issues at the federal and state levels the affect Alaska Native people”
Five local government officials who “collectively represent Alaska’s geographically economically, and demographically diverse municipalities”[4]
There are four (4) non-voting, ex-officio members appointed by legislative leadership. The local government representatives serve staggered three-year terms and the non-voting ex officio members serve two-year terms.[5] You can review GACOR’s current roster here.
GACOR is required to meet at least quarterly, including by teleconference, and all meetings must be conducted in compliance with Alaska’s Open Meetings Act.[6] Any records of GACOR are subject to the Alaska Public Records Act.[7]
The Opioid Settlement Steering Committee includes eight (8) voting members, and the Director of Health and the Director of Behavioral Health serve as its co-chairs.[8] GACOR has recommended a composition of at least 50% local government representation,[9] but as of September 1, 2024, it is unclear whether this membership recommendation was taken.
No (up to each locality). Local governments in Alaska are not required to establish opioid settlement advisory bodies to inform spending of the 15% local share. 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.
Not applicable.
Statewide Opioid Settlement Funding Updates & Opportunities. Alaska Department of Health press release. April 18, 2024. Accessed September 1, 2024; Recommendations for the Use of Janssen/Johnson & Johnson (J&J) and Distributors National Opioid Settlement Funds, Recommendation 8. Alaska Governor’s Advisory Council on Opioid Remediation. November 1, 2022. See also Theresa Welton. Implementing the Opioid Settlements Funds in Alaska, Slide 21. State of Alaska Department of Health. AML Local Government Conference. December 7, 2023 (“GACOR was the how of the Opioid Settlement funds, the Steering Committee is the who and what”). ↑
Alaska Admin. Or. No. 324 (Oct. 1, 2021) (“By December 1 of each calendar year, the Advisory Council shall deliver a report to the Commissioner of the Department of Health and Social Services, including [i]nput and recommendations regarding how to manage and allocate opioid remediation funds,” “[r]ecommendations for a process … for receiving input from communities regarding remediation strategies and responses to their specific opioid remediation needs,” and “[r]ecommendations to implement efficient, evidence-based approaches to opioid remediation statewide”). Note: Alaska Executive Order No. 121, which became law on March 19, 2022, split the Department of Health and Social Services (DHHS) into two distinct departments: the Department of Health and the Department of Family and Community Services. GACOR’s 2022 recommendations indicate that its annual recommendations are to be submitted to the Commissioner of the Department of Health, whereas Alaska Admin. Or. No. 324, effective October 1, 2021, refers to the now non-existent Department of Health and Social Services. ↑
Alaska Admin. Or. No. 324, Duties and Responsibilities (Oct. 1, 2021). ↑
Alaska Admin. Or. No. 324, Composition and Officers of the Council (Oct. 1, 2021). ↑
Alaska Admin. Or. No. 324, Composition and Officers of the Council (Oct. 1, 2021). ↑
Alaska Admin. Or. No. 324, General Provisions (Oct. 1, 2021). See Alaska Stat. Secs. 44.62.310-44.62.319. The Open Meetings Act does not provide a right to comment at public meetings of state bodies. ↑
Alaska Admin. Or. No. 324, General Provisions (Oct. 1, 2021). See Alaska Stat. Secs. 40.25.110-40.25.296. ↑
Theresa Welton. Implementing the Opioid Settlements Funds in Alaska, Slide 21. State of Alaska Department of Health. AML Local Government Conference. December 7, 2023 (“GACOR was the how of the Opioid Settlement funds, the Steering Committee is the who and what”). ↑
Recommendations for the Use of Janssen/Johnson & Johnson (J&J) and Distributors National Opioid Settlement Funds, Recommendation 8. Alaska Governor’s Advisory Council on Opioid Remediation. November 1, 2022 (“The council recommends … [c]reating a robust, cross-sector steering committee tasked with review of draft funding announcements and proposals/applications from entities. The steering committee will be made of at least fifty percent (50%) local government representation to meet the requirements of the current settlement and the bankruptcy settlements”). ↑