This share is distributed to participating counties and municipalities,[1] though most have redirected their shares to their respective region(s).[2]
With limited exceptions,[3] local governments’ direct shares must be spent on forward-looking abatement uses consistent with the national settlement agreements’ (non-exhaustive) Exhibit E,[4] which includes prevention, harm reduction, treatment, recovery, and other strategies.
Localities decide autonomously (but must report spending to the Colorado Opioid Abatement Council). The municipalities and counties that opted to keep their direct shares can ultimately decide for themselves how to spend their monies on Exhibit E uses.[5]
No, supplantation is discouraged but not prohibited. Colorado does not explicitly prohibit supplantation uses of opioid settlement funds from the 20% local governments share. However, the Colorado Opioid Abatement Council, which oversees this share,[6] has issued recommendations that discourage uses of settlement funds that replace (or “supplant”) — rather than supplement — existing resources.[7]
Yes (public reporting required). Visit the Colorado Opioid Settlement Expenditures Dashboard. Each local government that receives money from this share is required to annually report its expenditure data to the Colorado Opioid Abatement Council (COAC), and the COAC is required to publish this information on a dashboard.[8]
Visit OpioidSettlementTracker.com’s Expenditure Report Tracker for an updated collection of states’ and localities’ available expenditure reports.
Not applicable.
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Secs. B.2(b) (“20% directly to Participating Local Governments”), A.9 (defining “Participating Local Governments” to mean “all Local Governments that sign this MOU, and if required under terms of a particular Settlement, who have executed a release of claims with the Opioid Settlement Defendant(s)”). See also Local Governments. Colorado Attorney General’s website. Accessed August 26, 2024 (“Opioid Settlement Funds will also be distributed to local Colorado governments. Local governments include all incorporated municipal and county entities within the state of Colorado. Local governments may opt to allocate their funds directly to their region”); Colorado Opioids Memorandum of Understanding Summary, Sec. C. Colorado Attorney General’s Office. October 2021. Accessed August 26, 2024. ↑
Combating the Opioid Crisis. Colorado Attorney General’s website. Accessed August 26, 2024 (“most local governments chose to direct their funds to their regions to pool resources and reduce expenses”). See Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Sec. E.6 (“A Participating Local Government may forego its allocation of the LG Share and direct its allocation to the Regional Share for the Region where the Participating Local Government is located”). ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Secs. A.1 (defining “Approved Purposes” to include “reasonable administrative costs associated with overseeing and administrating Opioid Funds” and “attorneys’ fees and expenses incurred in the course of the opioid litigation that are paid through the process discussed below”), E.7 (capping local governments’ administrative costs at the lower of 10% or actual costs), I (addressing payment of counsel and litigation expenses through a back-stop fund). ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Secs. A.1 (defining “Approved Purpose(s)” as “forward-looking strategies, programming, and services to abate the opioid epidemic as identified by the terms of any Settlement”), B.2(b) (requiring 20% local governments share be spent on “Approved Purposes”), B.4 (“All Opioid Funds, regardless of allocation, shall be used for Approved Purposes”); E.7 (“Participating Local Governments maintain full discretion over the distribution of their allocation of the LG Share anywhere within the State of Colorado, however, all Participating Local Governments shall use their allocation from the LG Share for Approved Purposes only”). Colorado’s Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding also provides that “Approved Purpose(s) shall mean those forward-looking strategies to abatement the opioid epidemic identified in Exhibit A or any supplemental forward-looking abatement strategies added to Exhibit A by the Abatement Council,” but this definition applies only “[i]f a Settlement is silent on Approved Purpose(s).” Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Sec. A.1. All the national settlement agreements explicitly address approved purpose(s).See, e.g., Distributor Settlement Agreement, Sec. 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”). ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Sec. E.7 (“Participating Local Governments maintain full discretion over the distribution of their allocation of the LG Share anywhere within the State of Colorado”). See also Combating the Opioid Crisis. Colorado Attorney General’s website. Accessed August 26, 2024 (“most local governments chose to direct their funds to their regions to pool resources and reduce expenses”). ↑
See Colorado Opioid Abatement Council (COAC). ↑
2024 Recommendations and Guiding Principles for the Use & Management of Opioid Settlement Funds from COAC. Colorado Opioid Abatement Council. June 13, 2024 (“Add to or expand effective programming rather than supplanting existing funds”). ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Sec. E.8 (“All Participating Local Governments shall provide all expenditure data, including administrative costs, from their allocation of the LG Share to the Abatement Council for purposes of maintaining transparency in accordance with Section (C)(4)(c)(i). The Abatement Council may require Participating Local Governments to provide additional outcome related data in accordance with Section (C)(4)(c)(ii)”). But see Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Sec. E.6 (“If a Participating Local Government elects to forego its allocation of the LG Share, the Participating Local Government shall be excused from the reporting requirements”). The Colorado Opioid Abatement Council is also required to “develop a centralized dashboard or other repository for the publication of expenditure data from any Party or Regional Council that receives Opioid Funds” (i.e., the Colorado Opioid Settlement Expenditures Dashboard). Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Sec. C.4.c(i). See also Expenditure Data Reporting Policy. Colorado Opioid Abatement Council. June 7, 2023. Accessed August 26, 2024. ↑
This share is distributed to Colorado’s 19 single- and multi-county regions.[1]
With limited exceptions,[2] regional shares must be spent on forward-looking abatement uses consistent with in the national settlement agreements’ (non-exhaustive) Exhibit E,[3] which includes prevention, harm reduction, treatment, recovery, and other strategies.
Regional councils decide (with Colorado Opioid Abatement Council oversight). Regions are required to create Regional Opioid Abatement Councils (regional councils) that are empowered to ultimately decide their own specific expenditures.[4] However, regional councils must submit two-year spending plans to the Colorado Opioid Abatement Council (COAC),[5] which reviews the plans only to determine whether spending is proposed for approved purposes and complies with Colorado’s Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding (i.e., COAC exercises ministerial — not discretionary — oversight of this share).[6]
No, supplantation is discouraged but not prohibited. Colorado does not explicitly prohibit supplantation uses of opioid settlement funds from the 60% regional share. However, the Colorado Opioid Abatement Council, which oversees this share,[7] has issued recommendations that discourage uses of settlement funds that replace (or “supplant”) — rather than supplement — existing resources.[8]
Yes (public reporting required). Visit the Colorado Opioid Settlement Expenditures Dashboard. You can also view regional plans for 2022-2024 here. Each Regional Council is required to annually report its expenditure data to the Colorado Opioid Abatement Council (COAC), and the COAC is required to publish this information on a dashboard.[9]
Visit OpioidSettlementTracker.com’s Expenditure Report Tracker for an updated collection of states’ and localities’ available expenditure reports.
Most localities have chosen to direct their local share to their respective region,[10] which means that funds are subject to the decision-making processes for the 60% regional share.
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Secs. B.2(c), F.2 (“Participating Local Governments shall organize themselves into the Regions depicted in Exhibit C”), F.5 (“All funds from the Regional Share shall be distributed to the Regional Council’s identified fiscal agent for the benefit of the entire Region”), Exhibit C. See also Colorado Opioids Memorandum of Understanding Summary, Sec. D. Colorado Attorney General’s Office. October 2021. Accessed August 23, 2024 (“single- or multi-county regions made up of local governments”). ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Secs. A.1 (defining “Approved Purposes” to include “reasonable administrative costs associated with overseeing and administrating Opioid Funds” and “attorneys’ fees and expenses incurred in the course of the opioid litigation that are paid through the process discussed below”), F.8 (capping regional councils’ administrative costs at the lower of 10% or actual costs), I (addressing payment of counsel and litigation expenses through a back-stop fund). ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Secs. A.1 (defining “Approved Purpose(s)” as “forward-looking strategies, programming, and services to abate the opioid epidemic as identified by the terms of any Settlement”), B.2(c) (requiring 60% regional share be spent on “Approved Purposes”), B.4 (“All Opioid Funds, regardless of allocation, shall be used for Approved Purposes”). Colorado’s Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding also provides that “Approved Purpose(s) shall mean those forward-looking strategies to abatement the opioid epidemic identified in Exhibit A or any supplemental forward-looking abatement strategies added to Exhibit A by the Abatement Council,” but this definition applies only “[i]f a Settlement is silent on Approved Purpose(s).” Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Sec. A.1. All the national settlement agreements explicitly address approved purpose(s). See, e.g., Distributor Settlement Agreement, Sec. 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”). ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Secs. F.5, F.5(a) (“each Region may draft its own intra-regional agreements, bylaws, or other governing documents to determine how the Regional Council will operate”). See also Opioid Abatement Council. Colorado Attorney General website. Accessed August 23, 2024 (“The 19 regional councils determine how to distribute and manage their funds with oversight from the statewide Colorado Opioid Abatement Council”). See, e.g., Region 2, Region 9, Region 16. ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Sec. F.7 (“Each Regional Council shall make requests to the Abatement Council for Opioid Funds from their allocation of the Regional Share. Each Regional Council’s request for Opioid Funds from the Regional Share shall be accompanied by a 2-year plan identifying the Approved Purposes for which the requested funds will be used by the Region anywhere within the State of Colorado”). See also Regional Plan Submission, Amendment, and Certification Policy. Colorado Opioid Abatement Council. March 13, 2023. Accessed August 26, 2024. ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Secs. C.3, F.9 (“The Abatement Council shall release funds requested by a Regional Council in accordance with Section (B)(l) if the Regional Council’s 2-year plan complies with the Approved Purposes, the terms of this MOU, and the terms of any Settlement. The Abatement Council shall not deny any funding request from a Regional Council on the basis that the Abatement Council does not approve or agree with the Approved Purposes for which a Regional Council requests Opioid Funds. Nor may the Abatement Council hold up, delay, or make unreasonable requests for additional or supporting information of the Regional Council prior to releasing the requested Opioid Funds. The purpose of this MOU is to facilitate Opioid Funds to their intended recipients quickly and efficiently with minimal administrative procedure”). See also Remedial Action Procedures – Regional Funds. Colorado Opioid Abatement Council. November 10, 2022. Accessed August 26, 2024 (outlining processes and remedial actions regarding the misspending of regional funds). ↑
See Colorado Opioid Abatement Council (COAC). ↑
2024 Recommendations and Guiding Principles for the Use & Management of Opioid Settlement Funds from COAC. Colorado Opioid Abatement Council. June 13, 2024 (“Add to or expand effective programming rather than supplanting existing funds”). ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Secs. F.10, F.10(b) (“The Abatement Council may require Regional Councils to provide additional outcome related data”). The Colorado Opioid Abatement Council is also required to “develop a centralized dashboard or other repository for the publication of expenditure data from any Party or Regional Council that receives Opioid Funds” (i.e., the Colorado Opioid Settlement Expenditures Dashboard). Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Sec. C.4.c(i). See also Expenditure Data Reporting Policy. Colorado Opioid Abatement Council. June 7, 2023. Accessed August 26, 2024. ↑
Combating the Opioid Crisis. Colorado Attorney General’s website. Accessed August 26, 2024 (“most local governments chose to direct their funds to their regions to pool resources and reduce expenses”). See Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Sec. E.6 (“A Participating Local Government may forego its allocation of the LG Share and direct its allocation to the Regional Share for the Region where the Participating Local Government is located”). ↑
This share is distributed by Colorado Opioid Abatement Council (COAC) to regions, local governments, and state agencies.[1] Non-governmental organizations may also receive funds from this share through collaborative partnerships with a governmental entity that serves as the applicant and fiscal sponsor for the funds.[2]
In general, and with limited exceptions,[3] this share must be spent on forward-looking abatement uses described in Exhibit A (“Potential Opioid Abatement Approved Purposes”) to Colorado’s Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding.[4] Exhibit A includes treatment, prevention, and additional areas, and provides a subset of the national settlement agreements’ (non-exhaustive) Exhibit E.[5]
This share is also specifically intended to fund capital improvements and operational assistance for the state’s abatement infrastructure, [6] and “is intended to supplement Opioid Settlement Funds requested by any party or region.” [7]
Colorado Opioid Abatement Council decides. The Colorado Opioid Abatement Council (COAC) ultimately decides, distributes, and oversees specific expenditures for this share.[8] COAC’s Opioid Funds Infrastructure Share Policy outlines the application and approval processes for this share.
Yes, supplantation is prohibited. The Colorado Opioid Abatement Council’s (COAC) Opioid Funds Infrastructure Share Policy states that "Infrastructure Share funds must be used to create and/or increase access to services or programs that fall under the definition of Allowable Uses in Exhibit A of the Colorado Opioid MOU."[9] The Colorado Opioids Settlement MOU provides that “[t]he Statewide Infrastructure Share is intended to supplement Opioid Funds received by any Party or Region,”[10] and the Colorado Opioid Abatement Council’s website adds that these supplemental funds are intended to benefit “areas of greatest need.”[11]
Yes (public reporting required). Visit the Colorado Opioid Settlement Expenditures Dashboard. Entities receiving funds from the infrastructure share must annually report expenditure information to the Colorado Opioid Abatement Council (COAC), and the COAC is required to publish this information on a dashboard.[12]
Visit OpioidSettlementTracker.com’s Expenditure Report Tracker for an updated collection of states’ and localities’ available expenditure reports.
Not applicable.
Opioid Funds Infrastructure Share Policy, Article 2, Sec. I. Colorado Opioid Abatement Council. April 5, 2023. Accessed August 26, 2024. ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Secs. A.1 (defining “Approved Purposes” to include “reasonable administrative costs associated with overseeing and administrating Opioid Funds” and “attorneys’ fees and expenses incurred in the course of the opioid litigation that are paid through the process discussed below”), G.3(e) (capping administrative costs at the lessor of 10% or actual costs), G.6 (providing that the COAC’s administrative costs for distributing and overseeing the infrastructure share will be paid from the infrastructure share). ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Secs. B.2(d), B.4, G.3(a); Opioid Funds Infrastructure Share Policy, Article 2, Sec. II. Colorado Opioid Abatement Council. April 5, 2023. Accessed August 26, 2024 (“Infrastructure Share funds must be used to create and/or increase access to services or programs that fall under the definition of Allowable Uses in Exhibit A of the Colorado Opioid MOU”). ↑
See Distributor Settlement Agreement, Sec. 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.”). ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Sec. G.2. See also Opioid Funds Infrastructure Share Policy. Colorado Opioid Abatement Council. April 5, 2023. Accessed August 26, 2024; State Share and Infrastructure Funds. Colorado Attorney General’s website. Accessed August 26, 2024. ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Sec. G.2. ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Secs. C.4, G.3-4; Opioid Funds Infrastructure Share Policy, Article 2, Sec. V. Colorado Opioid Abatement Council. April 5, 2023. Accessed August 26, 2024 (“The COAC will be the decision-making body for Infrastructure Share applications”). See also Colorado Opioid Abatement Council. Colorado Attorney General’s website. Accessed August 26, 2024 (“COAC is specifically responsible for oversight of opioid funds from the regional share and for developing processes and procedures for the statewide infrastructure share”). ↑
Opioid Funds Infrastructure Share Policy, Article 2, Sec. II. Colorado Opioid Abatement Council. April 5, 2023. ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlements MOU, Sec. G(2). ↑
Colorado Opioid Abatement Council. Colorado Attorney General website. Accessed September 1, 2024. ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Sec. G.5 (“any Party or Regional Council that receives funds from the Statewide Infrastructure Share shall provide all expenditure data, including administrative costs, related to any Opioid Funds it received from the Statewide Infrastructure Share and subject itself to an accounting as required by the Abatement Council. … The Abatement Council may require the Parties or Regional Councils that receive funds from the Statewide Infrastructure Share to provide additional outcome related data in accordance with Section (C)(4)(c)(ii)”). The Colorado Opioid Abatement Council is also required to “develop a centralized dashboard or other repository for the publication of expenditure data from any Party or Regional Council that receives Opioid Funds” (i.e., the Colorado Opioid Settlement Expenditures Dashboard). Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Sec. C.4.c(i). See also Expenditure Data Reporting Policy. Colorado Opioid Abatement Council. June 7, 2023. Accessed August 26, 2024. ↑
Here are the entities that ultimately decide how each of Colorado’s opioid settlement shares are spent:
60% regional share:
20% local governments share: decisionmakers for cities and counties
10% state share:
10% infrastructure share: (COAC)
This share is held by the Colorado Attorney General and Colorado Department of Law (“the state”).[1]
In general, and with limited exceptions,[2] this share must be spent on forward-looking abatement uses consistent with the national settlement agreements’ (non-exhaustive) Exhibit E,[3] which includes prevention, harm reduction, treatment, recovery, and other strategies.
Opioid Crisis Recovery Funds Advisory Committee guides, State Attorney General decides. Colorado’s Attorney General and Department of Law, which are collectively referred to as the Colorado Attorney General's Office, ultimately decides specific expenditures for this share after consulting with the Opioid Crisis Recovery Funds Advisory Committee.[4]
According to the Colorado Attorney General’s office, this share is generally intended to fund programs with “state-wide impact.”[5] More specifically, monies from this share has been used to support the state’s Opioid Response Unit, to allocate funds for Colorado’s two federally recognized tribes,[6] and as grants for organizations and jails providing medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD).[7] This share can also be directed toward expenditure reporting and regional planning.[8]
No, supplantation is not prohibited. Colorado does not explicitly prohibit supplantation uses of opioid settlement funds from the 10% state share. This means that funds from the state share may be spent in ways that replace (or “supplant”) — rather than supplement — existing resources.[9]
Yes (public reporting required). Visit the Colorado Opioid Settlement Expenditures Dashboard. The state must annually report its expenditures from this share to the Colorado Opioid Abatement Council (COAC), and the COAC is required to publish this information on a dashboard.[10]
Visit OpioidSettlementTracker.com’s Expenditure Report Tracker for an updated collection of states’ and localities’ available expenditure reports.
Not applicable.
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Secs. A.1 (defining “Approved Purposes” to include “reasonable administrative costs associated with overseeing and administrating Opioid Funds” and “attorneys’ fees and expenses incurred in the course of the opioid litigation that are paid through the process discussed below”), D.2 (“The State will work to reduce administrative costs as much as practicable”). ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Secs. A.1 (defining “Approved Purpose(s)” as “forward-looking strategies, programming, and services to abate the opioid epidemic as identified by the terms of any Settlement”), B.2(a) (requiring 10% state share be spent on “Approved Purposes”), B.4 (“All Opioid Funds, regardless of allocation, shall be used for Approved Purposes”), D.2 (“the State Share shall be used for Approved Purposes only”). Colorado’s Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding also provides that “Approved Purpose(s) shall mean those forward-looking strategies to abatement the opioid epidemic identified in Exhibit A or any supplemental forward-looking abatement strategies added to Exhibit A by the Abatement Council,” but this definition applies only “[i]f a Settlement is silent on Approved Purpose(s).” Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Sec. A.1. All the national settlement agreements explicitly address approved purpose(s).See, e.g., Distributor Settlement Agreement, Sec. 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”). ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Secs. D.2 (“The State maintains full discretion over distribution of the State Share anywhere within the State of Colorado”), A.14 (defining “the state” to mean “the State of Colorado acting through its Attorney General and the Colorado Department of Law”); Colo. Rev. Stat. Sec. 27-81-118(4) (requiring state attorney general to convene meeting(s) of the Advisory Committee “to seek input and recommendations from the committee on the proper expenditure of the funds receive [by the state]”). See also Opioid Crisis Recovery Funds Advisory Committee. Colorado Attorney General’s website. Accessed August 26, 2024 (the “Opioid Crisis Recovery Funds Advisory Committee … is tasked with advising and collaborating with the Department of Law on the use of any funds received by Colorado as a result of an opioid addiction-related settlement or damage award for which the use of the funds is not predetermined or committed by other orders”). ↑
State Share and Infrastructure Funds. Colorado Attorney General’s website. Accessed August 26, 2024 ↑
State Share and Infrastructure Funds. Colorado Attorney General’s website. Accessed August 26, 2024 ↑
See Combating the Opioid Crisis. Colorado Attorney General’s website. Accessed August 26, 2024 (describing Opioid Abatement Innovation Challenge grants to organizations, and a one-time grant to jails for MOUD programming). ↑
Id. ↑
This share is overseen by the Opioid Crisis Recovery Funds Advisory Committee and is not subject to the Colorado Opioid Abatement Council’s 2024 Recommendations and Guiding Principles for the Use & Management of Opioid Settlement Funds from COAC. June 13, 2024 (“Add to or expand effective programming rather than supplanting existing funds”). ↑
Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Sec. D.3 (“the State shall provide all expenditure data, including administrative costs, from the State Share to the Abatement Council for purposes of maintaining transparency in accordance with Section (C)(4)(c)(i). The Abatement Council may require the State to provide additional outcome-related data in accordance with Section (C)(4)(c)(ii)”). The Colorado Opioid Abatement Council is also required to “develop a centralized dashboard or other repository for the publication of expenditure data from any Party or Regional Council that receives Opioid Funds” (i.e., the Colorado Opioid Settlement Expenditures Dashboard). Colorado Opioid Settlement Memorandum of Understanding, Sec. C.4.c(i). See also Expenditure Data Reporting Policy. Colorado Opioid Abatement Council. June 7, 2023. Accessed August 26, 2024. ↑