15% Commonwealth Share
Where do these monies live?
The legislatively established Opioid Settlement Restricted Account holds the state government’s 15% share of opioid settlement funds.[1]
What can this share be spent on?
With limited exceptions,[2] monies in the state’s Restricted Account must be spent on the on the uses described in the national settlement agreement’s (non-exhaustive) Exhibit E,[3] which includes prevention, harm reduction, treatment, recovery, and other strategies.
Any beneficiary of the Trust may also petition the court overseeing the Trust to “allow spending on an item of abatement not contained in Exhibit E, provided such spending is deemed by the Court to reduce incidence or rate of opioid addiction and overdose deaths in the Commonwealth.”[4]
Who ultimately decides how to spend this share (and how)?
State legislature decides. The Pennsylvania General Assembly ultimately decides specific appropriations of this share.[5]
For the July 2023 to June 2024 fiscal year, the legislature appropriated $13.575 million to the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP) for “costs associated with opioid use disorder treatment and abatement programs.”[6] DDAP set aside $18 million for [a substance use disorder] practitioners student loan repayment program and $6.5 million as grants to expand community-based drop-in centers.[7]
Is this share attached to an explicit bar against supplantation?
No, supplantation is not prohibited. Like most states, Pennsylvania does not explicitly prohibit supplantation uses of its opioid settlement funds. This means that the Commonwealth Share may be spent in ways that replace (or “supplant”) — rather than supplement — existing resources.
Can I see how this share has been spent?
No (neither public nor intrastate reporting required). Opioid settlement expenditures are not officially published in a centralized location for this share.
Visit OpioidSettlementTracker.com’s Expenditure Report Tracker for an updated collection of states’ and localities’ available expenditure reports.
What else should I know?
Not applicable.
Citations
Pennsylvania Opioid Misuse and Addiction Abatement Trust Court Order (Allocation Order) Para. II.A(1)(a) (“The Commonwealth Account shall consist of Fifteen (15) % of the Trust Funds to be distributed and shall be paid to the Commonwealth for deposit to the Opioid Settlement Restricted Account as established by 72 P.S. § 1792-A.1”), Para. V.D(8) (“The Trust Funds designated to the Commonwealth Account shall be distributed from the Trust to the Commonwealth’s Opioid Settlement Restricted Account”), and 72 Pa. Stat. Ann. Sec. 1792-A.1(b) (“Money received by county, municipal or local governments and agencies, including district attorneys, arising from claims concerning the marketing, manufacturing, sale, promotion, distribution, prescribing or dispensing of opioids shall not be deemed funds of the Commonwealth and shall not be deposited into the account”). ↑
Allocation Order Para. II.A(1) (“After the payment by the Trust of Attorneys’ Fees and Expenses as described in Section IX, Exhibit 4 … , the Trust Funds shall be divided into three accounts: The Commonwealth Account, the County Abatement Account and the Litigating Subdivision Account”), Para. V.D(9) (“The Board of Trustees may use up to 1% of the Trust funds to retain such persons or firms to manage the investment, and distributions”), and Exhibit 4 Para. I.A (“The amount of the Pennsylvania Opioid Fee Fund shall not exceed 6.6% of all base and incentive payments governmental entities will receive”). See also Report to the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania filed November 7, 2023. Pennsylvania Opioid Misuse and Addiction Abatement Trust (PA Abatement Trust). Accessed August 25, 2024. (“Distributions for attorneys’ fees and expenses under Paragraph IX and Exhibit 4 of the Trust Order totaled $28,167,022”; “The Board plans to use income generated by the Trust Funds to pay for administrative services needed for Trust operations. No fees were paid to Wilmington Trust during the Reporting Period”) and Distributor Settlement Agreement 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”). ↑
Allocation Order Para. V.B (“The funds obtained and ultimately paid by the Trust shall be distributed to the Commonwealth and its Participating Subdivisions only for the purposes set forth in Exhibit E to the Settlements and the Trust shall review expenditures by subdivisions which receive Trust Funds to insure that such spending was consistent with Exhibit E. Exhibit E is incorporated into this Order by reference and all spending of funds allocated by this Order shall be consistent with the requirements of Exhibit E”) and Para. III.K (defining “Participating Subdivisions” to include counties, DAs, and county subdivisions of “more than 10,000 in population”). See also Report to the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania filed November 7, 2023. PA Abatement Trust. Accessed Auguust 25, 2024 (“Paragraph V(B) restricts the purposes for which funds distributed by the Trust to Distributees may be used. This paragraph limits use of distributed funds ‘only for the purposes set forth in Exhibit E to the Settlements.’ Exhibit E is one of the lettered exhibits attached to both the J&J Respondents’ and Distributor Respondents’ Settlement Agreements”).
Settlements.” Exhibit E is one of the lettered exhibits attached to both the J&J Respondents’ and Distributor Respondents’ Settlement Agreements”). ↑
72 Pa. Stat. Ann. Sec. 1792-A.1(c) (“Money in the account may only be used upon appropriation by the General Assembly”). ↑
2023 PA HB 611 (part XXIX). ↑
Shapiro Administration Announces $18 Million in Funding to Help Substance Use Disorder Workers with Student Loan Debt. DDAP Press Release. January 26, 2024. Accessed August 25, 2024; Shapiro Administration Announces Grant Opportunity to Provide Life-Saving Resources for Individuals with Substance Use Disorders. DDAP Press Release. March 15, 2024. Accessed August 25, 2024. ↑
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