To: Martin L. Cousineau, Finance Committee Chairperson
From: Marlene Collick, Deputy Director, Community Engagement & Justice Services
title
RE: Approval of a Letter of Agreement Amendment No.1 for Fiscal Year 2027 in the amount of $148,717.00 between Genesee County and 7th Circuit Court to provide staffing for the court; the cost of this request will be paid from Opioid Settlement Funds
recommendation
BOARD ACTION REQUESTED:
Genesee County Community Engagement and Justice Services is requesting an amount not to exceed $148,717.00 from the opioid settlement funds for Genesee County Specialty Court for Fiscal Year 2026/2027, October 1, 2026, through September 30, 2027, for one (1) year.
BACKGROUND:
Genesee County Specialty Courts has been in operation for many years and primarily funded through grant federal dollars. As noted in RESO-2025-2092, the Board of Commissioners approved this resolution to assist Specialty Court in dealing with the decreases received by the federal grant streams last year. Program terminations and budget decreases have taken place and are still taking place nationwide. This request is to supplement funding cuts with Opiate Settlement Funds to maintain the current staff so that the capacity of clients projected for in Genesee County Specialty Court Programs can be accommodated.
DISCUSSION:
Genesee County Specialty Courts consist of Mental Health Court, Recovery Court, Veterans Treatment Court and Family Dependency Treatment Court. Since January 1, 2020, Specialty Courts has assisted over 950 defendants in Genesee County with both criminal and civil dockets. At any given time, these programs have a total capacity of 230.
Opioid Settlement Funds will assist with funding 50% FTE of a Specialty Court Coordinator position ($116,716), and 30% FTE of a Specialty Court Operations Specialist II position ($32,001.00). Allowing contingency management procedures to continue, 7th Circuit Court will be able to offer specialty courts at the magnitude we do in Genesee County. An amount not to exceed $148,717.00 is being requested from Opioid Settlement funds for fiscal year 2027, beginning October 1, 2026, and ending September 30, 2027.
Funding this type of service through the Opioid Settlement Funds is an approved Core Remediation strategy listed in Exhibit E under Schedule B (Approved Uses), in Section D. Address the Needs of Criminal Justice-Involved Persons under #3, “Support treatment and recovery courts that provide evidence-based options for persons with Opioid Use Disorder and any co-occurring SUD/MH conditions.”
Request was approved by the Opioid Settlement Steering Committee at their recent meeting, September 4, 2026.
IMPACT ON HUMAN RESOURCES:
No Impact on Human Services
IMPACT ON BUDGET:
Genesee County Staff (Leveraged) - Staff Costing Sheets Attached
Staff #1, Salary and Fringe - 50% - $116,716.00
Staff #1 - Salary and Fringe - 30% - $32,001.00
These are budgeted costs in 2960-260.10-702.000
IMPACT ON FACILITIES:
No Impact on Facilities
IMPACT ON TECHNOLOGY:
No Impact on Technology
CONFORMITY TO COUNTY PRIORITIES:
Leveraging such financial resources conforms to the Healthy, Livable & Safe Community priority. This is not to omit the others; they come after the community members are grounded in our Healthy, Livable & Safe Community.
This program will help further that goal by assisting those individuals that are experiencing substance use disorders impacted by justice. It will offer those ordered tools, resources and support necessary to maintain recovery. Impacting both public health and public safety.
resolution
TO THE HONORABLE CHAIRPERSON AND MEMBERS OF THE GENESEE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS, GENESEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN:
BE IT RESOLVED, by this Board of County Commissioners of Genesee County, Michigan, that the request by the Deputy Director of Community Engagement and Justice Services to authorize entering into Amendment #1 to the Letter of Agreement between Genesee County, through Community Engagement and Justice Services, and the 7th Circuit Court, whereby the Genesee County Specialty Courts will receive opioid settlement funds, in an amount not to exceed $148,717.00 for the term commencing October 1, 2026, through September 30, 2027, to maintain current staffing and service levels, said funding still being necessary due to decreases in federal funding from 2025, is approved (a copy of the memorandum request and supporting documents being on file with the official records of the September 16, 2026 meeting of the Finance Committee of this Board), both the Director of the Specialty Courts and the Chairperson of this Board are authorized to execute the Letter of Agreement Amendment #1, and the Chief Financial Officer is directed, as necessary, to record the attached budget amendment.