Mississippi lawmakers choose opioid settlement grant recipients and amounts

The Legislature chooses which applicants on the council’s recommended list receive settlement funds and how much each receives. This applies to applicants seeking grants from opioid settlement funds and to the council’s recommendations. The council may not leave a qualified applicant off the list it sends to lawmakers.

The Attorney General’s Office must contract with a qualified third party to help run the grant process and track results. The contractor handles online proposals, applicant assistance, initial scoring, administration of grants approved in budget line items, and outcome monitoring. The contract must follow state purchasing laws and use nonabatement settlement funds appropriated by the Legislature. The council keeps its role in recommending funding, and lawmakers keep final funding authority. The Attorney General’s Office must complete the contract process within 60 days after the act takes effect.

A council member must step aside from grant matters that could benefit an organization with which the member is affiliated. This applies to members of the Mississippi Opioid Settlement Fund Advisory Council when considering grant recipients or fund allocations. A recused voting member does not count toward the quorum for votes on that matter.