Bills › 91st General Assembly
Relating to the opioid settlement fund, establishing the opioid epidemic response advisory council, making appropriations, and including effective date provisions
Sponsored by Rep. Brian K. Lohse (R)
Topics:State budgetHealth careFamilies & human servicesFentanyl & drug crimes
Where it is now
- Done: IntroducedFebruary 25, 2025
- Stopped: SubcommitteeDied when the General Assembly ended
- Next: House committeeFunnel: by February 20, 2026
- Next: Passes the House
- Next: Senate committeeFunnel: by March 20, 2026
- Next: Passes the Senate
- Next: To the Governor
- Next: Signed into law
Died when the session ended The 2026 session adjourned on May 3, 2026, the General Assembly’s last regular session. Bills that didn’t pass both chambers died. What’s a funnel?
What’s in it
AI summary Iowa will create a new advisory council to help decide how to use money from opioid settlement funds to fight addiction and overdoses. This group will pick specific projects to receive grants and will track how well those projects are working. The council will also suggest which programs should keep receiving money in the future.1
Read the official explanation
This bill relates to the opioid settlement fund and establishes the opioid epidemic response advisory council (advisory council). The bill instructs the advisory council to focus on matters relating to opioid addiction and overdoses, governmental responses to opioid addiction and overdoses, and providing metrics by which such responses can be measured. The bill provides specific membership requirements for the advisory council and requires the department of health and human services (department) to provide staffing and administrative support to the advisory council. The bill requires the advisory council to identify projects related to opioid addiction and overdoses that should be awarded grants from the opioid settlement fund and opioid settlement future fund. The general assembly shall then award grants to the projects that address the priorities identified in the bill. From among those projects awarded grants, the bill requires the advisory council to identify projects that include promising practices or theory-based activities for which the director of the department shall conduct additional research and experimental evaluation. The bill requires the chairperson of the advisory council to annually report to the general assembly regarding grants proposed by the advisory council and awarded by the general assembly and the advisory council and the director of the department of management to annually report to the general assembly regarding the efficacy of individual projects and the progress made with respect to the benchmarks established by the advisory council. The annual report due to be submitted by the advisory council by January 31, 2031, shall include the advisory council’s recommendations regarding the continuation of grants and appropriations from the opioid settlement fund. The bill appropriates $249,000 to the department annually from the opioid settlement fund for the provision of administrative services to the advisory council and for the administration of awarded grants. The bill takes effect upon enactment.
Why it matters. An advisory council will identify projects related to opioid addiction and overdoses to receive grants from the opioid settlement fund and the opioid settlement future fund. The department of health and human services will provide staffing and administrative support for the council, which will cost the department $249,000 annually from the opioid settlement fund.2