Olympia City Council commits more than $562,000 for opioid response efforts

The Olympia City Council approved contributing $562,714 from the city’s opioid settlement fund to a regional pool to support treatment, prevention and recovery efforts across Thurston County.

In a unanimous vote at a metting on Tuesday, May 5, the council authorized the contribution, which is slighlty more than 50 percent of the city’s $1.1 current opioid settlement balance at the end of 2025. The funding will support a $2 million request for proposals (RFP) expected to launch in July.

The regional Opioid Abatement Council plans to release an RFP for funding programs addressing opioid use across the county.

The RFP seeks qualified providers to deliver services aligned with the county’s opioid response plan, which focuses on prevention, treatment, recovery and harm reduction. All funded programs must also comply with the state’s One Washington Memorandum of Understanding.

City Manager Jay Burney said the move allows Olympia to partner with Thurston County, and the cities of Lacey and Tumwater, to advance the 2026-27 Thurston County Opioid Response Plan.

“Opioid settlement funds are intended to address disproportionate impacts of the opioid crisis on vulnerable and historically underserved populations,” states a staff report on the issue. “Pooling funds regionally may enhance coordinated, equity-focused investments in prevention, treatment, and recovery services.”

The regional Opioid Abatement Council was created through an interlocal agreement approved earlier this year. Under the agreement, each participating jurisdiction must decide annually how much of its settlement funds to contribute to a shared pool and submit that commitment by June 30. Thurston County serves as the lead agency and fiscal agent.

The pooled funds will be distributed through a competitive RFP process, with contracts expected to run from July 1, 2026, through Dec. 31, 2027.

Mayor Dontae Payne, Olympia’s representative on the abatement council, said the city should commit a significant share of its funds to jump-start the effort.

“We need to get these dollars out the door,” Payne said. “We were moving really slowly while setting up the structure. Now it’s time to put the funding to work.”

Olympia currently holds the largest allocation of opioid settlement funds among the participating cities.

Flexible funding target

The regional RFP initially set a $2 million budget, though Payne said the amount could change depending on how much each jurisdiction contributes.

He noted contributions by each jurisdiction may vary, saying some smaller jurisdictions may choose to contribute all of their available funding.

According to Burney, Thurston County’s contribution is set at roughly $600,000 while other cities were still finalizing their commitments. He added Tumwater, which has a small pool, has taken action to allocate all of its funding.

If the total falls short of $2 million, the RFP allows flexibility to adjust the funding level.

Olympia joined national opioid litigation in 2018 against pharmaceutical manufacturers, distributors and pharmacies. The case was later consolidated with thousands of other actions in national multi-district litigation. That resulted in settlement funds distributed to local jurisdictions.

The settlements stem from decades of aggressive opioid marketing and distribution practices that contributed to widespread addiction and overdose deaths.

According to the staff report, opioid overdoses have become the leading cause of death in the United States, with more than 300,000 deaths since 2000.

The city will retain the remaining portion of its settlement funds for potential future contributions or local use.