good morning everyone at this time I'll call the Crowing County regular board meeting for March 25th 2025 to order if you'll stand with me for the Pledge of Allegiance and a moment of silence I pledge Al to the flag of the United States of America and to the
Republic for which stands one nation under God indivisible liy and justice for all T if you'll call the roll call please commissioner coring here commissioner ly here commissioner barrows here
commissioner franzine here commissioner Lee here all members are present I don't have anything showing that somebody signed up for open Forum we have nothing signed so no Mr chair thank
you number three is review and approve the minutes from the March 11th 2025 regular meeting Mr chair I approve make a motion to approve second we have a motion in a second all those in favor signified by
saying I commissioner Cory I commissioner franzine I commissioner Ley I commissioner Lee I commissioner barels I that motion passes thank you for the reminder Number Four review and approve
the agenda no changes Mr chair thank you for motion motion by commissioner franzine second second by commissioner Lee roll call please commissioner franzine I commissioner Ley I commissioner Lee I commissioner coring I
commissioner barels I that motion passes thank you on to number five the consent agenda motion to approve motion by commissioner franzine I'll second by ly second by commissioner luy roll call please
commissioner luy I commissioner Lee I commissioner coring I commissioner franzine I commissioner barels I that motion passes on to number six Jory if you'll lead us through this one I would appreciate it
good morning Mr chair and Commissioners Jory Danielson administrative Services director each year two Fire officer of the Year awards are presented to well-deserving members of the fire service one award is presented to an officer from a city of under 10,000 uh
with a population under 10,000 uh another award is for an officer with population over the 10,000 for reference there are about 760 fire departments in Minnesota with about 7 uh 20,000 members selection criteria emphasize leadership
Innovation professional development Integrity Service uh to the public and contributions to the fire service as a whole all nominees uh fire service activities and accomplishments are considered with special emphasis uh being placed on the last three years of
service I'd like to introduce Jen elos from Garrison fire and rescue who is a 202 for Fire officer of the year award winner for Ci's under 10,000 thank you so if I might I have just a few words to say to miss
elos your passion pride and deep care for both her community and the Garrison fire department have distinguished her in ways that few can match and even fewer have achieved in just five years of service starting as a first responder she quickly decided to become a
firefighter then an EMT a captain an engineer paid on call member outside excuse me and now an assistant chief most important part sorry she does this all as a volunteer paidon call member outside of her daily
job as a disability services director Miss os's journey is a testament to her dedication but also to the power of commitment and unwavering servant leadership one of Miss os's most remarkable achievements was organizing the kayuna range fire chief's first ever
women's fire Expo last spring her vision and hard work made this event possible giving women the opportunity to explore firefighting alongside their female peers breaking barriers and inspiring the Next Generation she is also heading up the second annual women's fire Expo
May 3rd in Cross Lake Miss elos is the first non-fire Chief to win this a aard and third female since the program's Inception in 2006 to receive this distinguished honor from all of us thank you for everything you do you're you
represent the fire service your community and croing County very well you're an inspiration to others and I thank you very much again picture like to take a picture what you would you like this
be photo we to go up two short get the FR okay ready right here go this go this show you that I got some darn good constituents down in
southern thrwing County I'm telling you what it's quite an honor so again thank you very much pretty cool on to number seven vso flowers if you'll come forward please morning Mr chair Commissioners
distinguished guests that are here today and online it's an honor to stand before you today as we recognize National Vietnam War Veterans Day we're here today uh to recognize it with the board uh Vietnam
National Vietnam War Veterans Day is Actually March 29th this Saturday it's a day set aside to honor the men and women who served during one of the most challenging conflicts in American history on March 29th
1973 the last United States combat troops left Vietnam marking the end of direct American Military involvement yet for those who served the war did not end with their return home too many came
back to a nation divided facing not only the memories of War but also the reality of being unrecognized for their sacrifices today as a county as a nation we hope that we correct that we stand
together and say what should have been said long ago welcome home thank you [Applause] the Vietnam War span 20 years from 1955 to 1975 9, 87,000 military personnel served
on active duty during the V Vietnam era more than 2.7 million Americans served in Vietnam including many from right here in croan County these brand brave men and women face harsh conditions Relentless enemy fire in a war with no
clear front lines for those who are fortunate not to serve in Vietnam boots on the ground they still returned home being shamed discriminated and belittled for serving the cost that is of that service
was Heavy 58,221 service members made the ultimate sacrifice their names forever etched in the black granite in the Vietnam on the Vietnam War uh excuse me Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington DC each
name represents a life given in service to this country young men and women who never returned home to their families their dreams left unfinished but the toll of Vietnam did not stop in 1975 it continues
today many of our veteran Vietnam veterans have fought a second war a war against service related injuries post TR atic stress anxiety depression and exposure to toxic chemicals like agent orange agent orange is a powerful
herbicide used during the war it meant to clear the dense jungles of Vietnam but what it left behind was far worse exposure to Agent Orange has led to countless illnesses including cancers heart disease Parkinson's disease and
respiratory conditions while that we know near nearly 60,000 died in combat the reality is that hundreds of thousands have suffered and died from illnesses connected to their service the exact number is unknown but the but veterans
organizations estimate that more the Vietnam veterans have died due to agent orange related conditions than those who have died in combat even today we continue to see the effects of more with more veterans diagnosed each year it is a painful
reminder that service does not end When The War does the fight for health care for recognition and for justice has continued for decades thankfully in the recent years progress has been made the Department of Veteran Affairs has expanded the list of presumptive
conditions linked to agent orange and with the help of veteran service organizations and cvsos making it easier for veterans to receive the care that they earned and deserve the passage of the Blue Water Navy Act of 19 2019 concedes agent
orange exposure in the Navy out to 12 nautico miles off the coast of Vietnam and added more presumptive conditions the packed act has extended benefits to even more veterans suffering from toxic exposures adding new locations and presumptive conditions to
agent orange for our Vietnam veterans who served in Thailand Guam and along with other locations as a country We are continuing to acknowledge our Vietnam veteran an and their service the passage of these two acts just
mentioned not only helps our Vietnam veterans but Al also expends expands benefits to their surviving spouses for those loved ones have passed because of their service related conditions but it should never have
taken this long and we owe it to our Vietnam veterans to ensure that no generation of Warriors is ever forgotten or neglected again and to our Vietnam veterans here today and on online watching whether you were boots on the
ground Brown waterer navy blue water Navy served in Germany Mediterranean or State Side you still served during the Vietnam War and the those who have we lost we honor you we recognize the sacrifices
you made the burden burdens you carried and the battles you continue to fight you you were called to serve and you answered that call with courage and today we stand before you and say you are not
forgotten you are honored you are appreciated and most of all welcome home as a community and as a nation May we always remember may we always be grateful and may be may we always honor
those who served thank you [Applause] thank you Eric and I just have a few words that I would like to add also Abol from the board first of all just to make you all aware that I have a brother that's a year younger than me who served
in Vietnam so I can relate to some of the issues that you gentlemen and ladies are experiencing so I asked the vsso to on this is our last board meeting prior to the 29th asked him to gather you to come here so we could thank you for your
service so today We Gather to honor and recognize the brave men and women who served our nation during the Vietnam war and on the national Vietnam Veterans Day March 29th and today we pay tribute to your courage your sacrifice and
unwavering dedication to duty the Vietnam War was a challenging and complex conflict marked by intense battles and profound personal sacrifices and our veterans faced unimaginable hardships both on the battlefield and
upon their return home yet despite the adversity they stood tall embodying the very essence of resilience and patriotism to our veteran to our Vietnam veterans we say thank you thank you for
your service thank you for your bravery and thank you for your commitment to protecting the freedoms we all hold dear your contributions have left an indelible mark on our nation's history and we are forever grateful to your sacrifices as we reflect on this day let
us also remember the families of our veterans they too have endured the trials and tribulations of War providing unwavering support and love their strength and resilience are a testament to the enduring Spirit of the American
Family it is our duty to ensure that the legacy of Vietnam veterans is never forgotten we must continue to educate future Generations about the sacrifices made by these Brave individuals and the lessons learned from their experiences
and by doing so we honor their memory and uphold the values they fought to fought to protect and in closing let us extend our deepest gratitude to All Veterans your service and sacrifice have shaped our nation and inspired us all
may we always remember and honor your contributions not just today not on the just just on the 29th but every day thank you again so the question now is how do we get you all into a
picture come on up come up here take a picture that way well we go down there and then yeah yeah yeah like all to stand so if all of the Vets could please stand and then yep
perfect behind the podium yeah if you have photos yes if you have photos or a representing loved ones please stand as well yes Oh no you're under cover Center piece right here that's
fine they're going to go up there so you guys want to come back here is that going to be better or can you get it from there yeah yeah okay if everybody ready rary okay we're going to take a bunch here
ER okay he a couple more that's good so okay thank you [Music] I reer feel [Music]
[Music] [Music] get your there pleasure meeting you sir yeah too bad you couldn't really serve had the air force inste of the put
that's no that's the number of people that are yeah I don't know if you've ever next year [Music] maybe the ace I thought the Navy our
whole family is Navy nice job Steve [Music] sometimes it's [Music] fun two places theer one together [Music] [Music]
we a lot of women [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] morning [Music] coordinator to
[Music] the I got to say one thing to John John he know my son I don't know John but know my I got a little bit that
point yes you give her but I have do you have any more how [Music] many okay all right gentlemen talking yes you yes sir you you know my yes I do said sure you
shake John's hand I haven't seen him for a while oh I see him every once in a while you take care thank you sir yes I do thank you so much I [Music] every year thank
you he wants me to make copies of this him to every very good he wanted me to have that I make copies all right I'm assuming we're still reporting yes okay
good so call us back to order and move on to number eight 8.1 is our blade opiate Coalition funding request M Terry morning Mr chair County Board uh carer Community Services well that was a
tough act to follow uh and as a a mom of an active Duty uh service member I sure do appreciate their sacrifices so anyway um we are here today to talk about the opioid Coalition and the opioid funding uh we presented at cow last week related
to the last grant funding that the opioid Coalition did um I identified the primary areas uh that were identified by the community in terms of areas we should focus on those areas included um issues around prevention treatment
recovery harm reduction the just and the justice system uh if you guys have any questions off any of those um please feel free to ask as we move forward but we have a few presenters here today from the opioid coalition to talk with you about um some potential opportunities so
first I would like to introduce Richard grunner who is a member of the opioid Coalition as well as a social worker in our um substance use disorder area um as well as Jessica Schwarz who is um with Essentia Health and helps with their uh
substance use disorder programs okay you two good morning um so I'm Richard gner I'm Li licensed alcohol and drug counselor um also chemical health and housing team
lead um have had a wonderful pleasure of being on the blade Coalition since it's get go and I just want to when well when I I stop and reflect on my time with blade three words come to mind Community collaboration and
impact and it's through Community collaboration and impact that I believe we can still kind of Take On The Rise in opioid crisis the Mental Health crisis that we are seeing in the communities
around us so so what enables recovery and what enables change especially as related to recovery and prevention and intervention the word chime comes to mind in the acronym C connectedness H
hope I identity M meaning and E empowerment and that's what I see really the opioid settlement funds and blade as a coalition really trying to tackle and take on and addressing and is providing
these opportunities for persons to have a healthy thve ding life so recovery capital is something that kind of came to fruition as a term recently with the National Drug Court Institute and following that others started to
recognize a need for what's called building Continuum Capital that's building on the entire Continuum of recovery from early intervention and prevention to long-term recovery so these resources that they
talk about as being cap recovery capital or building the yeah Continuum Capital are social physical human cultural um areas that are necessary to avoid or moderate or recover from substance use
challenges to maintain a state of well-being along the entire Continuum these are the main themes and interventions across that Continuum that we should be seeking as professionals to address as community to address and
these are safety those basic needs housing emotional and physical safety um we see also a great need for us kind of instilling a sense of purpose and identity in persons so this is through relationships through
spirituality or religion altruism kind of giving back and identifying goals and then having the resources and the support to reach those goals as we look at safety some of the Coalition members that are that we had in the last Ground
Round We had the women's safety Alliance um addressing some of those needs we got housing Specialists trying to identify persons that need housing and finding creative ways to get those persons with some difficult backgrounds into housing purpose I mean just we've seen it with
kayn we've seen it with Brian we've seen myself persons of long-term recovery coming out of their thrs of addiction and directing Our Lives towards something meaningful and pouring everything we have into
that social connection is another area so finding a way to develop Community nurture that community and instill in persons a sense of belonging connectedness every one of those um
Grant recipients and members of the Coalition um have all been a part of this nurturing and developing these connections and the sense of feeling sense of belonging recovery community and brainer is pretty strong as a whole
and it is only through that sense of community that persons can really Thrive structured activities school work extracurricular activities again some board members or some the Coalition
opioid settlement fun grantees um are going into the schools providing resources to students opportunity for them to hear stories um we got the ARB that's providing social and recreational activities all the recovery community
community all seeks to provides those opportunities and structure for individuals we provide structure and accountability in the treatment courts and many of the other organizations involved with blade whole person Health focusing on
the entire person whether it's mental health or substance use pain holistic physical and mental health all those things that make up a person and are essential for that sense of identity and sense of growing it all
comes from connecting finding those resources that often times a person struggling with addiction or a person growing up in an environment that is experiencing the horrors of addiction struggle to feel it was Johan Harry who coined the phrase the opposite of
addiction is connection while I think that's a bit presumptuous one thing is for certain recovery does not happen without connection prevention intervention and Recovery every aspect and every point of
that Continuum connection is Key Community is Central is essential and that's why I am so excited and privilege to be on the blade Coalition because that is a community
looking to expand the community to impact the community if Co taught us anything isolation is detrimental to individuals families and communities stigma isolates lack of resources isolate shame isolates
individuals a sense of hopelessness isolates individuals from receiving help a lost sense of identity and belonging isolates persons from seeking help and what I appreciate most about blade and the opioid settlement funds in the first
round of Grant awardees is the community and the collaboration that was developed through those Partnerships through this opportunity and is contined to be developed and Jessica Sport's here I got came to know her very well by working
with blade Brian Andrews who spoke last week from uh Lakes area restorative justice amazing people and I've had opportunity to invite them in the trainings that I've provided for the county from those relationships developed and sharing their just
experience strength and hope their passion and again just expanding and trying to multiply the effect of that passion and spread it into the community last week we had the opportunity to hear from three of the 12
Grant recipients from the first round we have heard the priv had the privilege of hearing kayin Cut's Journey from addiction to recovery back to the horrors of addiction and once again back into the recovery the impact of one person in recovery that is sure to be
multiplied because she's already working in the field she's already touching the lives of people that are early in the stages of recovery and that opportunity was given to her by the life-saving measures of Naran and a treatment Court being there
to provide her support and accountability a recovery Community to kind of Sur around her and help her walk back out of that thrall of addiction and she just like so many are doing just the same I'm here on behalf
of Blade today to request another round of Grants to be rewarded sooner rather than later I've seen in this community a spike in individual struggling with mental health issues
substance use issues and complete and attempted suicides from a group of people that were not on our radar like was typical prior to co and I think part of that is because the isolation that that's kind of initiated so we're seeing a whole
different group of people in desperate need of help I also see this as an opportunity to build upon the momentum from those 12 Grant recipients and the work blade has already been doing and I'm asking it for
it sooner rather than later so that we can get ahead and get into the schools providing Pro protective factors such as uh know the truth has been doing and providing peer support lines and access to individuals is just
they can ask questions of an adult or P another person outside of their fear of influence that they seem to be able to connect with some of the stories like individuals sharing or personal experience when they go into those environments it's providing protective factors for them providing them with the
knowledge that there's help a knowledge that there's a way out for their friends or for themselves if they get caught up in this so right now we have the opportunity to build on the momentum strengthen the relationships already developed begin to
forge new ones with this grant round that I'm asking for entering into schools developing those Rel relationship right now we have the capacity to amplify the impact already started by
blade already started by the first round grants the opoid settlement funds have the potential if use wisely to address the issue at every point along that Continuum from prevention intervention and Recovery this will take concerted
effort it will take collaboration and it takes public sector Partnerships all with the commitment and a focus on the whole Continuum bolstering prevention efforts identifying individuals at risk for
substance use disorder and help prevent its onset to refer to treatment connecting those at risk to essential Services providing opportunities for individuals during the treatment process and the recovery
stages helping mitigate or reduce some of the barriers for persons seeking help but also at the same time to get ahead of it so with respect and gratitude I ask for this grant round to be
rewarded to give approval for this grant round um I was hoping to get into the school years this year so I'm hoping to have an RFP out by July and have the monies awarded because we need that concerted effort and that
collaboration we need these Partnerships and I just thank you for the opportunity to share I thank you for the work you've we've already done and I look forward to more of it thank
you thank you any questions is Jessica gonna speak apparently next time next time all right all right and so we have one more uh ask before uh you folks make
your decision and Ron Ron imren from the jail and I think Jess is going to actually speak this time um around potentially a $50,000 allocation for um some medication in the jail good morning Mr chairman Mr board Ron imren from the Crowing County jail
yes um so we were approached by IND divier uh a couple of months ago uh they are the manufacturer of a drug called sublocade uh if you recall Miss Colette last week testified to U how much sublate helped her in her
recovery process uh sublate is a once a month long as acting buprenorphine okay she's here because she is the expert in the field I'm a jail guy um so uh anyways uh we were we were
approached by IND divier the manufacturer of suade uh because they if if they have a a program going right now that if we can administer the first dose first dose of sublate inside the jail they will make sure that the next two
doses are covered um so they'll cover the costs while the the well that they're not an inmate any longer but while that person is now uh out trying to get their health insurance back going uh IND devier will cover the cost of those next two injections out in the
community uh so the the difference between subutex which we already use in the jail uh quite extensively and suade is one Subutex is taken sublingually which is under the tongue once a day uh sublate is administered through
injection once a month we know that um by definition people in recovery are in a transitional period in their lives uh they've been arrested they're dealing with all sorts of things and we know that they struggle to keep up with their medications and we know that the the the
protection provided by suid lasts long after their release so it gives them time uh so we approached our doctors uh Dr clemenson and Dr Henry uh if they thought this would be a good program uh they they want to implement this program
the barrier is cost the this uh depending on who we get this um this drug from suid it's going to cost between $2,100 and $1,500 per dose uh so what I I approached the blade Coalition for and I asked them for a $50,000 pool
of money that we could use to provide that subate those sublate injections in jail uh so that that it would be covered and and they would be prepared for when they are released um so the the request uh that was approved by the blade Coalition was
for $50,000 um I am I'm forwarding that request to you guys for final approval uh and uh I am open to S to questions and uh ALS so miss Schwarz can speak if she'd like thanks yes um I am Jess Schwarz I'm
a registered nurse I'm a certified addictions nurse I work at asentia and get to hang out on the blade Coalition with these guys too um I've been administering subl Aid to patients for about four years now in clinic we know that medication for opioid use disorder is considered the gold standard in care and we are really grateful to the team
at the jail for uh implementing that we're seeing the positive outcomes when it comes to the jail the difference between a sublingual uh medication like Ron said and injectable is really that we know when patients are in that transition they'll always be patients to me they're inmates but they're always patients to me um when they have that
transition from jail to the community often times getting their um Medicaid or their insurance turned back on or reinstated makes it very difficult for those patients or those community members to get the prescriptions that they need I've seen it come when people come to Clinic as soon as they're released they see one of our docs they
have the best of intentions to follow up continue on their medications but getting that Medicaid or that insurance turned back on so they can obtain the medications they need can be a barrier what we want is for people to come out of incarceration with that medication already with them while they work
through all of those transitions we know that the county has done a great job with drug court all these other programs that Richard indicated that really help people as a a Continuum of Care um having this sublocade for people really helps them work through all of those things with one less thing to consider
Kay talked last week about having to just choose recovery kind of one time in a month come get her injection and never have to think about it between there she got to work on going to school and going to treatment and all of those those really important parts of her recovery
that's what we want for everyone in this community but I'm happy to answer questions about medications too so as you can see board members they're standing for questions so I got questions literally standing for questions go ahead commissioner uh so
first of all this um suade and sux this is the one that uh is supposed to take the high away from it right so bup andorine as a whole sits in the same receptor in someone's brain it really helps uh with not only withdraw when someone's in that postacute phase of of
not using but it also helps with um neurotransmitters and really helping people not have cravings for those substances um there is a sealing effect so that any buin orphan product does um limit a euphoric feeling that you would
ever get with a full opioid um so yes the really nice thing about sublate is that there also are potentials for it to help um prevent overdose it sits in the same receptor as an opioid wood it takes up that space so if somebody does return to the community
and they were to use there's already something occupying that receptor in their brain and it does um help in preventing overdose as well and how long is the sub supposed to last generally speaking Yeah so we administer it every 28 to 30 days when
we have patients in clinic there are studies that have been done by and divier that show that the benefits of it can last out to 12 weeks from a single injection the typical treatment courses that someone gets 300 milligrams uh at the first two monthly injections then
they go down to a 100 Mill 100 milligram maintenance dose um we've seen people be really really successful with this medication for a number of reasons over the last several years okay so and in terms of their time in the jail are they getting this within their first month in
jail as part of a detox program when are they getting this um well when when it gets administered is completely up to the doctors uh they don't generally put give someone suid right away uh so they would start with with Subutex they would take some doses of Subutex make sure
they don't go into precipitous withdrawal uh and there's no safety concerns and then we would administer the suade for the patients that it is um Mo I I don't foresee everyone getting on suade um but for the patients that that it is most uh needed for they would they
would be prescribed it okay I guess on this kind of the same question a different way where where my head is going in so if somebody gets this their second month into the facility and they're going to be there for 10 months um how many times are they
going to have that and we're only on the hook for the first one is what you're saying um no we would be on the hook for all of them that they received while they were incarcerated okay um so we would try to plan uh the suade so that it would be uh closer to their release
date um the the unfortunate thing is right now uh with the way the court system works uh people are are given treatment options and they're given probation options uh much more than in the past so we don't have as many sentenced in inmates as we ever used to um but we still have a pretty good idea
of when they get out um I I would I would foresee us hopefully not administering more than two doses in custody uh just because of the cost of this medication and how many um inmates over the course of the year are going to be
going through a program like this um well since January 1st of 2024 until March 21st we've had a total of 99 uh inmates taking Subutex now like I
said not all of them would get suade um and for some of them it probably wouldn't even be uh prescribed um but we've had 99 patients uh so far which of those would be Subutex I I can't say
because we or excuse me suid um I I can't say because that's totally up to the doctors okay and what's the cost of the county on the sublux per Subutex is rather inexpensive uh we've we've spent $696
757 on sub Subutex from the 1st of January 2024 until the 21st of March so Subutex is much more cost effective which is why we're able to administer it in the jail uh and it's why I didn't need a a separate pot of money to cover
it which is why why we're asking for the 50,000 for suid okay um I think my last question will be is how long is suid uh been on the market and tested and so forth you know I'm not sure when it was
actually FDA approved I know that I have had experience in administering it for more than four years now um recently it's had some FDA improvements where it's been its appropriateness has been been expanded um but it
is it's been a number of years I I couldn't tell you the date okay and this is and I think you already said this but this is a prescription from the doctor this is not something that the jail is determining
correct correct it would be it would be prescribed for by the doctor we would it you can only get it through specialty pharmacies so it has to be special ordered it's very it's very monitored monitored very closely and to be clear it is just an injectable version of bup andorine so it's not a completely
different medication that doesn't have proof of Effectiveness um the difference is just that extended release injection portion of it so it's exactly the same active medication as the Subutex they're already giving y Mr chair go ahead
commissioner yeah I uh I I'll vote for this but I CU that but I'm not I'm I'm just not going to fight on every single thing but I I don't I don't in my
mind I don't think this fits what the intent was for the opioid dollars at least in my mind I I I kind of look at the O opioid dollars as trying is preventing somebody from even
starting on anything like this um I might be looking at it the wrong way but this this almost looks like healthc care to me and the intent of the Opia dollars wasn't really to be Health Care there's 68,000
people in grro county and if you if you give each one the if you spend this $50,000 and give one person a shot that's only 33 people um I don't know if I'm making
sense but I I I'll I'll support it but I I don't I don't agree with it I uh I I think it's just you're you're delving into Health Care where I guess I look at the money to be for prevention
thanks can I speak to that real quick go ahead um when the state sent the det termine the parameters for the use of these opioid settlements um they indicated that 85% needed to be applied towards addiction harm reduction
treatment and prevention um this would fall under the category of har reduction and saving the lives and giving them the opportunity to access that treatment once they get into the community the problem with the Subutex is an individual leaves that jail with no
housing probably no transportation and not real healthy supports in place no insurance and no insurance so they're not able to initiate that access to the subex immediately upon release MH opioid
withdrawals whether they not necessar life-threatening it feels like you're dying according to individuals that I that have shared their experience with myself so so this is the harm reduction part and providing that window of opportunity
to access treatment and put some of those supports that they're lacking early on after release commissioner Cory okay yeah Mr chair so okay but I I guess if we spend all the money on that how
are we going to educate children and adults how are we going to educate what what money are we going to use to educate them that this is a bad thing so uh even sorry to interrupt um respectfully I I think that the the
request previous from uh Richard was really to again issue a round of funding to community organizations um like blade like know the truth that have been going into our schools that have shown really effective preventative um or prevention
programming we don't expect to end any of that that is that that ask that Richard brought forth is can we continue to fund some of these prevention um programs and initiatives that are happening in our community and that's absolutely the far the largest portion of money we're asking for $50,000 and I
would just want to remind the board that the reason that these municipalities and counties are getting this funding is because of criminal and civil negligence and and fraud on the parts of these companies that created this crisis that's costing
Americans their lives I don't know how treating the people who've become victims of that exact action would be incorrect I I would also just add that um the biggest the biggest reward of these medications is that it it prevents them
from overdosing we know that their biggest risk of Overdose is right after release from jail uh that's just out there this this will save lives and uh I think Dr clemenson put it best when she said she cannot help anyone who is dead
uh so we're just asking to to for this money to help provide them some time so that they can find recovery uh on their own path Mr chair go ahead commission um after last was the last week's presentation I talked to my daughter my
daughter is a licensed alcohol and drug counselor in the metro area and and harm reduction is where the the area she works in and we have some discussions about that because I I kind of feel in some ways the same way as Paul does um listening to her she she says the same
thing that that's been said before you you know you can't help somebody who's dead and and the problem she's had with people that you know with this medication it does just exactly what you said I mean my daughter said that's what it does it fills those areas up so if
they do you know still you know because that's the area they're at that's who they're with and still want to use they don't get the high from that and so it isn't it it it's uh I I support it I I think that's what the the program is for
I mean you know it's great to say prevention but so once they get it then we don't worry about them no I think this is this is a way to get them back on track and as we've seen and We Know It Works uh so thank you so much for bringing it up and I definitely support it any other questions one last question
I guess um so if it's more cost effective to use the sux sub tax yeah one more time subex Subutex okay is there am I off Bas in thinking
that we could use that up until the point of their release and then make their last prescription the suade so that we can kind of EX you know get more bang for our buck that that will always be the goal um we we don't we don't want to just blow this stack of money uh and
give it to everyone um the the idea is to to provide them the one dose hopefully in custody uh so that that indivior can help them uh continue with the next two um we don't always get the the option so I don't I don't want to promise you that I'll never get somebody
two doses because I I can't make that promise uh what I can promise you is that we will do our very best to make sure that we are uh using this $50,000 uh for as long as we can and to help as many people as we can
okay I'm good so if there are no other questions or concerns I would look for a motion I'll make a motion to approve the uh blade opiate Coalition funding request motion by commissioner ly I'll pass my uh
authority over to you Vice chair and I will second that motion we have a motion to Second all those in favor will you do a roll call commissioner Lee I commissioner coring I commissioner
franzine I commissioner ly I commissioner barels I that motion that motion passes thank you for passing it back appreciate it that's the G 8.2 out of state travel
request good morning good morning chair barrows and Commissioners thank you so much for your support of um the blade um opioid funds we appreciate that uh Tammy L Adult Services manager over at Community Services we have a request before you today for out ofate travel
request um this is for the National co-responder Conference um Our intention is to send our law enforcement liaison social worker to the conference it's June 1st through the 4th in Atlanta Georgia and with all expenses being paid from our office ad Justice Grant I did
include in the information I sent with the request um just a breakdown of some of the sessions it looks very good there is not a state Minnesota state conference at this time for co-response there are some trainings that are starting to kind of percolate as this is
becoming um more um available or more known you know we have more counties in the state and cities that are providing co- response um so we are seeing that but we did include in our office of Justice program Grant Training dollars specifically to send um one of our social workers to the National
Conference um Sherry with withart is uh here today and she is our one of our law enforcement social workers that would be the one um attending this um conference any questions yes how much does this
cost the conference itself um was right around um obviously we haven't booked the um flights and that that but um we're looking at an estimated total cost of 1,600 to about 1,800 and within our budget we have um
$5,695 sorry I didn't bring my readers up here but um right around $5,600 in our training budget through this grant okay thank you other questions if there's none I would look for a motion to approve I'll make the motion to approve Comm ly makes the
motion to approve I'll second it second by commissioner Lee thees roll call please commissioner coring I commissioner franzine I commissioner ly I commissioner Lee I commissioner barels I that motion passes thank you Tammy
thank you so much County Sheriff good morning uh good morning chair good morning Comm ERS good to be before you today uh we've been uh uh busy with some internal stuff uh especially as specific
to uh working legislatively on the 2911 rules with the jail we have a lot of concerns a lot of issues that uh that we are trying to get fixed there um uh I I also wanted to mention to you uh that I've been out and about in the community
and I can't help but to uh share this with you um as I've been out and about in the community I've had numerous people that have come up to me and thanked me for um you know for helping them out for uh getting them uh put back on the right track and it's one of the
uh advantages of being uh being in law enforcement here for a a long time in our community and uh all that's and it's just not me that uh that they're thanking but they're also thanking uh the county uh and that comes really
comes from the top up I remember growing up in U Hermantown and I come from a family of six you know I have four four there was four boys and my mom and dad and every time I go back a lot everybody comes up to me and says man your dad was so nice or your mom was so nice or your
brother was so nice or your family was so nice and I realized you know that really C that really comes from the top my dad instilled that into us as well and as I go out in the community and talk to the people who thank me over and over I'm kind of the face of the county
love it or hate it and uh I get a chance to uh have have folks talk to me and and just say you know all the good things that are happening in Crowing County and again that comes from the top that comes from you guys directly so we appreciate your support and everything that we do
here with uh everything from blade to the to the jail or uh to anything else that we do here so with that I'd certainly take any questions if you had any for us or any concerns people are are sharing with you that that might be important uh you know Speeders traffic
uh anything I guess for that matter and also I'll mention that my uh pickle ball injury is on the on the healing process so you don't need to ask about that we were worried about we were really worried about that I mean was right right on my notes
Here Mr chair go ahead commissioner well I always thought I was the face of the county that kind of shot my your mind shot me down you looked in the mirror yeah yeah please speak [Laughter]
up okay I don't think there's any questions I appreciate that thanks thank your staff for we do I will I will uh we just one more thing I guess uh the we're we're getting closer with that contract that I talked to you guys about earlier about the US Marshall service and
providing assistance with them and uh hopefully we'll hear something in the next week or so and uh that's why it so thank you all right thank you move on to the county attorney I don't have anything uh for the board today Mr chair um but I'd certainly
answer any questions if someone has of me any questions for Don nothing thank you Don for being here County Administrator Mr chair the only item I have today is a senior management team report we did meet yesterday and
made up for the fact that we did not meet the time before so we had an extra long meeting yesterday which was nice to be able to talk about a lot of different things first of all we talked about our email retention policy we had last reviewed that in 2019 so it was due for
an update and we talked about the fact that our email is not intended to be a repository of all things forever and ever currently we have a three-year retention schedule on our emails and is that the appropriate level of retention that we should be having so we are
continuing to review that and the team will discuss with their teams and come back to the table with any recommendations that we should look at with regard to that policy as well uh we also talked about our lead participants if you recall our lead
program are those folks in our organization at all levels does not have to be in a quote leadership role this isn't necessarily someone who is a manager or a supervisor they may or it may be someone that we see who has a lot
of potential these are high potential folks that we talk about wanting to grow our talent and teach folks in the the realm of the croen county way these are the ones that we are relying on to help continue that model across our organization and after a Hiatus of a few
years we have reinvigorated that lead project again in having a new cohort that are in the process of going through that um process and one one of the things that's important is if you want to build a muscle you have to continue
to use that muscle same thing with these folks that we are asking uh to participate in the lead program if we give them all the information and the tools to increase their footprint incre increase their muscle memory of trying to help us as an organization to improve
how are we going to give them projects to let them use that those skills that they are learning so we did some brainstorming on some potential project projects that we could look at whether are small projects across departmental basis or organization wide one of the
things that we did identify as an organization-wide project perhaps would be to create a almost like an internal knowledge based Center for some of our people who are one of the things I heard during my meetings across the organization is I'm not exactly sure
what every department does that's a question I heard a lot what does the assessor's office do what does the jail do other than the reality of we know what the jail does but what are some of the programs that are offered there what are the work that Community Services doing besides plowing roads what does
Highway do so if we don't have our own internal folks understanding the work of Crowing County how can we expect them to tell our story to the folks out in the community as well so we are going to look at some ways that they this lead group could help to build that knowledge
base maybe create some quick fact-based articles or videos or things to help our internal staff learn more about our organization that ultimately can be talking points that can be used in the community as well and then finally we spent a lot of
time talking about compensation strategies pay for performance looking at some things that we might want to consider tweaking in our plan as we've discussed earlier there's opportunity for us to look at recrating how we are
compensating our our employees and the metrics and the way that we are utilizing our Performance Management System it was a very robust discussion I think all of those folks for participating in it many Minds bring many ideas and that is something that I
think this team does very very well is works together to create great ideas to bring forth for you all to consider so very excited about how that conversation went yesterday and you should expect to look forward to more things to come on that in the future as well
that's all I have Mr chair unless there are any questions for me any questions then here good all right we'll move on to additional business any Commissioners have additional business well let me just say I do well
thank you so surprised so tomorrow I want to recognize that it's National epilepsy awareness day and I say that because three out of four of my sons had epilepsy two of of them have passed away because of it so I just want to make a
note that that's an important date in my life and many people's lives who suffer from epilepsy so just a note on that um and my last thing is about our administrator I want to say congratulations to miss Ericson who will
be one of five women who will be inducted into the 2025 Legend legendary women Hall of Fame the annual honors is given each year through the Brainard Public Schools she is a member was a member of the class of
1991 so do your math what a youngster I know currently serves as our County Administrator and is the first female to have this position she began her career with grro County assessor's office in 1994 and served again do your math served as president of the
Minnesota Association of County officers and for eight years she was Minnesota's local government representative to Federal Election committees and was awarded outstanding member of the year in 2017 as president of both the Minnesota Association of County officers and the
Minnesota Association of County Auditors treasurers and finance officers she has a degree of Bachelor of Science in management from the College of St Scholastica so on Thursday March 27th at 5:00 p.m. that's this coming Thursday at gii zbi Performing Art
Center at BHS she and the others will be honored congratulations thank you very much and with that if there's no questions regarding her I won't say the rest of it so we'll stop at that because we all can do math just so you
know I would look for a motion to to adjourn motion by commissioner ly yeah that's me do I have a second second second by commissioner franzine theres roll call please commissioner franzine hi commissioner
luy hi commissioner Lee I commissioner coring I commissioner barrels I that motion passes we are adjourned thank you everyone