Board approves substance abuse recovery funding

COLUMBUS, Ind. — A board created to review funding requests for substance abuse programming in Bartholomew County has recommended $1.22 million to fund four local efforts seeking to combat and treat substance use disorders.

The Substance Abuse Public Funding Board on Tuesday unanimously approved asking the Columbus City Council and Bartholomew County Council for $1.22 million, to be split evenly, to fund the Alliance for Substance Abuse Progress (ASAP) and other efforts in the criminal justice system in 2023.

The funding board is comprised of Columbus Mayor Jim Lienhoop, Columbus Regional Health President and CEO Jim Bickel and other elected city and county officials.

The funding requests include $555,380 for ASAP, $248,195 for the Bartholomew County Adult Drug Recovery Court, $229,780 for the Recovery Enables a Life for Men (REALM) program at Community Corrections and $189,414 for the Bartholomew County Jail Addiction Treatment Program.

The money would be used to fund operations and pay staff and other expenses, officials said. Last year, the four efforts initially requested a combined $1.24 million to fund operations this year, according to city records.

The jail treatment program requested less money for its 2023 budget than this year’s budget largely due to a reduction in staff, said Bartholomew County Chief Deputy Maj. Chris Lane.

Lane has said he feels “confident” that the program can be successfully with two staff members.

The drug court, however, is asking for about $132,900 in additional funding in 2023 compared to this year mainly due to a federal grant expiring, said Bartholomew County Superior Court Judge Kelly Benjamin.

Next, the board’s recommendations will be forwarded to the Columbus City Council and Bartholomew County Council, which will independently consider approving their share of the funding requests in their 2023 budgets.

For more on this story, see Friday’s Republic.