St. Louis County Seeks Public Input on Opioid Crisis Funds

County hosts listening sessions to guide investment of opioid settlement funds

Apr. 17, 2026 at 1:34am

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A translucent, ghostly X-ray image of a human hand reaching out against a muted blue and gray background, symbolizing the community's collective effort to address the opioid epidemic.An X-ray image of a hand reaching out represents the community's collaborative effort to address the opioid crisis through the investment of settlement funds.Duluth Today

St. Louis County in Minnesota has held two public listening sessions to gather feedback from the community on how to invest future opioid settlement funds. The input will help the county's Opioid Funds Advisory Committee create requests for proposals (RFPs) in 2026 to support programs and initiatives addressing the opioid epidemic.

Why it matters

The opioid crisis has devastated many communities, and the funds from legal settlements provide an opportunity for St. Louis County to direct resources towards evidence-based solutions. By engaging the public, the county aims to ensure the funds are used in a way that best meets the needs of those impacted.

The details

The first two listening sessions were held in Virginia and Duluth, with more planned. Attendees provided input on priorities for the funding, such as calling for greater collaboration between organizations and personalized support for those affected by the opioid epidemic. The Opioid Funds Advisory Committee will use this feedback to develop RFPs by mid-2026, select projects by early 2027, and award funding for initiatives to begin that year.

  • The first listening session was held on April 14, 2026 in Virginia.
  • The second listening session was held on April 17, 2026 in Duluth.

The players

Jana Blomberg

Program Coordinator for the St. Louis County Opioid Funds Advisory Committee.

St. Louis County Opioid Funds Advisory Committee

A committee tasked with overseeing the investment of opioid settlement funds in St. Louis County, Minnesota.

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What they’re saying

“We get to host the funds but being able to really support and support community partners and being able to do the work that they do, they're doing the frontline work, it's really important to be able to engage with them and hear what they need. It's not just St. Louis County's funds, right? It's the community's funds and so wanting to ensure that we can support what's really working and what's really needed in the community.”

— Jana Blomberg, Program Coordinator

“It's really great that these funds are a little bit more flexible. So, they're maybe a little bit different than other grant funding. So being able to be a little bit more flexible. We have a Memorandum of Agreement from the state that we are required to follow as guidelines for the funding. But just being able to hopefully impact the lives, the lives of individuals that have been greatly impacted by the opioid epidemic that we're in.”

— Jana Blomberg, Program Coordinator

What’s next

St. Louis County intends to request proposals by mid-2026, select projects by early winter, then award funding for those projects to occur in 2027.

The takeaway

By actively engaging the community through listening sessions, St. Louis County is taking a thoughtful and inclusive approach to investing opioid settlement funds in ways that can have the greatest impact on addressing the local opioid crisis.