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2026 Regular Session
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 50
BY REPRESENTATIVES CHASSION AND MANDIE LANDRY
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
To urge and request the Louisiana Sheriffs' Association, the Department of Public Safety
and Corrections, and the Louisiana Department of Health to jointly report on
programs for opioid abatement and treatment in correctional facilities across the
state, and to urge and request the Louisiana Opioid Abatement Task Force and the
attorney general to clarify guidance regarding available funding streams for this
purpose.
WHEREAS, the "opioid crisis" is largely attributed to successful marketing
campaigns for prescription drugs focused on pain management, such as oxycontin; and
WHEREAS, research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
indicates that prescription opioid sales in the United States quadrupled from 1999 to 2010;
and
WHEREAS, opioid-involved overdose deaths averaged 30,000 in 2015, 50,000 in
2019, and 84,000 in 2023. The surge has since declined to 54,000 in 2024; and
WHEREAS, the legislature and governmental entities across the United States
recognize that opioid addiction is an important public health issue affecting residents of all
communities. Multiple federal and state laws have been enacted to combat this issue; and
WHEREAS, the data provided herein appeared in a 2025 Louisiana Legislative
Auditor (LLA) report titled "Opioid Settlement Funds - Louisiana Opioid Abatement Task
Force/Corporation" (Audit Control # 40240017); and
WHEREAS, over the past decade, congress has increased federal funding for
evidence-based initiatives for opioid use, including medication-assisted treatment and peer
recovery networks. Since fiscal year 2018, congress has provided more than $1 billion
annually through the State Opioid Response grant program administered by the Substance
Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration; and
WHEREAS, in 2016, synthetic opioids, particularly fentanyl, surpassed heroin and
prescription opioids as the leading contributors to overdose deaths in the United States; and
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WHEREAS, the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) reported 1,083 opioid-
involved deaths in 2023 and a total of 5,256 such deaths from 2019 to 2023, with the highest
numbers occurring in Jefferson, St. Tammany, Lafayette, Livingston, and Orleans parishes;
and
WHEREAS, the Louisiana Opioid Data and Surveillance Program reported that
opioid poisoning death rates grew from 7.2 per 100,000 residents in 2016 to 29.99 in 2022,
before declining to 23.95 in 2023, with the highest rates occurring in Washington, St.
Bernard, Point Coupee, Livingston, Rapides, West Baton Rouge, and West Feliciana
parishes; and
WHEREAS, the Louisiana Opioid Data and Surveillance System tracks new
prescriptions by prescriber parish location, with a statewide average of 68 per 100 persons
in 2023. That year, prescription rates were highest in Caddo, Concordia, Rapides, East
Baton Rouge, Jefferson, Evangeline, Richland, and St. Landry parishes; and
WHEREAS, in 2023, emergency departments reported to the Louisiana Hospital
Association that 13,937 persons were admitted for drug poisoning-related visits, not all of
which involved opioids, representing a decline from 15,665 in 2021. The highest numbers
occurred in Orleans, Jefferson, East Baton Rouge, and St. Tammany parishes; and
WHEREAS, law enforcement officers and emergency medical technicians are
systematically the first to encounter individuals who have succumbed to opioid use disorder,
particularly those accused of violating drug possession laws or committing other crimes in
relation to drug misuse or addiction; and
WHEREAS, when individuals are arrested, including those who may be detoxing
from opioid use and misuse, they are wholly dependent on correctional institutions to
address their physical and mental health needs; and
WHEREAS, multiple state and local governments filed lawsuits against companies
that manufacture, market, and distribute opioids and, in 2021, reached the first nationwide
settlement commonly known as the "Opioid Settlement Funds"; and
WHEREAS, Louisiana is participating in fifteen settlements, resulting in
approximately $600 million in funding to be received from 2022 through 2038; and
WHEREAS, according to the memorandum of understanding (MOU), approved
purposes for settlement funds mean evidence-based, forward-looking strategies to be used
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HCR NO. 50 ENROLLED
for providing treatment for individuals affected by substance abuse disorders, support for
those in recovery, and treatment for individuals not covered by Medicaid or private
insurance for addictive services; and
WHEREAS, Louisiana created the Louisiana Opioid Abatement Task Force
(LaOATF) as an advisory board for the opioid settlement funds; and
WHEREAS, the LLA produced a performance audit on May 7, 2025, reviewing how
Louisiana oversees, distributes, and spends opioid settlement funds; and
WHEREAS, the LaOATF has, as of October 2024, distributed approximately $98.5
million in funds. The LLA reported that relatively little of the funds ($8.6 million, as of
September 2024, amongst the survey responses) had been spent on treatment, prevention,
and other strategies to address opioid abuse; and
WHEREAS, the LLA noted several key findings in the performance audit:
(1) No entity is specifically tasked with enforcing the terms of settlement
agreements, such as approved uses of funds.
(2) LaOATF, in its advisory capacity over settlement funds, lacks authority under
its MOU to ensure parish and sheriff expenditures comply with the MOU.
(3) LaOATF has retained $21.1 million for administration in the Local Government
Fee Fund (LGFF), as of September 2024, while dispensing $98.5 million to parishes and
sheriffs.
(4) Many parishes and sheriffs have yet to spend any of the allocated opioid
settlement funds, noting barriers such as lack of clarity surrounding acceptable spending,
staffing issues, and lack of programs and long-term recovery services in respective areas.
(5) Louisiana's MOU requires parishes, but not sheriffs, to submit an annual
expenditure report to LaOATF; and
WHEREAS, Louisiana and Georgia are the only two states that distribute settlement
funds directly to sheriffs; and
WHEREAS, LaOATF is composed of five members serving three-year terms,
including a representative of LDH, the Louisiana Sheriffs' Association, the Louisiana
Municipal Association, the Police Jury Association, and a person appointed by the governor
who is a licensed substance abuse and mental health services provider; and
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WHEREAS, LaOATF contracted with a non-government corporation, the Louisiana
Opioid Abatement Administration Corporation, to receive and distribute funds; and
WHEREAS, the Louisiana District Attorneys Association provides administrative
support for both the task force and the corporation; and
WHEREAS, according to Johns Hopkins University, cited by LLA, "the process of
deciding how to spend opioid settlement funds should be guided by data, public health
leaders, and individuals with lived experience of opioid misuse"; and
WHEREAS, the Legislature of Louisiana passed House Bill No. 3 (Act No. 4, 2024
2nd E.S.) regarding pretrial drug testing and screening that provides as follows: "The
expenses and costs incurred relative to the mandatory drug testing and the screening . . . shall
be deemed to be an approved purpose for use of opioid funds"; and
WHEREAS, the LLA audit recommended that the LaOATF coordinate with the
attorney general to ensure compliance with the national settlement agreements, to which
LaOATF staff agreed; and
WHEREAS, the LLA recommended that the LaOATF consider using data and
information from public health leaders and individuals with lived experience of opioid
misuse to determine the best use for opioid settlement funds, to which LaOATF staff agreed;
and
WHEREAS, the LLA recommended that the LaOATF ensure parishes submit timely
reports, to which LaOATF agreed; and
WHEREAS, the LLA recommended that the MOU be amended to require sheriffs
to report in a similar manner as parishes, to which LaOATF staff agreed; and
WHEREAS, the LLA recommended that the LaOATF should include the results
achieved from the settlement fund expenditures within its annual report, to which LaOATF
staff agreed.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
urge and request the Louisiana Sheriffs' Association, the Department of Public Safety and
Corrections, and the Louisiana Department of Health to jointly report on programs for opioid
abatement and treatment in correctional facilities across the state, and to urge and request
the Louisiana Opioid Abatement Task Force and the attorney general to clarify guidance
regarding available funding streams for this purpose.
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HCR NO. 50 ENROLLED
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby urge
and request the Louisiana Department of Health to provide best practices for opioid
treatment programs in correctional facilities, including all reasonable data, to develop a
meaningful budget for such programs including but not limited to costs, delivery systems,
and reasonably available federal, state, and local funding.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby further
urge and request that the Louisiana Opioid Abatement Task Force and the attorney general
modify the MOU to provide additional clarity and guidance that aligns with litigation
settlement agreements.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby further
urge and request that the Louisiana Opioid Abatement Task Force and the attorney general
modify the MOU to provide reporting requirements for sheriffs to assist the LaOATF with
producing accurate annual reports.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby urge
and request the report prescribed by this Resolution to be submitted to the legislature no later
than thirty days prior to the convening of the 2027 Regular Session.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
executive director of the Louisiana Sheriffs' Association, the secretary of the Department of
Public Safety and Corrections, the secretary of the Louisiana Department of Health, the
Louisiana Opioid Abatement Task Force, and the attorney general.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that one print copy and one electronic copy of any
report produced pursuant to this Resolution be submitted to the David R. Poynter Legislative
Research Library as required by R.S. 24:772.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
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