Counties have action to take for Purdue/Sackler opioid settlement
Counties now may sign on to the Purdue Pharma and Sackler family opioid settlement. The deadline to participate in the settlement is Sept. 30, 2025. This settlement is expected to bring an additional $7.4 billion nationally.
Counties should have now received an email from Rubris, the implementation administrator, with all required documentation to complete.
As part of the sign-on to the Purdue settlement, Michigan is finalizing a new State-Subdivision Agreement.
The agreement now:
- Combines and clarifies all prior State-Subdivision Agreements
- Includes Annual reporting requirements to the Michigan Department of Attorney General
- Allows counties to seek guidance on qualifying expenditures for opioid remediation from the Michigan Department of Attorney General
- Allows the state and local governments to seek clarification from each other on expenditures
If you have any questions about executing the Participation Form, contact county legal counsel, the implementation administrator at opioidsparticipation@rubris.com or Assistant Attorney General Matt Walker at AG-OpioidLitigation@michigan.gov.
For additional information, you may also contact Amy Dolinky at dolinky@micounties.org.
Podcast 83 has 2 words for county leaders. One of them is ‘budget.’
Budget stalemate.
That’s the theme of the summer at the State Capitol in Lansing, reports MAC’s Podcast 83 team in a new episode this week.
Sitting in for regular host Stephan Currie, Director of Governmental Affairs Deena Bosworth led her team through the “whys” and “what nows” of Michigan’s current budget mess.
“The elephant in the room is roads,” said Jimmy Johnson, governmental affairs specialist. “The governor says, ‘I don’t want a budget that doesn’t have a road funding deal negotiated as part of it.’ And in the meantime, the political landscape in Lansing and at the federal level is no party is passing the other party’s legislation. The six bills that have been signed into law this year are, I would say, nonpartisan issues.”
“It’s going to be difficult for local units of government that don’t know what their allocations are going to be, right (due to the budget delays)?” responded Bosworth. “We’ve seen lots of numbers come out on that ‘One Big Beautiful Bill Act and what that financial implication is on Michigan’s budget. We’re talking a revenue shortfall of almost $700 million, and we’re talking increased costs. So that brings us about $1.1 billion that they have to come up with in order to make things work right.”
“Speaker (Matt) Hall and House Republicans have put their road funding plan out,” noted Samantha Gibson, governmental affairs specialist. “The Senate has yet to be forthcoming on what their plan may or may not be. The governor has been vocal in her need for a road funding plan and that she’s not interested in a budget that doesn’t include one.”
To learn more about what August and September may bring to the State Capitol, click here or on the image above.
County millages do generally well on August ballot
Five of six county-related millage requests in three counties were approved by voters in the August election cycle.
Senior service requests did particularly well, with voters in Houghton County approving a 2.2105 millage for the county medical care facility and a 1 mill increase for the county’s elder nutrition work.
The same voters, however, did reject a bond to finance a new jail for the county.
Voters in Kalkaska approved a senior millage renewal and a boost for public transportation funding, while Mason County voters OK’d 2 mills for a Rural Fire Authority.
MAC appreciates the assistance of Gongwer News Service in tracking county-related millage questions in each election cycle.
Hotel registration deadline for 2025 Annual Conference is just 3 weeks away
County leaders should act now to secure their hotel rooms for the 2025 Annual Conference at the Grand Traverse Resort, as the deadline for the special MAC room block is Aug. 29, just three weeks away!
Act now to guarantee you get the best room rate for the 2025 gathering, Sept. 30-Oct. 2!
The 2025 Michigan Counties Annual Conference will feature:
- Plenary Session keynotes from James Olson, former CIA chief of counterintelligence, and Paul Mellor, author of Finding the Keys and an expert on memory enhancement.
- Click here to learn more about James Olson.
- Click here to learn more about Paul Mellor.
- The 2025 President’s Banquet, featuring the installation of Macomb County’s Antoinette Wallace as MAC’s 117th president.
- A Welcome Reception and strolling dinner in the Exhibitor Hall with more than 30 firms providing goods and services of importance to county government.
- MAC’s Annual Business Meeting, which will review and approve MAC’s policy platforms for the coming year.
- Membership elections will be held for seven seats on the MAC Board of Directors.
- Ten policy workshops ranging from the use of AI to build local economies to challenges to mental health services.
The conference also will include plenty of time for members to network and enjoy the facilities of the resort and the surrounding Grand Traverse community.
Important numbers:
- Conference registration deadline: Sept. 19, 2025
- Hotel registration deadline (for special MAC rate): Aug. 29, 2025
- Member registration full conference rate: $415
- Spouse/Guest meal package rate: $225
- Hotel room rate*: $225 (hotel guestroom) or $275 (tower guestroom)
*Rates do not include resort fee ($20.95 per room/per night) or applicable taxes
For more details, visit MAC’s digital conference site.
Kellogg Foundation seeks local leaders for its next training
The W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF) Community Leadership Network, with the Center for Creative Leadership, is currently recruiting local leaders for our fourth class of fellows!
The application period or class four is now running until Aug. 28, 2025. To learn more and apply, visit the website at wkkfcln.org.
And information is available via the WKKF brochure.
Staff picks
- ‘No tax on overtime’: When it will work for you and when you’ll still pay taxes (Detroit Free Press)
- Can Michigan save beloved whitefish? Fate hinges on uphill bid to kill mussels (Bridge Michigan)
- Can manufactured homes help solve the nation’s housing shortage? (Pew Trusts)
- How to survive encounters with dangerous animals (Outside)