Local Government Coordinating Commission Meeting - October 30, 2024
STREAMING COPY IN PREPARATION — RECORDING AVAILABLE FROM THE ORIGINAL SOURCE
Local Government Coordinating Commission Meeting - October 30, 2024
The meeting covered several presentations and discussions, including the Landlord Engagement Program, a video game addressing gender equity, a guaranteed payment for attendance program for homeless students, after-school programs, and a strategic plan for opioid settlement funds. A subcommittee was formed to refine the opioid settlement plan.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of August 22, 2024 meeting minutes (unanimous).
Public Comments & Testimony
- Marcus Porter (New Mexico Black Leadership Council): Supported guaranteed basic income, emphasized prevention and wraparound services for families affected by opioid deaths.
- Pastor Charles Aragon (God's Warehouse): Described frontline work in the International District, stressed need to keep people alive with food, water, facilities, and urged funding for frontline ministries.
- Janice Herrera (speaking as Drug Users Union liaison): Advocated for overdose prevention centers, noting they save lives and build community.
- David Aragon: Spoke on behalf of his mother and uncle lost to opioid/fentanyl epidemics, asked for more detox centers and counseling for those prescribed pain medication.
- Julie Radoslovich (Metropolitan Parks Recreation Advisory Board): Recommended using opioid settlement funds for prevention programming in parks, including Westside Indoor Recreation Center, outdoor education, and walking trails.
- Janice Herrera (Health Equity Council): Shared personal loss, urged broad spectrum housing, collaboration between city/county, and elimination of waitlists for treatment.
Discussion Items
- Landlord Engagement Program (LEP): Presented by Tanisha Ernest (NM Coalition to End Homelessness) and Kelly Patterson (Housing NM). Program provides financial assistance (damages up to $3k, improvements $1k, vacancy loss, flex funds $500) and landlord liaisons to support landlords renting to permanent supportive housing voucher holders. First quarter: 9 claims paid ($13,985.78); October: 6 claims ($9,698.52). Commissioners discussed accountability for tenants, source of income discrimination, and need for before/after photos. Councillor Febalcore noted the program helps landlords but not tenants directly.
- Breakaway Video Game (Population Media Center): Cody Pusi presented a narrative-driven video game to address gender equity, bullying, and violence against women/girls. Used in 120 countries, available free. Seeking partners in Albuquerque, no cost. APS considering. Commissioner Barboa suggested use in youth services.
- Guaranteed Payment for Attendance (GPA): Daniel Velarde (NM Appleseed) proposed McKinney-Vento Improvement Plan including $500/month for homeless high school students meeting attendance and work requirements. Pilot showed 93% graduation rate vs. 51% statewide. Seeking $10M state funding for 1,500 students. Commissioner Olivis and others expressed support, noted connection to guaranteed basic income already in city legislation.
- Before and After School Programs: Colby Wilson (Boys & Girls Clubs) presented coalition (including Big Brothers Big Sisters, Jr. Achievement, YMCA, Warehouse 505) serving middle school students. Currently funded for 12 schools but need $4.5M/year to expand to all middle schools. Discussion on sustainability and prevention.
- Opioid Settlement Fund Strategic Plan: Julie Ron (Vital Strategies) presented 28 recommendations organized by strategic priorities: crisis response, prevention, harm reduction, treatment, recovery, stabilizing supports, and structural priorities (collaboration, funding, monitoring). Key recommendations: formalize intergovernmental cooperation, dedicated coordination role, Native Nations consultation, community advisory board, low-barrier funding, overdose prevention centers, medication treatment expansion, etc. Commissioners raised concerns about families of those lost, prevention focus, need for bricks-and-mortar examples, and lack of funding allocations. Councillor Rogers motioned to create a subcommittee to refine the plan.
Key Outcomes
- Unanimous vote to establish a subcommittee of the LGCC to review the Opioid Settlement Fund Strategic Plan and develop recommendations for the full LGCC and respective governing bodies.
- Subcommittee members: Commissioners Olivis and Barboa, Councillors Grout, Febalcore, and Rogers; APS member (Benavidez or Jackson); city/county staff (Dan Kemp, Eileen Braden, Abigail Stiles); and Vital Strategies (Dr. Lindstrom, Julie Ron, Kathy Court).
- Subcommittee meeting scheduled for Friday, November 8, 2024, at 5:00 p.m. in the City Council Committee Room, hybrid format.
- The strategic plan will be posted on city and county websites with a watermark indicating it is a discussion document.
- Presentations to City Council (Nov 4) and County Commission (Nov 12) will be informational; no legislation yet.
Meeting Transcript
This meeting of the local government coordinating commission will come to order. I'm Chair Councillor Nicole Rogers. Commissioner Benson, Member Armijo, and APS Member Jackson are excused from this evening. Councillor Grout and APS member Benavidez are attending via Zoom. All other members are present with me. Sorry, I love in person versus Zoom, so thank you all for coming in person. So we'll start off with a moment of silence, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance, led by Tammy February. Councillor Febalcore. Madam Chair, I don't say the Pledge of Allegiance. For those watching on the live stream, thank you so much for watching. Move approval of the August twenty-second meeting minutes. Awesome. Move by Councillor February, second by Commissioner Barboa. Commissioner Barboa? Yes. Commissioner Benson. Councillor February? Yes. Councillor Grout. Yes. Commissioner Olivis. Yes. Councillor Rogers? Yes. Yes. I apologize. Commissioner Bachet. Yes. That's ananimous. Thank you so much. So we'll we do have individuals signed up for public comment, so we'll have two minutes for public comment. Mr. Cornelius, take it away. Marcus Porter, followed by Charles Aragon. Madam Chair, committee members, thank you for having this open uh public comment. Uh I'm Marcus Porter from the New Mexico Black Leadership Council. I'm a advocacy and civic engagement of my violence uh prevention coordinator with me as well. Uh, we were lucky enough to be able to host the listening session uh for this, and I I can see a lot of the ideas there. So I really do appreciate that from vital strategies. Um, I really want to talk a little bit about as we think about what to do with this money using the strategy, the different things mentioned. Uh guaranteed basic income is something that has been proven all over the country. Um, it's been piloted in New Mexico several times, and it's uh it's easy to not know that because even though it's happened so much, everything's been a little siloed. So I think if we have a really fulsome approach to tackling guaranteed basic income and whatever forms it may uh be determined to be helpful, uh it'll have a better outcome. We all know again that it's been tested everywhere. So if we can do that, if we can put a little thought behind maybe expanding or putting support behind these type of initiatives, I think that would be great. Um, last thing I will say is that prevention is very important. I'm glad that it was there because if someone's educated beforehand about the resources available, they're much more likely to pursue those resources if they're in that situation. Resource navigation is next to impossible if you're currently dealing with the trauma of being on the street or being addicted to a substance. Um, and the people who are left behind in these opioid deaths. We had someone that came in, we do triage at N MBLC.
openpublica.com