Albuquerque approves millions in opioid settlement funds: Here’s where the money is going

By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — For Duke City residents facing addiction and students struggling with mental health, getting connected to treatment can be a critical step toward recovery. Newly approved city funding will expand access to addiction treatment navigation, sobering beds and school counseling for Albuquerque residents and students.

The Albuquerque City Council unanimously approved a resolution allocating $5.2 million in opioid settlement spending during its Monday, Oct. 19 meeting. The vote followed an unusual procedural rollover from the Oct. 5 meeting, when debate ran past the council’s cutoff, as The Paper’s City Desk previously reported. According to the resolution, $2 million will launch a treatment navigation and assessment program at the Gateway system. The city will also allocate $1.4 million to the Medical Sobering Center and $300,000 for recovery housing. Another $1.5 million will fund the second year of the APS Crossroads substance use prevention and intervention program.

During Monday’s meeting, Councilor Dan Champine questioned how the city will continue to pay for the Gateway system, which costs about $26 million a year to operate. Chief Administrative Officer Samantha Sengel said the administration is pursuing state and federal funding and plans to include the full system in its proposed fiscal year 2028 budget. Champine also requested a three-year sustainability plan detailing potential funding sources. She said the administration could provide proposed funding models and outline sources it is pursuing.

Council President Klarissa Peña initially wanted to pull the APS funding because of concerns that bathroom vape detectors criminalized students. She withdrew her amendment after staff clarified that the second year of funding would focus on counseling. Staff also reported that Crossroads provided 6,028 therapy sessions and conducted 31 suicide risk assessments for students.

Burqueños can track the city’s opioid settlement spending through its Opioid Settlement Public Accountability Dashboard.

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