Auburn councilors on Monday began discussing how the city should disburse nearly $660,000 it has received in payouts from the opioid lawsuit settlement.

Maine is expected to receive an estimated $230 million through 2038 as a result of the settlement agreement, which ended years of litigation brought by states and other plaintiffs against major pharmaceutical companies such as Purdue Pharma.

The biggest share, 50%, is managed by the Maine Recovery Fund for statewide disbursement in the form of grants. The Maine Office of the Attorney General will receive 20%, and the remaining 30% is disbursed to roughly three dozen cities, towns and counties that were parties to the lawsuit, including Auburn.

However, of the $22 million received by municipalities and counties throughout the state since 2022, only $3 million has been spent, and 10 communities haven’t spent anything , according to a report presented recently to state lawmakers.

In Auburn, city staff had initially waited to suggest use of the opioid funds because the annual amounts received were not exceedingly high and there were other grants to cover recovery and addiction services in the city, City Manager Phil Crowell Jr.  told the council Monday night.

Some years back, the city approached Androscoggin County and Lewiston officials about a regional approach to spending opioid funds, but talks foundered because there were specific ways in which the entities wanted to spend their funds, Mayor Jeff Harmon said.

As outlined by state and federal rules, the funds must be spent on projects that are evidence-based and had previously been successful in mitigating opioid addiction, he said.

Harmon implored councilors to spend the money on projects that will not eventually have to be rolled into the city’s operating budget. The settlement funding is not consistent and amounts can vary year to year, though the city is expected to get about $1.3 million by 2030.

A starting point for spending the city’s settlement money could be adopting city evaluation criteria for how the funds should be approved for use, Crowell said. This could allow staff to vet applicants based on the criteria and bring the ones that fit the criteria for council consideration.

Most councilors spoke in favor of having criteria outlining how the funds can be spent and who can be approved for them.

At-Large Councilor Belinda Gerry expressed interest in approving funds for established programs and organizations that have a history of success.

At-Large Councilor Adam Platz was more concerned with applying a rubric that looks at a program’s or organization’s merit and impact, rather than placing a lot of value on their longevity of services.

Ward 1 Councilor Rachel Randall favored having clear expectations in the funding criteria. She also wanted to see some money left over for later use.

Ward 2 Councilor Timothy Cowan expressed interest in using some of the funds to enhance some of the city’s established programs.

Crowell also discussed the option of having a citizen advisory committee that can oversee how the funds are allocated, though conflicts can sometimes arise around who should sit on the board, he said. But councilors did not weigh in on that idea Monday night.

There were three requests before councilors Monday night seeking some of the opioid funds: $100,000 to Great Falls Youth Corp.; $120,000 to continue the city’s PSY program; $200,000 to Spurwink.

Great Falls Youth Corp. requested the funds for its partnership with the PAL Center to provide healthy activities for youth in the community.

The city wanted funds to aid its PSY partnership program, which allows a third-party liaison to help first responders with calls from people struggling with substance use, homelessness and mental illness.

Spurwink requested funds to develop and implement a mobile outreach unit to help individuals struggling with addiction who might not be receiving essential services due to transportation issues, homelessness or struggles related to their substance dependency.

Councilors did not act on any of the proposals Monday night, but intend to discuss funding requirements April 21.