Rutherford County Opioid Settlement: Application Cycle

The Rutherford Opioid Board has enacted some changes to their funding approach for the 2026 application period.

• Funding has been capped at a $100,000 maximum award
  Agencies may request funding up to $100,000, with the understanding that the Board reserves the right to modify their budget according to allowable funding uses, available funding to allocate, performance of prior grant periods, and if this is a new or existing program.
  
• Focus on Sustainability
  While funding from these settlements will continue through 2038, the level of funding being allocated to the county is anticipated to decrease over time. This is because funding allocations are tied to overdose data, and as Rutherford County continues making headway in reducing overdoses and related deaths, that means that available funding will decrease as the overdose rates decrease. Due to this incremental decrease in funding, it is imperative for agencies to seek long-term funding elsewhere to sustain their programs.
  
• Prioritization of new projects or programs
  The Board has established a preference to prioritize funding consideration for new programs and projects. This prioritization will not exclude consideration of programs currently funded under ROB, however it is intended that returning program requests seek sustaining funding through other sources. By prioritizing newer programs from applicants, the hope is that the capacity of the Recovery Continuum will be expanded through new program development as ongoing programs seek state opioid abatement funding for long-term support.
  
• Online Application Portal
  The application process for 2026 has transitioned to a fully online web-based submission portal. You must request access to the application portal through the request form above. All elements of the application must be submitted through that portal for all nonprofit requests.
  ** Internal Rutherford County government requests must reach out to opsr@mtsu.edu for their separate submission guidance.

This narrative of the proposal is separated into seven sections. Applicants are asked to describe the population served, identify the need that you will address, outline the goals and objectives used to measure success, identify evidence-based practices for implementation, outline how to measure progress and success, explain your organization’s capacity to achieve your goals, and how your organization plans to sustain programming as ROB funding diminishes over time.

This detailed budget breakdown with description of line items, any in-kind support from the agency, and budget justification for each line item requested.

Access the Project Budget template HERE.

Organizations that submit an application must attach the following documents with their submission:

• Copy of Annual Audit
• Budgeted Revenues and Expenses for the Current Year
• Budgeted Revenues and Expenses for the Prior Year
• Actual Revenue and Expenses for the Prior Year
• Rutherford County Fund Monitoring Form: Compliance Survey
• Salary Schedule (if proposing grant funding for salary position)
• 501 (c)(3) Determination Letter (if applicable)
• Letters of Support (if applicable)

This list outlines allowable uses with Rutherford County Opioid Settlement funding stratified by the Tennessee Opioid Abatement Council’s six main strategies. All activities outlined in an organization’s proposal must be found from this list.

Access the Tennessee Opioid Abatement & Remediation Use list HERE.

This resource provided by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) outlines how to develop strong goals concerning programs related to substance use and can help applicants strengthen goals for their application.

Access the S.M.A.R.T. Goal Development Guidance resource HERE.

This resource developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) outlines ten rising evidence-based practices for preventing opioid overdose in the United States. Applicants can refer to this resource to incorporate evidence-based practices within their grant application.

Access the Evidence-Based Strategies Guidance resource HERE.

To assist with providing examples of strong evaluation metrics for prospective applicants, this resource outlines example metrics within each of the six main strategy categories that includes allowable uses of grant funds. Applicants are not required to choose from this list for their metrics used in their application, rather these are just examples.

Access the Evaluation Metrics Guidance HERE.

Proposals will be reviewed and scored by a committee from the MTSU Office of Prevention Science and Recovery. Proposals will be evaluated based upon the proven ability of the applicant to meet the goals of the project description in a cost-effective manner with a maximum of 100 points available. This in-depth rubric outlines the breakdown of eligible points that can be awarded per application section and the standards use to compute that score.

Only nonprofit charitable organizations with 501©(3) status, chamber of commerce exempt from IRS Code 501©(6), nonprofit civic organizations, and government organizations are eligible to receive funds. Organizations are permitted only one grant per fiscal year. Awardees are eligible to re-apply for funding after successful completion of their grant term. Government organizations are eligible for multiple re-appropriations within a single fiscal year.

Applications will be accepted until 11:59pm on March 31, 2026 with proposals being voted on by the Rutherford Opioid Board in May and June. 

The funding period for all requests will begin July 1st and will end by June 30th to align with the county’s fiscal year.

Proposed activities in the funding request must be permitted from the Tennessee Opioid Abatement Council’s Approved Remediation List of activities.

All grants will be awarded within the timeline of the Rutherford County fiscal year. Once an organization is voted to receive a grant award, that organization will receive funding for the remainder of the fiscal year, unless otherwise specified by the Rutherford County Commission. Rutherford County operates on a fiscal year schedule that begins July 1st and ends June 30th.

The Rutherford Opioid Board will vote at the May & June meetings to make funding determinations according to the application cycle. Following the ROB’s decision to award funding, grant awards will need to be approved by the Rutherford County Commission’s Budget Committee and the full County Commission. These other local approvals will delay the timing of directly receiving grant funds from the County by up to four weeks following the ROB vote.

Grantees are required to submit evaluation metric updates quarterly based upon the specific data points cited in their grant proposal. This data will be submitted to the MTSU Office of Prevention Science and Recovery (OPSR) quarterly. The OPSR team will work individually with each organization to track success of their grant program to report back to the Rutherford Opioid Board. Organizations are also responsible for tracking spending of grant funding throughout their grant term to provide documentation to Rutherford County at the conclusion of their grant term of all grant funds being entirely allocated.

If organizations are awarded funding by the ROB, they will need to complete an Opioid Abatement Service Provider Agreement with Rutherford County. In this agreement, it is required for organizations to possess Commercial Liability Insurance with limits of liability not less than $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 in annual aggregate coverage. The agreement also requires a minimum amount of Professional Services Liability of $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 aggregate. Organizations are not required to possess these levels of insurance/liability to apply, but will need to meet the scope of services in this agreement to receive their allocation of ROB grant funding.

This 2-page resource highlights the impact that the ROB accomplished locally during the year 2023 through opioid abatement funded grant projects across the county.

Access the 2023 Rutherford Opioid Board Impact Report HERE.

This report highlights areas of need within Rutherford County and outlines five areas of priority the Rutherford Opioid Board seeks to address through distribution of opioid abatement funding.

Access the 2024-2025 Rutherford Opioid Board Strategic Plan HERE.