New Brunswick

Summary

The City of New Brunswick, Middlesex County, has received 3,208,261.13 in opioid settlement money through 06/30/2025, by its own FY2025 report. The money must go to opioid abatement. Exhibit E of the national settlements lists the uses. It must add to local spending, not replace it.

Through 07/30/2026 the City moved 2,140,000.00 out of its opioid accounts by ten journal entries. The money went to a police budget offset line, a fire allocation line, a capital allocation line, two human services lines and the public library. It also bought a rescue pouch, a cabinet and freight for 3,825.35. No transfer names a program, a vendor or a service. No council resolution authorized any of them.

The City's reports to the State describe the transfers as harm reduction programs. The dollar figures in those reports tie to the journal entries to the cent. The descriptions do not match the books. The FY2024 and FY2025 reports themselves call the money a budget offset.

The City grades F, 44.5, on this project's rubric. The grade is capped because the transfers out are not certified to any use and no spending conforms.

How this report was prepared

The City's opioid ledger, its journal vouchers, the account reports for the lines that received the money, its vendor histories, its Code Blue agreements with Middlesex County and its reports to the Department of Human Services were obtained under the Open Public Records Act. Council agendas come from the City's public website. Those records are posted on the New Brunswick page.

The City's first production covered only the opioid account. Two further records requests were needed to see where the money landed.

Where the money went

The opioid ledger, the journal vouchers and the City's later account reports show every transfer.

• Police: 240,000.00
• Fire: 1,010,000.00
• Capital Improvement Fund: 250,000.00
• Health and Community Services: 280,000.00
• Human Services: 260,000.00
• Public library: 100,000.00
• Transferred, all destinations: 2,140,000.00
• Vendor purchases: 3,825.35
• Paid to a listed abatement use: 0.00

Journal entries 339 and 340 split across two opioid accounts. Journal entry 164 is two lines of 210,000.00 and 40,000.00. Journal entry 121 is two lines of 50,000.00. The library transfer is the first settlement money sent to the library. No program is named for it.

The eight vouchers produced for the transfers through 05/26/2026 were each posted under the same user code, RMULRINE.

No council vote moved the money

Between October 2024 and December 2025 the City Council acted on the settlement money twice. Both times it brought money into the budget. Resolution R-122445 on 12/04/2024 inserted 79,532.44. Resolution R-122538 on 12/17/2025 inserted 737,494.81. Neither names a department, a recipient or a use.

The council met on 12/18/2024 and 12/30/2024, the two meetings after journal entries 339 and 340 posted. Neither agenda carries an opioid item. This project read every council agenda from October 2024 through December 2025. None carries a resolution moving settlement money to police, fire, human services or capital. None carries a capital ordinance for the 250,000.00 sent to the Capital Improvement Fund. Asked twice for the authorizing resolutions or a statement that none exist, the City produced neither. See the finding.

The council used the Chapter 159 procedure to bring the money in. It passed nothing to send it out.

What the City told the State

The FY2023 report lists 770,613.16 received and nothing spent. It names one program, Outreach and Recovery, with recipient Not Yet Determined and no dollars.

The FY2024 report lists 2,307,858.54 received, 0.00 expended and 730,000.00 encumbered. It names one program, Police/Fire Training and Support, recipient New Brunswick Police and Fire Depts, primary category Harm Reduction and Overdose Prevention. Its statement of impact reads, "We plan to use opioid funds through budgetary offsets and allocations in the Police and Fire Departments." Its procurement answer reads, "Procurement is primarily used as an offset to normal purchasing done by the police and fire depts, as well as staffing of employees to target high risk areas."

The FY2025 report lists 3,208,261.13 received, 733,825.35 expended and 780,000.00 encumbered. It adds a new program, Homeless Services, 520,000.00, recipient New Brunswick Human and Comm Serv Dept, also under Harm Reduction and Overdose Prevention. Its statement of impact reads, "We plan to use opioid funds through budgetary offsets and allocations in the Dept of Human and Community Services." Its procurement answer calls the money "an offset to normal purchasing done by the human and community service departments." See the finding.

Settlement money that offsets normal purchasing replaces local spending. The agreement between the State and its towns, Section D(7), and N.J.S.A. 26:2G-39(f) forbid that.

How the reported figures match the books

The six rows are every outflow from the opioid accounts in the FY2025 window. They equal the certified figure to the cent. The figure is accurate. What it describes as harm reduction training and support is two lump sum budget transfers and three small purchases. See the finding.

The FY2025 report explains the change in Police/Fire Training and Support as "Funding used for fire dept only as these interactions occur more frequently." The 733,825.35 includes journal entry 339, which moves 240,000.00 to the police line under the description 2024 Police Allocations. It also includes the rescue pouch, bought on police fleet contract 17-FLEET-00751. The statement that the money went to the fire department only is false on the City's own voucher. See the finding.

The encumbrances are journal entries posted after each year closed. The FY2024 report certifies 730,000.00 encumbered at 06/30/2024. Journal entries 339 and 340, which total 730,000.00, posted 12/16/2024. The FY2025 report certifies 780,000.00 encumbered at 06/30/2025. Journal entries 164, 217, 218 and 246, which total 780,000.00, posted between 08/29/2025 and 12/12/2025. No purchase order or contract stands behind either figure. Reading each encumbrance as a budget plan and not a commitment in place at year end is an inference from the posting dates. See the finding.

The only combination of those four entries that sums to the 520,000.00 certified for Homeless Services is the capital transfer of 250,000.00, the HCS transfer of 140,000.00 and the HS transfer of 130,000.00. On that reading, 250,000.00 of the certified homeless money went to the Capital Improvement Fund. That reading is an inference from the arithmetic. See the finding.

The police line

Police line 01-201-25-240-108 Misc. Allocation or Reimbursement existed before any settlement money reached it. In 2023 a COPS grant transfer of 700,000.00, a Safe and Secure grant charge out of 32,400.00 and two receipts of 12,000.00 funded it.

In 2024 the line was budgeted at 1,886,000.00 and funded by two credits, both posted 12/16/2024. Journal entry 339 put in 1,086,000.00. Its voucher shows 240,000.00 came from opioid account 01-213-41-130-206 and the rest from five other police appropriation accounts. Receipts Journal Entry 816 put in 800,000.00, described as Transfer 2024 UDAG Allocation.

In 2025 the same line took 834,000.00 of police allocations, a UEZ grant of 204,275.06, 110,000.00 of accumulated absence trust funds and a UDAG transfer of 170,000.00. The settlement money was one more source in a line the City fills each year from whatever money is on hand. See the finding.

The fire and capital lines

Fire line 01-201-25-265-108 Miscellaneous Allocation carries no budget and no activity in 2023. Settlement money is the only source that has ever funded it. It took 490,000.00 on 12/16/2024, 260,000.00 on 12/12/2025 and 260,000.00 on 07/16/2026, 1,010,000.00 in all.

Capital line 01-201-44-900-803 Other Allocation carries no activity in 2023 or 2024. In 2025 its only funding was journal entry 164, 250,000.00, described as "Move 2025 Opioid Allocation to Capital Imp Fund." No capital project is named.

No program, vendor or service is recorded against either line. See the finding.

The homeless program

The FY2025 report certifies Homeless Services as a new program, launched and funded 04/16/2025.

The City's Code Blue warming center had run for three seasons before that date, on County money. Middlesex County signed Code Blue Warming Center Services agreements with the City for 2022 to 2023 at 90,000.00, 2023 to 2024 at 150,951.00, 2024 to 2025 at 150,951.00 and 2025 to 2026 at 192,000.00. That is 583,902.00.

Line 01-201-21-192-108 carried Code Blue charges of 34,193.19 posted 01/17/2023, 36,847.94 posted 09/15/2023 and 44,024.24 posted 03/28/2024. No settlement money was on the line. Its adopted appropriation was 70,000.00 in 2023 and in 2024. In 2025, the first year settlement money was moved in, it was 220,000.00.

None of the four agreements, the County grant packet or the City's implementation plan names opioids, overdose, naloxone or treatment. The plan says the center is open to men, women and children, needs no residency and no identification, and keeps a sign in log for statistics only. See the finding.

Payroll billed to the County

City Invoice RM-0325-01, dated 03/27/2025, bills the Middlesex County Department of Community Services 141,803.11. It describes "Actual expenditures covering the period Nov 2024 - Mar 2025 Which are to be reimbursed by the County of Middlesex per Code Blue Agreement." The Director of Finance and Chief Financial Officer signed it. It is in the City's account reports.

The journal lines cite the invoice as INVRM032501. The six charges appear in the invoice's order and match it to the cent. On 10/28/2025 the City moved 130,000.00 and 140,000.00 of settlement money into those two lines. The result is 58,572.61 of City payroll carried on lines the settlement money funds, for costs the City had already billed to the County. Whether the County paid the invoice is not in this record. See the finding.

The rescue pouch

Purchase order 2405448, on police fleet contract 17-FLEET-00751, was first charged to account 31-286-55-003. On 09/24/2024 the Action Uniform vendor history removes a 3,262.50 line from that account and adds a 3,262.50 line, "Flex Rescue Pouch 56501," to opioid account 01-213-41-130-206. Same purchase order, same contract, same amount. Check 200413 paid it from the opioid account on 10/16/2024.

Action Uniform is the City's standing police and fire uniform and body armor supplier. It was paid from operating accounts every year from 2021 through 2026. This is the only purchase from the vendor ever charged to an opioid account. See the finding.

FY2026

The State published the City's FY2026 report on 10/01/2026. It certifies 610,303.37 received, 1,310,000.00 spent and 0.00 encumbered between 07/01/2025 and 06/30/2026. It updates two programs, Homeless Services at 790,000.00 and Police/Fire Training and Support at 520,000.00.

The books for that window show six journal entries out of the opioid accounts and no vendor payment.

The certified figure is the year's transfers plus journal entry 105, posted 07/16/2026. Of the transfers in the record posted from 07/01/2025 on, no other set makes 1,310,000.00. See the finding.

Police/Fire Training and Support is certified at 520,000.00, with 42 services or encounters. The books show no transfer to police and no training purchase. The only police or fire transfers are journal entries 246 and 105, each 260,000.00 to fire line 01-201-25-265-108 Miscellaneous Allocation. Together they make 520,000.00 to the cent. The line records no course, vendor or service. The report calls the money training and support. The books show a general fire budget offset. See the finding.

The other five journal entries of the year total 790,000.00, the figure certified for Homeless Services. They include the 250,000.00 sent to the Capital Improvement Fund and the four transfers to the two human services lines that carry the warming center charges. Reading the homeless figure as those five entries is an inference from the arithmetic.

The received figure counts a receipt of 35,434.77 that the City booked on 07/31/2026, after the year closed. See the finding.

After the year closed the City also moved 100,000.00 to the public library budget, on 07/30/2026.

What should happen

The City has moved 2,140,000.00 of settlement money into general budget lines with no council vote and no abatement use on record. The council can require a resolution for every future transfer out of the opioid accounts, naming the use.

The City can return the money to the opioid accounts and spend it on a listed purpose.

The State relies on these reports to verify compliance. The Department of Human Services and the Office of the State Comptroller should examine the FY2024, FY2025 and FY2026 reports and the journal entries behind them. Middlesex County should check whether it reimbursed Invoice RM-0325-01.

How this project classifies spending is set out in the methodology and the rubric. Corrections follow the corrections policy.