City of Vineland

Summary

The City of Vineland, Cumberland County, received 875,296.61 in opioid settlement money through 06/30/2025. Its reports and its books agree on that figure. The money must go to opioid remediation, a listed use or a documented evidence-based program, and it has to add to local spending, not replace it.

On 09/12/2024 the City moved 629,643.49 from its settlement reserve into three grant fund lines. Through 08/31/2026 those lines have paid 65,046.57. Of that, 63,805.57 is one employee's pay. The other 1,241.00 is an Overdose Lifeline license renewal paid on 01/14/2026. This project found no settlement dollar paid to a treatment provider, a recovery program or a naloxone supplier. Read the City's findings.

The program on paper

The City's FY2025 report to the Department of Human Services certifies 63,805.57 expended between 07/01/2024 and 06/30/2025. It names one program.

The report describes interactive workshops and case scenarios for law enforcement, firefighters and EMTs on overdose response, naloxone, stigma and connection to care. It describes the 25,875.21 of administrative expenses as support for training initiatives for law enforcement, fire and emergency medical services personnel.

It also says, in its own words, that "Funding was disbursed weekly as personnel worked on project" and that "No procurement process needed, we used health department personnel."

What the money paid for

The settlement lines tell the rest.

Every entry on those three lines is the pay or payroll tax of one employee of the Health Department, department 35-02. The fringe line includes an 862.50 health insurance opt out payment. The salary and fringe lines add to 37,930.36, the program figure to the cent. The admin line is the administrative figure to the cent. Overdose Lifeline, Inc. received nothing from the settlement accounts in the period. The produced records hold no session record, roster or curriculum. Called one employee's pay the Overdose Lifeline program.

Before, during and after

The City's payroll distribution reports show which account paid the employee on every check.

Same employee, same department, same position code on every check. On 09/24/2024 and 09/30/2024 two journals, both typed Expenditure Refund, charged the settlement lines 16,457.75 for July, August and September 2024 pay the City had already paid. The same journals credited the Health Department's regular salary line and the City's payroll tax line for that pay.

The settlement money took over a salary the City's current fund was already carrying, and handed it back when the charges stopped. Moved a salary onto the fund from July 2024 to June 2025.

Pay from before the program began

The report gives the program's launch date as 09/09/2024. Journal 1303 charged the settlement lines 11,424.91 for July and August 2024 pay. The allocation worksheet behind it lists nine check dates from 07/05/2024 to 08/30/2024. It assigns a flat 18.00 administrative hours at 33.67 an hour, 606.06, to every one, and puts the rest of the Health Operations charge on the program line.

Every one of those checks came before the launch date. Every one also came before 09/12/2024, the day settlement money first left the reserve. Charged 11,424.91 of pay from before the program began.

Appropriated and uncommitted at once

The FY2025 report certifies 565,837.92 appropriated or encumbered but not yet spent. That is the 629,643.49 appropriation less the 63,805.57 spent. The City's trails show 0.00 encumbered on every settlement line. No order, contract or award stands behind the figure.

The treatment services line has never paid a dollar. The same report certifies 811,491.04 unspent and uncommitted, which is the 565,837.92 plus 245,653.12 of FY2025 receipts still in the reserve. The report counts the same money as appropriated or encumbered and as uncommitted. Counted 565,837.92 as both appropriated and uncommitted.

A funding date and an interest figure

The FY2025 report says the program was funded on 06/03/2024. The FY2024 report says the City funded no program that year. 06/03/2024 is the date of an Overdose Lifeline purchase order for 709.75, charged to a different grant, the NJACCHO Enhancing Training grant. No grant fund line held settlement money until 09/12/2024. Gave a funding date that matches another grant's purchase.

The FY2024 report certifies 4,302.00 of interest. The reserve account records every settlement receipt and no interest through its 05/27/2026 print. The FY2025 report's running total leaves the 4,302.00 out. The FY2026 report puts it back. Reported 4,302.00 of interest the reserve never shows.

FY2026

The City's FY2026 report covers 07/01/2025 to 06/30/2026. It certifies 1,241.00 spent and 0.00 of administrative expenses. Its one program entry is an update to Overdose Lifeline at 1,241.00, with two training or education sessions. It says the staff member trained to deliver the program resigned during the year and two other staff members completed Overdose Lifeline Train-the-Trainer courses.

The books agree on the spending. The only payment from the settlement accounts in that year is purchase order 25-06965, an Overdose Lifeline, Inc. training license renewal, paid by check 61756 on 01/14/2026 for 1,241.00. The program salary and fringe lines carry no charge after 06/13/2025.

The report certifies 564,596.92 appropriated or encumbered but not yet spent. The grant fund trail at 08/31/2026 prints the same figure as the unexpended balance of the 629,643.49 appropriation, with 0.00 encumbered. The treatment services line still holds 440,750.44 and has paid nothing.

The report certifies 1,046,105.14 received since 2022. That is the FY2025 figure, plus 166,506.53 for FY2026, plus the 4,302.00 of interest the reserve never shows. Reported 4,302.00 of interest the reserve never shows.

Where the fund stands

Three more wires, 156,839.01 in all, reached the reserve between 08/08/2025 and 04/30/2026. The reserve print the City produced ends 05/27/2026.

What should happen

The City can restore the 63,805.57 of pay to the settlement fund and spend it on opioid remediation. The 440,750.44 set aside for treatment services is still there. It can go to treatment.

The State relies on these reports to verify compliance. The Department of Human Services and the Office of the State Comptroller should examine the FY2025 report and the records behind it.

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