Town of Westfield
Westfield certified one 1,500.00 order three times, certified 17,500.00 for outreach work its books put at 9,800.00, and twice reported more money on hand than it says it ever received.
Published 10/03/2026
TLDR
- Westfield certified one 1,500.00 C2R Global payment three times. Twice in FY2024, before the order existed. Once more in FY2025.
- The Town told the State it spent 17,500.00 on outreach. The books show 9,800.00, all paid after FY2024 closed.
- The FY2026 report says the Town has 135,319.48 on hand. It also says the Town has received 88,935.80 in total.
- The FY2024 report did the same. 126,223.93 on hand against 48,170.05 received.
- No record the Town produced shows what most of its purchases were. Every dollar is unverified.
The reports to the State do not add up.
Summary
The Town of Westfield, Union County, reports receiving 88,935.80 in opioid settlement money from 2022 through 06/30/2026. The money must go to the abatement uses the national settlements list, or to documented evidence-based programs that address the epidemic. It must add to local spending, not replace it.
The Town's settlement accounts paid 47,289.20 from 03/26/2024 through 06/09/2026, on 25 ledger lines. This project classifies all 47,289.20 as unverified. None is classified conforming or non-conforming.
The reports the Town filed with the Department of Human Services do not match its books. Read the Town's findings.
What the Town bought
| Payee | Purchase | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Hill Speaks LLC | School assemblies, 2024, 2025 and 2026 | 26,650.00 |
| Opioid Payroll | One hourly worker, 08/23/2024 to 10/04/2024 | 9,800.00 |
| Partners in Prevention | Youth leadership camp and conferences | 5,450.00 |
| C2R Global Manufacturing | Drug disposal pouches and shipping | 3,758.43 |
| Prevention Action Alliance | Community event supplies and shipping | 882.60 |
| Journeyworks Publishing | Brochures and pamphlets | 315.00 |
| Educational Training | Community program supplies | 222.72 |
| Positive Promotions | Health event supplies and shipping | 210.45 |
| Total | 47,289.20 |
The purchase orders do not name what was bought. The assemblies read COMMUNITY EVENT SPEAKER, Student Assembly Program and Know the Law Program. The C2R Global orders read HEALTH EVENT SUPPLIES and PROGRAM SUPPLIES. The brochures read BROCHURES and HEALTH EDUCATION PAMPLETS. No contract, invoice or course material was produced. The reports describe opioid prevention, but a report label alone does not document a program. Every line is unverified.
The payroll register shows one hourly worker in a one-person department, paid for 196 hours. It gives no job title. The FY2025 report calls the work Outreach Support, connecting residents to treatment and support services.
What the Town told the State
| Report | Received in year | Received since 2022 | Certified spent | Encumbered | On hand | Paid in year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2023 | 37,327.22 | 37,327.22 | 0.00 | not asked | not asked | 0.00 |
| FY2024 | 10,842.83 | 48,170.05 | 18,458.05 | 1,500.00 | 126,223.93 | 9,342.93 |
| FY2025 | 11,203.67 | 59,373.72 | 26,880.52 | 0.00 | 21,508.15 | 26,796.27 |
| FY2026 | 29,562.08 | 88,935.80 | 11,150.00 | 0.00 | 135,319.48 | 11,150.00 |
FY2023 agrees with the books. Nothing was spent before 03/26/2024.
FY2026 also agrees. The 11,150.00 is three Partners in Prevention payments and the 06/09/2026 Hill Speaks assembly at Westfield Middle School, to the cent.
FY2024 and FY2025 do not.
One order, certified three times
The FY2024 report covers 07/01/2023 to 06/30/2024. It lists a program named Opioid Educational Materials at 2,758.05. Six ledger lines make that figure to the cent.
| Line | Paid | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Journeyworks Publishing, brochures | 03/26/2024 | 165.00 |
| Positive Promotions, health event supplies | 04/30/2024 | 183.50 |
| Positive Promotions, shipping | 04/30/2024 | 26.95 |
| Prevention Action Alliance, event supplies | 04/30/2024 | 767.48 |
| Prevention Action Alliance, shipping | 07/26/2024 | 115.12 |
| C2R Global, purchase order 24-02354 line 1 | 10/08/2024 | 1,500.00 |
| Certified | 2,758.05 |
The C2R line was first encumbered on 07/23/2024. That is 23 days after the year closed. The same report certifies 1,500.00 as encumbered but not yet spent at year end. On 06/30/2024 the account showed no 1,500.00 order. The two orders open that day were an 8,200.00 Speak Sobriety order, voided 07/23/2024, and the 115.12 shipping line.
The FY2025 report counts the same line again. It certifies Drug Disposal Pouches at 3,757.80, funded 07/23/2024, the day the C2R order was created. The four C2R payments total 3,758.43. Without the 1,500.00 line they total 2,258.43. Certified one order three times, once before it existed.
The report certifies 18,458.05 spent in FY2024. The accounts paid 9,342.93.
| Record | Amount |
|---|---|
| Certified spent, FY2024 | 18,458.05 |
| Paid in the period | 9,342.93 |
| Difference | 9,115.12 |
| Administrative expense the report lists | 7,500.00 |
| C2R line created after the year closed | 1,500.00 |
| Shipping paid 07/26/2024 | 115.12 |
Outreach pay
The FY2024 report describes the 7,500.00 as funding for an outreach coordinator. The FY2025 report then certifies a program named Outreach Support at 10,000.00. It says the program was funded 07/01/2024 and launched 07/08/2024. That is after FY2024 closed.
| Record | Amount |
|---|---|
| FY2024 administrative expense, outreach coordinator | 7,500.00 |
| FY2025 Outreach Support | 10,000.00 |
| Certified for outreach | 17,500.00 |
| Opioid Payroll, 08/23/2024 to 10/04/2024 | 9,800.00 |
| Difference | 7,700.00 |
The four payroll postings are the only outreach cost in the books. The payroll account holds 9,800.00 and nothing more through 08/28/2026. No produced account shows a payroll or administrative charge from 01/01/2024 to 06/30/2024. The Town did not produce its accounts for 07/01/2023 to 12/31/2023. Certified 17,500.00 for outreach work that cost 9,800.00.
FY2025
The FY2025 report certifies 26,880.52, the sum of five programs. The accounts paid 26,796.27 in the year. Three program figures tie to the cent. Hill Speaks is 10,250.00, one check for four lines. Partners in Prevention is 2,500.00. Educational brochures is 372.72.
The other two do not. Outreach Support is certified at 10,000.00 against 9,800.00 of payroll. Drug Disposal Pouches is certified at 3,757.80 against 3,758.43 of C2R Global payments, which include the 1,500.00 line the FY2024 report already counted.
More money on hand than received
The FY2026 report says the Town has received 88,935.80 since 2022, with no interest. It says the Town has 135,319.48 unspent on hand. That is 46,383.68 more than every dollar received.
The reports certify 56,488.57 spent across four years. Received less spent is 32,447.23.
The FY2025 report put the figure at 21,508.15. Adding the 29,562.08 received in FY2026 and taking out the 11,150.00 spent gives 39,920.23, not 135,319.48.
The Town's general ledger carries a reserve, Res. Opioids Settlement Fund Trust, at 116,027.55 from 11/01/2025 to 08/28/2026, with no activity. The reserve alone is larger than the total the Town told the State it received. Either the received figures or the on-hand figures are wrong. The Town has not produced a receipts ledger. Reported 46,383.68 more on hand than it ever received.
The FY2024 report printed the same kind of figure. It listed 126,223.93 on hand against 48,170.05 received, 78,053.88 more. The FY2023 and FY2024 reports certify 18,458.05 spent by then. In FY2024, reported 78,053.88 more on hand than received.
A youth camp that moved accounts
Partners in Prevention runs the Lindsey Meyer Teen Institute, a youth leadership program. The Town's vendor report shows three earlier payments from account G-01-22-128-301, Municipal Alliance DMHAS (LMTI).
| Paid | Description | Account | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12/31/2022 | Summer leadership conference | Municipal Alliance | 650.00 |
| 04/25/2023 | Youth leadership training | Municipal Alliance | 2,058.10 |
| 04/25/2023 | Youth leadership training | Municipal Alliance | 41.90 |
| 10/08/2024 | Youth leadership training | Settlement | 2,500.00 |
| 09/30/2025 | Peer leadership conference | Settlement | 200.00 |
| 11/25/2025 | Seminar leadership conference | Settlement | 2,250.00 |
| 11/25/2025 | Seminar leadership conference | Settlement | 500.00 |
The FY2025 report lists Partners in Prevention among the year's new programs, at 2,500.00. The FY2026 report lists the Lindsey Meyer Teen Institute as a new program, at 2,950.00. The two figures equal the settlement payments to the cent. No settlement payment repeats an earlier Alliance payment to the cent, and the records do not show whether the Alliance grant changed.
What the records do not cover
The Town produced the 2026 settlement account through 05/28/2026 only. The 06/09/2026 Hill Speaks payment on that account is known from the vendor's payment history. Any other 2026 activity after 05/28/2026 is not in the produced records.
What should happen
The Town can produce the receipts ledger for the settlement trust and reconcile it to the received and on-hand figures it gave the State.
The Town can show what the 7,500.00 of FY2024 administrative expense paid for, and from which account. It can produce its 2023 settlement accounts and the invoices behind each purchase order.
The State relies on these reports to verify compliance. The Department of Human Services should examine the FY2024 and FY2026 reports and the records behind their figures.
How this project classifies spending is set out in the methodology and the rubric. Corrections follow the corrections policy.