Fair Lawn
- 01Certified 34,941.38 of program purchases as administration34,941.38
- 02Reported budget line balances as 92,136.21 on hand92,136.21
- 03Spent 5,916.38 on L.E.A.D. shirts, bracelets and a lunch5,916.38
What the reports say,
and what the books show.
Fair Lawn has received $96,658.24 in opioid settlement funds and spent $49,941.38 of it. Its largest single year difference between the report and the books is $2,085.00.
The money, four ways.
Four figures describe the same settlement money. Each one comes from a different document.
Certified against the books,
every report year.
Every year this jurisdiction has filed, and the year it has not. The match on each row is computed from the rows, not judged.
filed
- Program name
- Opioid Overdose Prevention Program
- Recipient
- Borough of Fair Lawn
- Amount expended
- $0.00
- Received to date
- $14,370.74
filed
- Program name
- Educating Students and the Public on SUD
- Recipient
- Hill Speaks LLC
- Recipient category
- Private/For-profit Organizations
- Amount expended
- $15,000.00
- Unspent on hand
- $22,946.47
- Received to date
- $37,946.47
filed
- Programs listed
- none
- Amount expended
- $0.00
- Unspent on hand
- $100,882.53
- Received to date
- $73,370.33
filed
- Program name
- Too Smart to Start
- Recipient
- Thomas Jefferson MS, Memorial MS, Forrest Friends, Children's Aid and Family Services
- Recipient category
- Community Based Organizations/Non-Governmental Organizations; Schools, Colleges, Universities
- Amount expended
- $37,026.38
- Unspent on hand
- $92,136.21
- Received to date
- $96,658.24
4 findings.
Every finding is verified to the documents in its own row. An inference is labelled as one.
Red with the marker: a certified figure the books contradict.
The FY2026 report certifies 37,026.38 spent between 07/01/2025 and 06/30/2026 (p1) and files 34,941.38 of it under question 8, administrative expenses (p2).
Question 8a lists the items. FL Lead apparel 5,334.51. LEAD Grad Lunch 581.87. LEAD Conference hotel stay for representatives 828.00. 2026 Early Bird Conference 1,197.00. Operational Readiness Program by ZSchool 27,000.00. The books show the same five purchases, and they are every payment from the settlement lines between 07/01/2025 and 05/28/2026. JCM Associates purchase order 25-03928, check 117384 on 11/25/2025, Fair Lawn LEAD T-Shirts, sweatshirts, silicone bracelets, a long sleeve tee and shipping, 5,334.51. Ness Pizza purchase order 26-00763, check 118353 on 01/29/2026, L.E.A.D. Grad Lunch, 581.87. Harrah's Resort Atlantic City purchase order 26-00764, check 118344 on 01/29/2026, L.E.A.D. Conference Hotel Stay, 828.00. Lead Inc. purchase order 26-00765, check 118415 on 02/11/2026, 2026 Early Bird Conference, 1,197.00. Zschool LLC purchase order 26-01558, check 119678 on 04/24/2026, Operational Readiness Program, 15,005.19 and 11,994.81 on two lines, 27,000.00. They total 34,941.38, the certified figure to the cent. The same report describes the conference and the t-shirts as program activity, not administration. Its answer at question 12 (pp3 to 4) says the LEAD conference equips police personnel with diversion and intervention strategies and that three police officers attended, and that t-shirts and small engagement items extend the school assembly curriculum. Page 5 of the form requires a town that reports spending at question 6 to answer the program questions for each program the money funded. Filed as administration, these purchases have no program block, no recipient, no category and no count of people served. The report answers those questions only for Too Smart to Start, 2,085.00, 5.6 percent of the spending it certifies.
program-misclassification · 2 documents · 10/03/2026The FY2026 report certifies 92,136.21 of unspent and uncommitted funds the Borough currently has on hand (p2).
The figure equals two budget line balances on the Borough's settlement account print of 05/28/2026, less the June program. Line G-02-41-210-000-005, the 2024 line, shows a balance of 61,742.17. Line G-02-41-210-000-006, the 2025 line, shows 32,479.04. Their sum, 94,221.21, less the 2,085.00 the report certifies for Too Smart to Start, funded 06/01/2026 (pp5 to 6), is 92,136.21 to the cent. A budget balance is not cash. The four settlement lines were budgeted at 146,406.36, which is 49,748.12 more than the 96,658.24 the same report says the Borough has received since 2022 (p1). On the report's own figures, 96,658.24 received less the 52,026.38 certified spent in FY2024 to FY2026 leaves 44,631.86 at 06/30/2026. The certified figure is 47,504.35 higher. Closing that gap after 06/30/2026 would take more new money than the Borough reports receiving in any year since 2022.
unspent-misstated · 2 documents · 10/03/2026The settlement lines paid JCM Associates 5,334.51 on purchase order 25-03928, check 117384 on 11/25/2025, for Fair Lawn LEAD T-Shirts at 4,225.00, sweatshirts at 72.00, silicone bracelets at 675.00, a long sleeve tee at 11.95 and shipping at 350.56.
They paid Ness Pizza 581.87 on purchase order 26-00763, check 118353 on 01/29/2026, for the remainder of a L.E.A.D. graduation lunch. The FY2026 report files both as administrative expenses (p2). Its answer at question 12 (p4) says t-shirts and small engagement items accompanied the Too Smart to Start school assemblies. The report dates that program's funding 06/01/2026 and certifies it separately at 2,085.00 (pp5 to 6). The shirts were paid more than six months earlier, and the ledger names them for L.E.A.D. No record produced describes a L.E.A.D. curriculum, the graduation, or who received the merchandise. No evidence-based program that the shirts, bracelets or lunch serve is documented. Apparel, giveaways and event food are not among the uses Exhibit E lists.
non-conforming-spending · 2 documents · 10/03/2026The FY2024 report certifies 15,000.00 expended between 07/01/2023 and 06/30/2024 (p1) on one program, Educating Students and the Public on SUD, recipient Hill Speaks LLC, funded 06/19/2024 (pp2 to 4).
It describes three 90-minute presentations for high school and middle school students, student athletes, grade 8 students and parents, with 600 participants, under Primary Prevention, Education, and Training. The settlement line paid Hill Speaks LLC 15,000.00 on purchase order 24-02107, check 109665, on 06/19/2024. The certified figure equals the payment to the cent. The check was voided on 07/15/2024 and replaced by check 109843 for the same amount on 07/16/2024. School and community prevention education is among the uses Exhibit E lists.
conforming-spending · 2 documents · 10/03/2026The ledger, as printed.
Account G-02-41-210-000-003, as printed from the jurisdiction's own accounting system. Classification follows the Exhibit E gates.
| Date | Check | PO | Payee and description | Amount | Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 06/19/2024 | 109665 | 24-02107 | Hill Speaks LLC · Borough of FairLawn Sponsorshp | 15,000.00 | Paid · Conforming |
| 11/25/2025 | 117384 | 25-03928 | JCM Associates, LLC · Fair Lawn LEAD T-Shirts | 4,225.00 | Paid · Non-conforming |
| 11/25/2025 | 117384 | 25-03928 | JCM Associates, LLC · Sweatshirts -#DT2200 -District | 72.00 | Paid · Non-conforming |
| 11/25/2025 | 117384 | 25-03928 | JCM Associates, LLC · Silicone Bracelets -White & | 675.00 | Paid · Non-conforming |
| 11/25/2025 | 117384 | 25-03928 | JCM Associates, LLC · Long Sleeve Tee,-Sport Gray | 11.95 | Paid · Non-conforming |
| 11/25/2025 | 117384 | 25-03928 | JCM Associates, LLC · Shipping & Handling Costs | 350.56 | Paid · Non-conforming |
| 01/29/2026 | 118344 | 26-00764 | Harrah's Resort Atlantic City · L.E.A.D. Conference Hotel Stay | 828.00 | Paid · Unverified |
| 01/29/2026 | 118353 | 26-00763 | Ness Pizza · L.E.A.D. Grad Lunch- Remainder | 581.87 | Paid · Non-conforming |
| 02/11/2026 | 118415 | 26-00765 | Lead Inc. · 2026 Early Bird Conference | 1,197.00 | Paid · Unverified |
| 04/24/2026 | 119678 | 26-01558 | Zschool LLC · Operational Readiness Program | 15,005.19 | Paid · Unverified |
| 04/24/2026 | 119678 | 26-01558 | Zschool LLC · Operational Readiness Program | 11,994.81 | Paid · Unverified |
| Total paid | 49,941.38 | ||||
| Conforming abatement spending | 15,000.00 |
Vendors, and what paid them before.
What fund carried each payee before the opioid account, and how large the opioid slice is against the whole relationship. Bars share one scale.
Full width is $27,000.00, the largest payee total. Solid is the opioid account. Hatched is every other fund.
All documents are public records produced by the jurisdiction. Titles are the documents' own.
No dated event is published for this jurisdiction yet.
No correction received from this jurisdiction. If a figure on this page is wrong, send the record that shows it. The response is published here word for word.
Correct the recordCan opioid settlement money be spent on police cars or license plate readers?
No. Exhibit E of the national settlement lists the approved uses: treatment, recovery, prevention, harm reduction and related supports. Vehicles and surveillance hardware are not among the uses it lists, and state law bars using the funds to replace money a town would otherwise have spent.The approved uses
What did Fair Lawn tell the State it spent the money on?
It certified 3 programs to the Department of Human Services. Each program, its recipient and its amount are reproduced above, beside the payments in the account.See the reports
How was this grade computed?
By code, from a published rubric: reporting integrity 50 percent, spending conformity 40 percent, transparency 10 percent, with hard caps for a certified program that has no payee in the books, for an uncertified transfer out, and for a records refusal.The rubric
Articles about this town
Fair Lawn Borough
Fair Lawn certified 34,941.38 of L.E.A.D. shirts, a graduation lunch, a casino hotel stay, a conference fee and a 27,000.00 Zschool program to the State as administrative expenses, and reported 92,136.21 on hand that its own figures do not support.