Clifton
- 01Certified police overtime inside two training programs129,279.48
- 02Certified a hazmat mass spectrometer as harm reduction94,460.28
- 03Certified an unpaid 72,000.00 course as FY2025 spending72,000.00
- 04Charged police overtime for 150 officers to the fund58,106.20
What the reports say,
and what the books show.
Clifton has received $720,366.40 in opioid settlement funds and spent $370,076.35 of it.
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
- Programs listed
- none
- Amount expended
- $0.00
- Received to date
- $148,647.76
filed
- Program name
- Opioid Response Team
- Recipient
- Clifton Health Dept.
- Recipient category
- County or Municipality (including Departments and Municipal Alliances)
- Amount expended
- $15,244.53
- Unspent on hand
- $374,913.11
- Received to date
- $390,516.35
filed
- Program name
- Operational Readiness for Police Officers- Practical Strategies for Addressing Opioid Use Disorder & Co-Occurring Conditions
- Recipient
- City Of Clifton
- Recipient category
- First Responders, Law Enforcement, and Emergency Services
- Programs listed
- 2
- Amount expended
- $129,279.48
- Unspent on hand
- $386,117.64
- Received to date
- $602,641.65
filed
- Program name
- MX908 Opioid and Hazardous Substance Detection Program
- Recipient
- City of Clifton Fire Department
- Recipient category
- County or Municipality (including Departments and Municipal Alliances); First Responders, Law Enforcement, and Emergency Services
- Programs listed
- 3
- Amount expended
- $225,552.34
- Unspent on hand
- $343,297.05
- Received to date
- $720,366.40
11 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 FY2025 report certifies 129,279.48 expended in the period 7/1/2024 to 6/30/2025 (p1).
It names two programs, Youth Mental Health First Aid Training at 57,279.48 (p3) and Operational Readiness for Police Officers at 72,000.00 (p5). The two add to 129,279.48. The City's account detail shows that every payment and payroll charge on the settlement account in that period also adds to 129,279.48, to the cent (p2). That set includes 57,763.57 of Police Department overtime. A 05/15/2025 payroll charge of 54,251.24 paid 150 police officers 6 hours each and one Health and Welfare employee 5 hours. A 06/13/2025 charge of 3,794.02 paid eight officers and one Human Services employee. The rest is 26,000.00 for the youth mental health course, 25,000.00 of Cordata software, 11,570.98 for a speaker, 8,262.77 of attorney fees, 358.71 of T-shirts, 41.76 of petty cash and 281.69 of health staff overtime. The police course is not in the period. It was paid 08/07/2025. No program on the report names the police overtime, the software, the speaker or the attorney fees. The same report certifies 0.00 of administrative expenses.
false-certification · 4 documents · 09/26/2026The FY2026 report, pages 4 to 7, certifies a new program named MX908 Opioid and Hazardous Substance Detection Program at 94,460.28 funded and spent, recipient City of Clifton Fire Department.
Its primary category is Harm Reduction and Overdose Prevention. Its Schedule B strategies are Prevent Overdose Deaths and Other Harms (Harm Reduction), First Responders and Training. It reports 0 individuals served, and its one performance measure is the number of MX908 systems purchased and placed into service, 1. The block names the purchase plainly, an MX908 handheld chemical detection system with operator training, sampling supplies and accessories, bought from Safeware Inc on Bergen County contract BC-BID-24-62 under Resolution 521-25. The books show Safeware purchase order 63464, rebill invoice 30328451, paid by check 908085 on 02/04/2026 for 94,460.28, the certified figure to the cent. The invoice prices the detector at 86,444.51, three operator training classes at 7,565.93, swabs at 240.33 and a vapor probe at 209.51. Resolution 521-25 states the purpose as on-scene identification and hazardous materials response. The Fire Chief's memo of 10/15/2025 describes a handheld mass spectrometer for chemical warfare agents, explosives, narcotics and other hazardous substances at HAZMAT scenes, crime investigations and security checkpoints. It adds that the device detects trace fentanyl. A field chemical detector for hazmat response is not among the uses Exhibit E lists, and no overdose program using it is documented.
program-misclassification · 6 documents · 10/03/2026Resolution R014-25, adopted 01/08/2025, awards Z School Stillman School of Business at Seton Hall University a contract not to exceed 72,000.00 for an online, on-demand course titled Operational Readiness for Police Officers, Effective Strategies and Practical Techniques for Addressing Opioid Use Disorder and Co-occurring Conditions.
Purchase order 58763, dated 01/10/2025, orders the certificate program for 160 police officers at 450.00 each. Invoice INV-000710 is dated 02/04/2025. The account detail shows the order encumbered on 01/10/2025 and paid by check 906999 on 08/07/2025, after the period closed (p3). The FY2025 report certifies the program at 72,000.00 expended and 0.00 encumbered (p5). Its first page also certifies 72,000.00 appropriated or encumbered but not yet spent (p1). The report counts the same 72,000.00 as spent and as not yet spent.
misreported-expenditure · 5 documents · 09/25/2026The payroll overtime report for account 15-286-58-001-001 lists 150 Police Department officers paid 6 hours of overtime each on the 05-15-2025 pay date, 54,056.97 in all (pp1-4).
The same batch pays one Health and Welfare employee 5 hours, 194.27. The batch total, 54,251.24, is journal GJ 154 on the account detail (p2). Eight more officers were paid 6 hours each on 06-13-2025, 3,706.60, and two more on 07-30-2025, 342.63 (p5). One officer's 6 hours on 02-28-2025, 617.35, was reversed on 05-30-2025. Police overtime charged to the settlement account totals 58,106.20. No resolution or other produced record states what the overtime paid for, and no program on the FY2025 report names it. Police overtime is not among the uses Exhibit E lists, and no abatement program tied to these hours is documented.
non-conforming-spending · 4 documents · 09/26/2026The FY2025 report certifies Youth Mental Health First Aid Training at 57,279.48 funded and expended (p3).
Its procurement answer describes one training session for 9 health department staff from the National Council for Mental Wellbeing (pp4-5). The same program block reports 12 training sessions (p4). The account paid the National Council for Mental Wellbeing 26,000.00 for the course on purchase order 59037, check 906315, 04/02/2025 (account detail p2). It is the only payment to that vendor. The certified 57,279.48 is the year's certified total of 129,279.48 less the 72,000.00 police course, to the cent.
false-characterization · 2 documents · 09/26/2026The FY2024 report certifies 15,244.53 expended in the period 7/1/2023 to 6/30/2024 (p1).
It names one program, Opioid Response Team, Clifton Health Dept., category Treatment, funded 5/1/2024, with 14,885.82 expended and 358.71 encumbered (pp2-3). It says "A HIPAA-compliant software is necessary to carry out adequate data collection and analysis in this program, which is what we chose to put our funding towards" (p4). It names the software as Cordata (p3). Resolution R-249-24, adopted 05/21/2024, awards the Cordata contract, and its certification of funds is dated 5/1/2024. The first Cordata payment, 15,000.00, was check 905138 on 09/18/2024, in the next reporting year. The 15,244.53 is every charge on the account in the FY2024 window, all dated 08/15/2023 to 10/04/2023, before the program's funding date. It is a 13,700.00 deflection academy, 697.08 of refreshments, 594.32 of beach balls and 253.13 of health staff overtime. The dollars tie. The program, the date and the purchase the report describes do not.
false-characterization · 3 documents · 09/25/2026HazMat 101 Consultants invoice 1096, dated 02/09/2026, bills 7,945.00 for Opiod Identifcation and HazMat Operational Review, spelled that way on the invoice.
Purchase order 65384, dated 03/10/2026 and charged to account 15-286-58-001-001, heads the order HAZMAT, OPERATIONAL REFRESHER TRAINING 3/3/2026-3/6/2026. Its item line opens OPIOID IDENTIFICATION AND HAZMAT OPERATIONAL REVIEW, March 3 through March 6, 2026. It then describes an operational refresher, a three hour class taught once in the morning and again in the afternoon, repeated daily for four days, on scene management for CO emergencies, natural gas leaks, fuel spills, lithium ion batteries and CNG vehicles, the 2024 Emergency Response Guidebook, offensive and defensive tactics, decontamination, a meth lab review and basic air monitoring. The vendor's quote of 10/16/2025, billed to Clifton NJ Fire, lists the same topics at 7,975.00. The topics listed on the order and the quote include no opioid topic. The vendor's sole source letter of 01/01/2026 uses the same course name and describes training in air monitoring and detection for hazardous materials technicians. Check 908436 paid 7,945.00 on 03/18/2026. Hazmat operations training is not among the uses Exhibit E lists, and no overdose program is documented. The payment falls in FY2026. The FY2026 report, published 10/01/2026, counts it inside its 55,037.73 update to the 2024 program Opioid Response Team, which twelve charges in the year make to the cent. The update describes the year's spending as response equipment, community navigation and coordination technology, specialized opioid and hazardous-substance training and services, and overtime.
false-characterization · 6 documents · 10/03/2026Resolution 521-25, adopted 10/21/2025, authorizes one MX908 Handheld Chemical Detection Meter for the Clifton Fire Department to enhance its on-scene identification and hazardous materials response capabilities, not to exceed 94,460.28, with funds certified in account 15-286-58-001-001.
The Provisional Fire Chief's memo of 10/15/2025 describes a handheld mass spectrometer for identifying chemical warfare agents, explosives, narcotics and other hazardous substances, suited to HAZMAT scenes, crime investigations and security checkpoints. It adds that the device detects trace fentanyl. Safeware Inc sold it off Bergen County contract BC-BID-24-62, which the invoice lists as SWAT. Rebill invoice 30328451 is 94,460.28, the detector at 86,444.51, three operator training classes at 7,565.93, swabs at 240.33 and a vapor probe at 209.51. Check 908085 paid it on 02/04/2026. Check 908587 paid Safeware 4,345.00 more on 04/22/2026 for a Core Clear and Charge Station. No overdose program using the detector is documented. Field chemical detection equipment is not among the uses Exhibit E lists. Both payments fall in FY2026. The FY2026 report, published 10/01/2026, certifies the detector as a new harm reduction program at 94,460.28, the subject of its own finding. It counts the charge station inside its update to the 2024 program Opioid Response Team.
non-conforming-spending · 6 documents · 10/03/2026The City bought the police course for 160 officers as an online, on-demand program (Resolution R014-25, purchase order 58763).
On the 05-15-2025 pay date the settlement account paid 150 police officers the same 6 hours of overtime each. No produced record states the length of the course or the reason for the overtime. That the overtime paid officers for time spent on the course is this project's inference from the timing, the headcount and the uniform hours. If it did, the fund paid for the course and for the officers' time to take it, and the FY2025 report named only the course.
undisclosed-spending · 3 documents · 09/25/2026On 01/02/2024 journal GJ 7 moved two settlement receipts, 7,451.19 received 01/31/2023 and 8,766.11 received 11/09/2023, from sub-account 15-286-58-001-001 to sub-account -002 of the same account, labeled Reclass NOAT II Funding (account detail p1).
The money stayed in the settlement account. The account took in 258,085.89 between 07/01/2023 and 06/30/2024. The FY2024 report certifies 241,868.59, which is 16,217.30 less (p1). Receipts through 06/30/2025 total 618,858.95. The FY2025 report certifies 602,641.65 received since 2022, again 16,217.30 less (p1). The unspent balances the two reports certify, 374,913.11 and 386,117.64, each equal the account balance at 06/30 less 16,217.30 (account detail pp1-2).
misreported-receipts · 3 documents · 09/25/2026The ledger, as printed.
Account 15-286-58-001-001, as printed from the jurisdiction's own accounting system. Classification follows the Exhibit E gates.
| Date | Check | PO | Payee and description | Amount | Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 09/30/2022 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 35,509.20 | Receipt | ||
| 11/03/2022 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 37,137.58 | Receipt | ||
| 12/30/2022 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 44,303.76 | Receipt | ||
| 01/31/2023 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 7,451.19 | Receipt | ||
| 06/16/2023 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 24,246.03 | Receipt | ||
| 08/15/2023 | National Opiate Settlement 08/15/23 Payroll | 159.38 | Paid · Unverified | ||
| 08/16/2023 | 22501 | 49746 | POSITIVE PROMOTIONS · INV#00270256-15 ITEM NUMBER: OSW3067 12" BEACH BALL | 594.32 | Paid · Unverified |
| 08/16/2023 | 902461 | 49988 | NATHANIEL JASON KING · INV#TRAINING REIMBURSEMENT - REFRESHEMENTS FOR TRAINING HE | 38.26 | Paid · Unverified |
| 08/16/2023 | 902461 | 49988 | NATHANIEL JASON KING · INV#Training REIMBURSEMENT - REFRESHEMENTS FOR TRAINING HE | 109.12 | Paid · Unverified |
| 08/16/2023 | 902477 | 49674 | HOMELAND SECURITY SOLUTONS INC · INV#001405 PATHWAY DEFLECTION ACADEMY TRAINING, PERIOD O | 13,700.00 | Paid · Conforming |
| 08/31/2023 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 34,413.16 | Receipt | ||
| 09/06/2023 | 22570 | 50122 | CVPN, LLC · REFRESHMENTS FOR OPIATE TRAINING EVENT, 7/25/ | 172.60 | Paid · Unverified |
| 09/15/2023 | National Opiate Settlement 09/15/23 Payroll | 93.75 | Paid · Unverified | ||
| 10/04/2023 | 22801 | 50042 | CYNTHIA PACILLO · INV#Training REIMBURSEMENT - REFRESHEMENTS FOR TRAINING HE | 377.10 | Paid · Unverified |
| 11/09/2023 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 8,766.11 | Receipt | ||
| 01/02/2024 | Reclass NOAT II Funding - 11/09/2023 | -8,766.11 | Journal · Transfer | ||
| 01/02/2024 | Reclass NOAT II Funding - 01/31/2023 | -7,451.19 | Journal · Transfer | ||
| 01/02/2024 | Reclass NOAT II Funding - 01/31/2023 | 7,451.19 | Journal · Transfer | ||
| 01/02/2024 | Reclass NOAT II Funding - 11/09/2023 | 8,766.11 | Journal · Transfer | ||
| 04/30/2024 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 122,450.32 | Receipt | ||
| 04/30/2024 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 12,567.10 | Receipt | ||
| 04/30/2024 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 14,044.26 | Receipt | ||
| 04/30/2024 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 15,127.44 | Receipt | ||
| 04/30/2024 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 19,351.87 | Receipt | ||
| 04/30/2024 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 19,811.64 | Receipt | ||
| 04/30/2024 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 11,553.99 | Receipt | ||
| 07/17/2024 | 24885 | 54673 | POSITIVE PROMOTIONS · INV#07376729 SH-1220, GN19:T-SHIRT (S) PERSONALIZED | 358.71 | Paid · Unverified |
| 07/31/2024 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 14,054.01 | Receipt | ||
| 07/31/2024 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 13,755.38 | Receipt | ||
| 07/31/2024 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 46,603.17 | Receipt | ||
| 07/31/2024 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 11,942.22 | Receipt | ||
| 09/06/2024 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 17,709.63 | Receipt | ||
| 09/18/2024 | 905138 | 56764 | Cordata Healthcare Innovations · INV#1302 CORDATA COMMUNITY NAVIGATION SOFTWARE, PROVI | 15,000.00 | Paid · Conforming |
| 10/10/2024 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 15,341.45 | Receipt | ||
| 10/16/2024 | 905286 | 57132 | TATE LAW GROUP LLC · INV#2013-57 Attorney Fees for representation in the McKin | 4,427.41 | Paid · Non-conforming |
| 10/16/2024 | 905317 | 55831 | HERREN TALKS INC · INV#3199 Chris Herren Presentations Clifton High Schoo | 11,570.98 | Paid · Unverified |
| 10/30/2024 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 38,441.74 | Receipt | ||
| 11/07/2024 | 905400 | 57490 | TATE LAW GROUP LLC · INV#2013-62 National Opiate Settlement Funds Attorney fee | 3,835.36 | Paid · Non-conforming |
| 01/30/2025 | 2025024 | 59076 | CLIFTON, CITY OF - Petty Cash · INV#Payroll 01.30.25 12/20/24 - Uber for individual - E. Shyroky | 41.76 | Paid · Unverified |
| 02/28/2025 | National Opiate Settlement | 617.35 | Paid · Non-conforming | ||
| 04/02/2025 | 906315 | 59037 | NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR MENTAL WE · INV#INV-174643-S2Q7Q4 TRAINING COURSE FOR YOUTH MENTAL HEALTH FIRST | 26,000.00 | Paid · Conforming |
| 04/15/2025 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 11,565.16 | Receipt | ||
| 05/15/2025 | National Opiate Settlement | 54,251.24 | Paid · Non-conforming | ||
| 05/21/2025 | 906563 | 60723 | Cordata Healthcare Innovations · INV#1588 Cordata Community Navigation Software Cordata | 10,000.00 | Paid · Conforming |
| 05/30/2025 | National Opiate Settlement Payroll 05.30.25 | -617.35 | Reversal · Non-conforming | ||
| 06/13/2025 | National Opiate Settlement 06/13/25 PR | 3,794.02 | Paid · Non-conforming | ||
| 06/16/2025 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 42,712.54 | Receipt | ||
| 07/15/2025 | National Opiate Settlement | 91.40 | Paid · Unverified | ||
| 07/30/2025 | National Opiate Settlement | 342.63 | Paid · Non-conforming | ||
| 08/07/2025 | 906994 | 61704 | TATE LAW GROUP LLC · INV#2013-70 Attorney Fees for representation in the McKin | 4,054.33 | Paid · Non-conforming |
| 08/07/2025 | 906999 | 58763 | Zschool LLC · INV#000710 CERTIFICATE PROGRAM FOR 160 POLICE OFFICERS: | 72,000.00 | Paid · Conforming |
| 08/08/2025 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 13,386.34 | Receipt | ||
| 08/08/2025 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 13,938.35 | Receipt | ||
| 08/08/2025 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 24,639.39 | Receipt | ||
| 08/08/2025 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 46,603.17 | Receipt | ||
| 08/29/2025 | National Opiate Settlement | 40.62 | Paid · Unverified | ||
| 09/15/2025 | National Opiate Settlement 09/15/25 Payroll | 101.55 | Paid · Unverified | ||
| 09/30/2025 | National Opiate Settlement 09/30/25 Payroll | 223.42 | Paid · Unverified | ||
| 10/31/2025 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 979.60 | Receipt | ||
| 01/21/2026 | 908075 | 64373 | Cordata Healthcare Innovations · INV#1850 Situation Table In-Person Situation Table Tr | 26,775.00 | Paid · Unverified |
| 02/04/2026 | 908085 | 63464 | Safeware Inc · INV#30328451 908 MX908-02-1-0-03-01 MX908-c - Handheld Mas | 94,460.28 | Paid · Non-conforming |
| 02/18/2026 | 28544 | 64644 | CVPN, LLC · INV#12/3/2025 REFRESHMENTS FOR DEFLECTION TRAINING 12/3/202 | 309.60 | Paid · Unverified |
| 02/18/2026 | 908178 | 64075 | V.E. RALPH & SON, INC. · INV#492847 10-35132GN, IRON DUCK BLS BACK PACK GREEN | 4,751.80 | Paid · Non-conforming |
| 03/18/2026 | 908436 | 65384 | HazMat 101 Consultants · INV#1096 OPIOID IDENTIFICATION AND HAZMAT OPERATIONAL | 7,945.00 | Paid · Non-conforming |
| 04/22/2026 | 908587 | 65254 | Safeware Inc · INV#30340297 908 810-00271 Core Clear & Charge Station (C3 | 4,345.00 | Paid · Non-conforming |
| 04/30/2026 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 11,342.69 | Receipt | ||
| 04/30/2026 | National Opiate Settlement 04/30/26 Payroll | 111.71 | Paid · Unverified | ||
| 05/06/2026 | 908672 | 65972 | Cordata Healthcare Innovations · INV#1977 CORDATA COMMUNITY NAVIGATION SOFTWARE, PROVI | 10,000.00 | Paid · Conforming |
| 06/16/2026 | National Opiate Settlement Funds | 6,835.21 | Receipt | ||
| 06/18/2026 | open | 67093 | 04-DFD-320-2 Dahlgren Fire Detergent- 2/2.5 G | 6,993.00 | Open encumbrance · Non-conforming |
| Total paid | 370,693.70 | ||||
| Conforming abatement spending | 146,700.00 |
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 $98,805.28, 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 Clifton tell the State it spent the money on?
It certified 6 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
Clifton
Clifton certified its FY2025 settlement spending as two training programs, but the figure it certified is every charge on the account that year, including 57,763.57 of police overtime and a police course it had not yet paid for.