Opioid Grant Information & Application

Opioid Settlement Funding

The state of Tennessee will be receiving over $1 billion over the next 18 years in lawsuit settlement funds from large corporations associated with the opioid crisis. Sequatchie County has been allocated a portion of these funds, which will be received in annual payments. The County has established the Sequatchie County Opioid Initiative Committee (OIC) to work with the University of Tennessee Institute for Public Service SMART Initiative Team to oversee the application process and the spending of these funds to ensure they are used to remediate the opioid crisis and save lives. The Committee will invite community organizations to apply for these funds annually with the main objective of saving lives. 

​Availability of Funds

The selection process for funding will utilize a competitive process. The Sequatchie County OIC will request proposals for a funding opportunity annually, pending continued annual payout funding from national opioid lawsuit settlements. There is not a cost match for this funding opportunity. The amount of funds available and dates of the application submissions and awards will differ annually. The amount of funds available for the 2025-2026 funding cycle will be approximately $153,234.19, and proposals are being accepted between March 21st through close of business (4:30PM CST) April 21st, 2025.

Up to 20% of the available funds can be held back at the discretion of the Sequatchie County OIC each funding cycle for urgent needs that may arise between annual funding periods. If the hold-back funds are not allocated prior to the next funding cycle, they will be included in the total amount available for distribution. 

Eligibility

Applications will be accepted from any organization that serves residents of Sequatchie County but will only be distributed to those that provide services that fall within the approved remediation uses set forth by the TN Opioid Abatement Council, listed below in Allowable Uses of Funds and outlined in Exhibit E. If an applying organization is located outside of Sequatchie County, funds will only be awarded to that organization if they are used to serve Sequatchie County residents. Applications can be submitted to support any areas in Exhibit E, but priority will be given to organizations providing services in the following areas: Primary Prevention, Treatment, and Recovery Support. The Sequatchie County OIC will monitor the projects for which funds are dispursed in accordance with all applicable rules and regulations that counties must adhere to when allocating funds to community organizations.  

Required Documents for Application Submission

Proposals are due by April 21st, 2025 and must be submitted to the Sequatchie County Executive’s Office by emailing  with the required documentation specified in the application, which is posted below.

The documents detailed below are for any agency that is requesting funding assistance to address
the opioid epidemic in Sequatchie County. All portions of the application must be completed, including
attachments, for this application to be considered. Upon submission of the application, you will be
required to sign a statement certifying to the accuracy of the information and agreeing to allow
Sequatchie County to review your financial records.

If you are a new agency or an agency that has never requested aid in funding from Sequatchie County,
you should be aware that the maximum request per agency is determined upon the nature of the
request and available funding.

IF YOU ARE A NON-PROFIT CHARITABLE ORGANIZATION OR A NON-PROFIT
CIVIC ORGANIZATION, YOU MUST SUBMIT THE FOLLOWING:

• A completed Funding Request Application form.
• State Annual Reporting form or copy of agency’s annual audit. This does not
  have to be submitted at the time of application, if not complete. For fiscal year
  agencies, this information can be submitted at the end of your fiscal year.
• Your budget and actual financial information in the format requested below.
• If your agency serves a multi-county area, your budget should reflect Sequatchie
  County revenues and expenses separately from other counties.
• Detailed Salary Schedule.
• Any additional explanations for which you do not have sufficient space on the
  Application form.
• Implementation Work Plan
• Letters of Support from Collaborators and Partners
• Monitoring Form: Compliance Survey
• Letters of Financial Standing
• If the applicant is requesting more than 20% of the aggregate amount of funds
  being dispersed by the Committee, 2 years of financial history must be
  included as part of the application.

If you are a Non-Profit Civic Organization, A copy of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
letter recognizing the organization as a nonprofit organization or a copy of the state
solicitation letter for the organization and the most recent IRS Form 990, 990-EZ, or 990-N,
as applicable, filed with the IRS.

Any nonprofit organization that receives financial assistance from the county must file an
annual report of its business affairs and transactions with the Sequatchie County Clerk’s Office
and the Sequatchie County Finance Department. This report must include a copy of an annual
audit (if available), a description of the program that serves the residents of the county, and
the proposed use of the county assistance. If an annual audit is not available, provide an
annual report on the form prescribed by the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury. Failure
to provide the required documentation will forfeit the nonprofit organization’s appropriation
and the opportunity to apply for a charitable contribution in the subsequent funding year.

Application Documents

The Application, Work Plan, and Budget Sheet links will be available for download starting March 21st.

“Please note that the buttons above will not be functional until March 21, 2025.”

Application Examples

Use the following downloadable files as examples if needed

Selection and Award Process

For the 2025-2026 funding year, the Opioid Initiative Committee (OIC) of Sequatchie County is accepting proposals to fund projects that are focused on the abatement and remediation of opioid use and misuse exclusively for the benefit of those residing in Sequatchie County. Should you have any questions regarding the proposals, contact

The OIC, in partnership with the University of Tennessee Institute for Public Service SMART Initiative Team, will review and score all applications received. Notice of award is expected to occur by May 23rd, 2025. Following the notice of award, the organizations will be contacted to discuss the contract process and specific metrics that must be reported back to the county.

If the total amount requested is higher than the total amount available for distribution, the applicant will be contacted to discuss possible project and/or budget revisions. Eligible agencies are permitted to submit one application per year to potentially receive a 12-month grant award. Applicants can only have two “active” grant contracts.

The funding period will be 12 months in duration beginning May 30th, 2025, unless an alternative project start date is agreed upon by the awardee and Sequatchie County Finance Director in consultation with Sequatchie County OIC.

Allowable Uses of Funds & Funding Restrictions

Please refer to state mandated uses/restrictions.  Awarded funds cannot be used for administrative or indirect costs. Activities must meet the definition of opioid remediation, be evidence – based strategies or promising practices, and align with the core strategies and allowable uses outlined by Exhibit E. Priority will be given to organizations providing services in the flowing areas: 

1. Primary Prevention
2. Treatment
3. Recovery Support

Requirements if Awarded Funding

Organizations awarded funding are required to: 

• Utilize funds within the defined funding period as agreed upon in the contract. If those funds are not used as agreed in the contract the applicant may
  • Return any remaining funds to the Sequatchie County OIC at the end of the funding period,
• OR​
  • Request and extension to use the funds past the funding period, OR
  • Request an amendment to their current contract to use the remaining funds for additional strategies
• Ensure utilization of funds supplements, rather than supplants, existing funding
• Ensure all funds are used in alignment with remediation uses approved by the TN Opioid Abatement Council as described above
• Ensure funds are not used for administrative or indirect costs
• Provide data on program outputs, outcomes, impact, and effectiveness as determined by the Sequatchie County OIC
• Complete and submit required quarterly and annual reports to the county

Reporting Requirements

Organizations should provide quarterly progress reports to starting September 12th, 2025, or 14 days after the first project quarter if an alternative date is agreed upon. The reports must outline the following:

• Staff working on the project
• Community partners involved with the project
• Challenges and barriers experienced within the associated time frame
• Successes experienced within the associated time frame
• Anticipated next steps
• Strategies addressed
• Number of Sequatchie County residents served within settlement funding
• All project-specific metrics determined by the Sequatchie County OIC

An annual report is to be provided at project close by June 12th, 2026 or 30 days after project close if an alternative date is agreed upon. The annual report must include all the above data and be submitted to