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CITY OF NORTH OLMSTED <br />RESOLUTION NO. 2018 - 88 <br />BY: Mayor Kennedy, Council President Jones and Councilmembers Kearney, <br />Williamson, Limpert, Brossard, Glassburn, Schumann and Hemann. <br />A RESOLUTION DECLARING THE OPIOID EPIDEMIC A PUBLIC <br />NUISANCE IN THE CITY OF NORTH OLMSTED, AND <br />DECLARING AN EMERGENCY. <br />WHEREAS, the opioid epidemic is sweeping the country. Indeed, addiction to <br />and abuse of opioids is one of the greatest challenges facing City of North Olmsted (the <br />"City"). A cause of this increasing crisis is the overabundance of prescription opioids. <br />Vast amounts of prescription opioids were sold, distributed, and prescribed in the City <br />over the past several years, a practice that continues today. The selling, distributing, and <br />prescribing of large amounts of opioids in our community has created a public health and <br />safety hazard affecting the residents of North Olmsted; and <br />WHEREAS, this crisis has devastated families, wreaked havoc on our economy, <br />and produced a generation of narcotic dependence. As a result of the opioid epidemic, <br />costs related to healthcare, family and social services, criminal justice, addiction and <br />rehabilitation, and many other areas have significantly increased. Many of these costs are <br />paid by the tax payers, through the City; and <br />WHEREAS, the purpose and intent of this legislation is to allow the City to <br />recover these costs, despite the existence of the common-law municipal cost recovery <br />rule (a.k.a. free public services doctrine) and declare the opioid epidemic and its effects <br />on the City a public nuisance. Specifically, the City provides services related to the <br />opioid epidemic, which are funded by tax revenues. This statute clarifies that <br />reimbursement may be sought for the costs of providing such services, whenever <br />practicable, from the responsible party. To accomplish this, the City establishes this cost <br />recovery procedure and declares the opioid epidemic and its effects on the City of North <br />Olmsted a public nuisance; and <br />NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY <br />OF NORTH OLSMTED, COUNTY OF CUYAHOGA, AND STATE OF OHIO: <br />SECTION 1: I. Definitions. <br />"Costs" means all expenditures related to the opioid epidemic that directly or indirectly <br />arise from the City's response to a responsible party's action or inaction. <br />"Responsible party" means any person or corporation whose negligent, intentional, or <br />otherwise wrongful conduct causes the incident resulting in the City incurring costs or <br />