Council hears MPACT update as funding cutoff looms

The now well-established Marshalltown Police and Community Team (MPACT) program, which embeds social workers from YSS of Marshall County within the police department and, as of earlier this year, the sheriff's office to handle non-criminal, non-emergent calls for service, is at a crossroads with the bulk of its current funding set to expire at the end of 2026. During Monday night's city council meeting, YSS of Marshall County Senior Director of Community Engagement David Hicks shared his latest update on MPACT and discussed what lies ahead amidst an uncertain future.

The vast majority of MPACT's current funding comes from the city of Marshalltown at $150,000 a year, which it has received since its inception in 2021 through a combination of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) and Local Option Sales Tax (LOST) dollars. Unless a new allocation is approved, it will expire at the end of the year.

The program also received $125,000 in opioid settlement funds from Marshall County to add a third, countywide advocate, Riley Robinson, who serves alongside Suzy Reed and Tiffany Beadle. Beyond that, MPACT has received support from the Marshalltown Area United Way (MAUW), the Community Foundation of Marshall County (CFMC) and private donors including churches and individuals.

During his presentation Monday, Hicks noted that the most frequent calls remain homelessness (23 percent), mental health (20 percent) and domestic violence situations (15 percent), and so far this year, they have assisted on five calls related to deaths from suicide, fire and severe vehicle accidents.

"MPACT continues to kind of expand its operation, so to speak, providing services in areas that we didn't really think MPACT would be responding to early on in the program," he said.

Of the 221 calls they have responded to during the most recent quarter, law enforcement has returned to the field after all of them, and 29 nights of hotel stays involving 27 people have been provided. The results of an annual survey with officers from the MPD showed overwhelming support for the program and its mission, with 95 percent saying yes when asked if the partnership should be continued.

Hicks then shifted the focus to funding and indicated that he is pursuing all available avenues.

"We are working on continuing the program into 2027. (It's) a little bit unknown at this point, but that's often the life of a nonprofit as we try and cobble funds together. Sometimes it's a patchwork quilt, and we're used to that. So we'll be prepared for whatever comes," he said.

Councilor Sue Cahill recalled a segment she had heard on National Public Radio (NPR) about a similar co-responder program in North Carolina and praised MPACT for its work.

"We're reaching populations that allow the officers to go back out into the field and do what they do, and that's law enforcement and public safety. And more importantly, we're providing services to people at the right time and right place," Hicks said.

Councilor Mark Mitchell asked how the advocates are "holding up" given the workload, and Hicks admitted that finding work-life balance in such a demanding job can be difficult -- though they are trying their best. Councilor Gary Thompson asked if there had been a reduction in "problem children" who the advocates have repeatedly helped over the years, and Hicks detailed some of the ways they interact with them, including those who call as often as once a week.

"If there's a secret sauce to this, it's the follow-up, it's the case management. It's sticking with them. It's being that contact as opposed to calling 911," Hicks said. "So yes, we've definitely moved people from chronic homelessness to being housed, chronic mental health to getting treatment, getting court committals in place, that sort of thing."

Police Chief Chris Jones then stepped to the microphone and said they have seen a decline in repeat calls for service due to MPACT, and he reiterated the "great need" for substance abuse and mental health treatment in Marshalltown.

"This kind of helps us bridge that gap and buy us some time so we can utilize the services that we have here locally and we don't have to require people to go outside of our community," Jones said.

Fire Chief Christopher Cross called MPACT a "multidisciplinary Swiss Army knife of goodness" that has also benefited his department, especially on EMS calls related to mental health and substance abuse.

"There's been numerous times, anecdotally, where we will call MPACT and they will know exactly the correct path out of the forest for this person," he said.

In response to a question from Councilor Marco Yepez-Gomez, Hicks said he is working to secure more opioid settlement funding along with the Iowa Primary Care Association, which coordinates behavioral health support across the state. A combination of funding from both sources, he believes, would keep the program going.

Hicks also noted that most of the federal funding available goes to new programs to help them get started, with local governments and organizations expected to sustain them from there.

"It's their approach, but why would you let a great program just kind of fall by the wayside when we've been nationally recognized, we've got data, we've had research done. So like Sue says, we are kind of a one of one, in many respects, across the nation. Something to be very proud of," he said.

Thompson asked how the budget had grown with the additional advocate, and Hicks estimated that it's about $250,000 for the advocates, two vehicles, supervisory staff, mileage, overtime, electronic medical records, supplies, maintenance for the vehicles and employee benefits.

In other business, the council:

Approved the consent agenda with the exception of two items that were pulled for further discussion and one that was removed entirely.

Approved a six-month extension for Linn Street Properties on the houses formerly located near the Marshalltown Public Library by a 6-1 vote, with Thompson opposed.

Approved plans and specifications for the flow equalization improvements for industrial pretreated wastewater project, which is estimated to cost about $1.9 million and be substantially completed by August of 2027.

Approved the third and final reading of an ordinance amendment related to collection vehicles by a 6-1 vote with Councilor Jeff Schneider opposed.

Contact Robert Maharry at (641) 753-6611 ext. 255 or rmaharry@timesrepublican.com.