Mount Vernon council awards grant to Integrated Outreach Services to help fill vacancies

The Mount Vernon City Council chose Wednesday to award the police department's Integrated Outreach Services team with the city's $100,000 Opioid Settlement Funds grant.

Integrated Outreach Services, or IOS, is a team of social workers who work within the city's police department to serve as first responders in situations where somebody may be struggling with addiction or mental health issues.

The $100,000 grant will be used to give signing and retention bonuses to new hires and current IOS staff, enter a partnership with Skagit Friendship House and purchase two police radios for IOS interns.

IOS was one of three applicants for the Opioid Settlement Funds grant.

Community Action of Skagit County applied for a $100,000 grant to expand its opioid street outreach program. Mount Vernon Hope Coalition partnered with Children of the Valley to apply for a $20,000 grant to expand substance-use prevention programming in local middle schools.

The city council heard presentations from all three applicants at its April 22 meeting.

During his presentation April 22, Mount Vernon Police Lt. Dave Shackleton told the council that $60,000 of the $100,000 grant would be used for signing and retention bonuses for IOS staff.

He said the bonuses will help fill vacant positions within IOS as the city looks to fill the positions by the end of the year.

IOS has three full-time staff, but has operated with several vacancies for years. IOS currently has three vacancies, but is now accepting applications for the positions as of April 24.

Shackleton presented comparisons to the annual salaries of similar social worker positions in the state.

An IOS position's annual salary ranges from $72,000 to $85,000. Of the eight social worker positions Shackleton presented, the $72,000 low-end IOS salary was the second lowest - only Whatcom County's Alternative Response Team ranked lower.

The $85,000 high-end salary was the lowest of the eight social worker positions.

Shackleton said that new hires will receive a $5,000 signing bonus and another $5,000 bonus upon completing probation. Current IOS members will receive a flat $10,000 bonus.

IOS will also use $30,000 of the grant to enter an agreement with Skagit Friendship House to reserve one of Skagit First Step Center's three law enforcement drop-off cabins for a year.

The agreement with Skagit Friendship will ensure that at least one cabin is always available for the Mount Vernon Police Department and IOS.

Local law enforcement can use the cabins to provide somebody with overnight shelter. The cabins can also be used as bridge housing, Shackleton said, giving somebody a place to stay while they wait to be admitted into a treatment rehabilitation center.

In 2025, the Mount Vernon Police Department and IOS made use of the law enforcement cabins 191 times. The Burlington Police Department and the Skagit County Sheriff combined to use the cabins 178 times.

The remaining $10,000 will be used to purchase two police radios, one for each IOS intern.

Shackleton said interns are currently using spare radios, but these radios aren't dedicated to the intern, which can create issues should they get into a dangerous situation.

"Having some (radios) that are dedicated to our interns is really important for their safety," Shackleton said.

If an intern were to get into a dangerous situation and is unable to call for help vocally, having a dedicated radio can help dispatch and the other officers identify who needs help, Shackleton said.

Shackleton told the council that the grant would help bolster IOS, effectively strengthening the police department and the city.

"This team has been so beneficial to the city, and what they're doing really moves the police department closer to achieving our vision of safe and enjoyable community living," he said. "We could tell stories for hours of the positive difference they're creating in our community."

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This story was originally published May 2, 2026 at 7:03 AM.