Lewiston has delayed a decision on regulating local syringe service programs until Sept. 16, extending a debate about how to address needle waste and respond to concerns from downtown business owners without negatively impacting public health.

The City Council on Tuesday continued a public hearing on proposed ordinance amendments until next month, and was not slated to discuss the topic, but several members of the public spoke out on the issue, sparking yet another debate at City Hall.

Last month, a majority of councilors appeared to support requiring the city’s two syringe service providers to shift to a 1-to-1 model, in which one clean syringe is given in exchange for a used one. The change has been opposed by state public health officials and advocates of a harm reduction model for people struggling with substance use disorder.

The ordinance also proposes to regulate where needle exchange programs can be located, leaving some concerned that the Church of Safe Injection, which operates on Main Street, will be forced out of downtown.

Courtney Gary-Allen, executive director of the Maine Recovery Action/Access Project and a city councilor in Augusta, said she’s “deeply concerned” with any proposal that would retroactively rezone an already operating syringe service program, effectively displacing it.

“This approach has the potential to expose the city of Lewiston to significant legal risk,” she said, arguing that because substance use disorder is considered a disability, removing resources through zoning could be seen as discriminatory.

However, officials have heard from several downtown business owners that the nearby Church of Safe Injection has caused continued public disturbances that have impacted clientele. Councilors said Tuesday that there needs to be a “balance” between protecting the general public and those dealing with substance use disorder.

A 2022 change moved away from a 1-to-1 needle exchange to a more needs-based model, under which programs can give out as many as 100 clean needles at a time. Public health officials say evidence shows that a 1-to-1 model is more likely to result in reusing of needles that can spread blood-borne diseases such as hepatitis C and HIV.

In early June, state officials asked Lewiston to work with them on the ordinance language, and appeared especially concerned with the 1-to-1 language, arguing that the current model is working to limit fatal overdoses.

Kari Taylor, a Naples resident who works with clients from Androscoggin, Oxford and Franklin counties, told the council that the solution “is not fewer syringes, it’s better and increased placement of disposal access.”

Councilor Sue Longchamps disagreed, saying she recently had a sharps disposal box removed from outside her business because it was often vandalized with people seeking to reuse dirty needles.

“We need to find some sort of balance,” she said. “All I hear is we need to protect the people who are using, and you’re right, but what about other people? If the organizations did a better job going out and picking up and the (Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention) did a better job of organizing those things, we probably wouldn’t be sitting here right now.”

Rosie Boyce, a Lewiston resident and interim board president for the Church of Safe Injection, said the organization’s clients come from all over Androscoggin County, and any decision “will ripple through the entire county.”

“Making a decision without the support of the broader community is irresponsible and shortsighted,” she said.

Councilor Eryn Soule-Leclair responded, “Our responsibility is not to the CDC and your program, it’s to the taxpayers and the businesses. It’s not about trying to get someone out of a certain location.”

Others said the city needs to defer to public health professionals regarding public health policy, and that Lewiston should consider using opioid settlement funds to help establish other programs.

Councilor Michael Roy said it seems like Lewiston is “trying to push (needle exchanges) out of where they’re really needed.”

Councilor Scott Harriman said officials “shouldn’t be dividing people into different categories.

“If we’re keeping some people in our community safe from infectious disease spread, we’re keeping the entire community safe,” he said. “I think we need to be listening to the policy experts on this and taking their advice.”

City Administrator Bryan Kaenrath said while the council was slated to take up the ordinance Sept. 2, he requested the item be moved to Sept. 16 due to staff availability.