BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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Date of Hearing: April 20, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Lorena Gonzalez, Chair
AB
1644 (Bonta) - As Amended April 14, 2016
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| | Health | | 18-0 |
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No
SUMMARY:
This bill recasts and renames the Early Mental Health Initiative
(EMHI) as the HEAL Trauma in Schools Act, expands the program to
serve preschool and transitional Kindergarten students, and
establishes the program for four years to provide outreach, free
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regional training, and technical assistance for local
educational agencies (LEAs) providing mental health services at
school sites. Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires the Department of Public Health (DPH), in
consultation with the Superintendent of Public Instruction
(SPI), the Director of Health Care Services, and the Attorney
General to encourage and support local decisions to provide
funding for eligible support services.
2)Requires LEAs to prioritize children who have been exposed to
childhood trauma, including students in foster care and those
who are homeless, when determining which students receive
services under the program.
3)Requires DPH to inform LEAs and county mental health agencies
of the program and provide free regional training to LEAs
including: intervention and prevention services, parent
involvement, teacher and staff conferences and training,
referral to outside resources, and use of paraprofessional
staff, counselors, and social workers.
4)Requires DPH to provide technical assistance to assist in
designing programs, training staff, conducting evaluations,
and leveraging funds that are subject to local control.
5)Requires DPH to prioritize training and technical assistance
as follows:
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a) During the first 12 months of the program, provide
support services at schoolsites that previously received
funding pursuant to the HEAL Trauma in Schools Act that
demonstrate the willingness and capacity to participate in
the program.
b) During the subsequent 36 months of the program, select
new schoolsites that are not providing eligible support
services but that demonstrate the willingness and capacity
to participate in the program.
6)Requires DPH to submit an interim report to the Legislature at
the end of the second year of the program that details support
provided to schoolsites and includes an assessment of the
demand and impact of funding for the HEAL Trauma in Schools
Act.
7)Requires DPH to develop an evaluation plan to assess the
impact of the program and submit a report to the Legislature
at the end of the four-year period to evaluate the impact of
the program and provide recommendations for further
implementation.
8)Makes implementation of the HEAL Trauma in Schools Act
contingent upon an appropriation in the annual budget act.
9)Sunsets the program on January 1, 2022.
FISCAL EFFECT:
1)General Fund administrative costs to the Department of Public
Health (DPH) of approximately $300,000 to oversee the program,
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provide outreach, free regional training, and technical
assistance to school sites over four years. DPH will also
incur costs related to interim reporting requirements and
final evaluation of program.
2)Proposition 98 General Fund cost pressure, likely in the
millions of dollars, to fund grants pursuant to the HEAL
Trauma in Schools Act. This bill specifies the program is
contingent upon an appropriation in the annual budget act.
Costs to administer program will depend upon the size and
scope of the grants. In prior years the state provided $15
million (Proposition 98/GF) to support a substantially similar
program, Early Mental Health Initiative (EMHI).
COMMENTS:
1)Background. Between 1991 and 2011, the state Department of
Mental Health (DMH) operated the Early Mental Health
Initiative (EMHI). Beginning with the 1997-98 fiscal year,
the state provided $15 million (Proposition 98/GF) in matching
grant funds to approximately 150 programs. Funds were
primarily used to hire trained paraprofessionals (aides) to
meet with children identified as needing support services.
Aides generally meet with each child, or group of children,
for 30 to 40 minutes, once a week to play games, draw or talk.
Small group settings also allow children to develop skills
such as making friends and resolving conflicts.
In 2012, DMH was eliminated and programs under the
department's jurisdiction were transferred to the Department
of Health Care Services. In the same year, Governor Brown
redirected Proposition 98 funds to local education agencies.
The following year the state created the Local Control Funding
Formula (LCFF) and eliminated approximately three quarters of
all K-12 categorical programs, representing a significant
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shift away from state control and toward local
decision-making.
The author is proposing to reinstate the components of the
EMHI program, renaming it the HEAL Trauma in Schools Act, and
expands the program to support students from preschool to
third grade.
2)Technical amendment. The bill gives priority for outreach and
assistance to schools that previously received funding under
the HEAL Trauma in Schools Act. This bill establishes the HEAL
Trauma in Schools Act. The author intended for priority to go
to prior EMHI grantees. Staff recommends a technical amendment
to clarify prior EHMI grantees receive first priority for
assistance.
3)Prior related legislation. AB 1133 (Achadjian) of this Session
would have established a program substantially similar to the
one proposed by this bill. It would have established a four
year pilot program, the School-Based Early Mental Health
Intervention and Prevention Services Support Program, to
provide outreach, free regional training, and technical
assistance for LEAs in providing mental health services at
school sites. This bill was held on the Suspense file in this
committee.
Analysis Prepared by:Misty Feusahrens / APPR. / (916)
319-2081
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