BILL NUMBER: AB 2017 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 19, 2016
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 16, 2016
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 2, 2016
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 27, 2016
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 7, 2016
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 30, 2016
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member McCarty
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Bonta, Chang, Cristina Garcia,
Gonzalez, and Levine)
(Coauthors: Senators Hancock and Pan)
FEBRUARY 16, 2016
An act to add and repeal Part 3.3 (commencing with Section 5832)
of Division 5 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to
mental health.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2017, as amended, McCarty. College Mental Health Services
Program.
Existing law, the Mental Health Services Act, an initiative
measure enacted by the voters as Proposition 63 at the November 2,
2004, statewide general election, funds a system of county mental
health plans for the provision of mental health services, as
specified. Existing law provides for the operation and administration
of various mental health programs at a statewide and county level,
as specified.
This bill, until January 1, 2022, would establish the
College Mental Health Services Trust Account. The bill would make
moneys in the account available to the State Department of Health
Care Services, require the Mental Health Services
Oversight and Accountability Commission, subject to
appropriation by the Legislature, for purposes of creating
to create a grant program for public community
colleges, colleges, and universities to improve
for purposes of improving access to mental health services
on those campuses, as specified. The bill would require campuses
that have been awarded grants under these provisions to report
annually on the use of those grant funds and to post that information
on their Internet Web sites. The bill would also require the
department commission to submit a
report to the Legislature evaluating the impact of the program, as
specified. The bill would require that evaluation to
be conducted by a public or private research university or institute
in this state, and w ould require the Department of
Finance to assist the commission in issuing a request for proposal
for that contract.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) Students, faculty, health practitioners, and college
administrators are reporting increased rates of mental health needs
by students attending public colleges in California.
(b) One in four students has a diagnosable mental illness and 40
percent of students do not seek mental health services when they need
it.
(c) Eight out of 10 people who experience psychosis have their
first episode between 15 and 30 years of age.
(d) The demand for mental health services by public college
students far outpaces the ability of colleges to provide them.
California public college campuses and higher education systems do
not meet national staffing standards for psychiatric services and
other mental health professionals.
(e) The lack of services directly impacts college students'
success and academic performance as well as their ability to develop
socially as productive members of society.
(f) The effects of untreated mental health needs are long lasting
and can include college students dropping out of school, experiencing
homelessness, and dying of suicide.
(g) One in 10 college students has considered suicide and suicide
is the second leading cause of death among college students, claiming
more than 1,100 lives every year nationally.
(h) Research shows that for each dollar invested in student
prevention and early intervention mental health services, California
will see a return of at least $6 and up to $11 as a result
of more students graduating.
(i) Under the Prevention and Early Intervention component of the
Mental Health Services Act, subdivision (b) of Section 3706 of Title
9 of the California Code of Regulations states that at least 51
percent of the Prevention and Early Intervention Fund shall be used
to serve individuals who are 25 years old or younger.
(j) Since the approval of the Mental Health Services Act in 2004,
there has been limited interaction between college campuses and
county mental health departments. It is the purpose of this act to
foster partnerships between counties and college campuses to better
address the mental health needs of their students.
SEC. 2. Part 3.3 (commencing with Section 5832) is added to
Division 5 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read:
PART 3.3. College Mental Health Services Program
5832. This part shall be known, and may be cited, as the College
Mental Health Services Program Act.
5832.1. There is hereby established in the State
Treasury the College Mental Health Services Trust Account. Moneys in
the account shall be available, upon appropriation by the
Legislature, to the State Department of Health Care Services
Moneys shall be available, upon appropriation by the
Legislature, to the Mental Health Services Oversight and
Accountability Commission to fund the grant program established
pursuant to this part.
5832.2. (a) The department commission
shall create a grant program for public community colleges,
colleges, and universities, in collaboration with county behavioral
health departments, to improve access to mental health services and
early identification or intervention programs. The
department commission shall establish grant
program guidelines and shall develop a request for application (RFA).
The RFA shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following:
(1) Eligibility standards of applicants in order to qualify to be
considered for a grant award.
(2) Required program components to be included in the grant
application, which may include, but are not limited to:
(A) The ability of the program to meet the needs of students that
cannot be met through existing funds.
(B) The ability of the program to fund the matching component
required by subdivision (f).
(C) The ability of the campus, in partnership with the local
county, to establish direct linkages for students to community-based
mental health services.
(D) The ability of the campus to address direct services
including, but not limited to, increasing staff to student ratios and
decreasing wait times.
(E) The ability to participate in evidence-based and
community-defined best practice programs for mental health services
improvements.
(3) Preferred program components to be included in the grant
application, which may include, but are not limited to:
(A) The ability of the campus to serve underserved and vulnerable
populations.
(B) The ability of the campus, in partnership with the local
county, to establish direct linkages for students to community-based
mental health services for which reimbursement is available through
the students' health coverage.
(C) The ability of the campus to reduce racial disparities in
access to mental health services.
(D) The ability of the campus to fund mental health stigma
reduction activities.
(E) The ability of the campus to provide employees and students
with education and training on early identification, intervention,
and referral of students with mental health needs.
(F) The ability of the campus to screen students receiving other
health care services and provide linkages to services from the
appropriate mental health provider based on the health insurance
status of that student, for those students who are shown to have a
need for services.
(G) Evidence of an existing or planned partnership between the
campus and the county behavioral health department to address complex
mental health needs of students based on their health insurance
status and based on the extent to which there are students whose
needs cannot be met through their health plan, health insurance, or
Medi-Cal.
(H) Evidence of an existing or planned partnership between the
campus and local safety net providers to ensure linkages to primary
care and community-based mental health care, regardless of the health
insurance status of the student.
(4) Articulation of grant program goals and expected outcomes.
(5) Required reporting and evaluation standards to be met by
applicants that are selected for a grant award.
(6) Timelines and deadlines for grant applications and anticipated
funding award determinations.
(b) Colleges, in collaboration with their local county behavioral
health department, shall submit their grant application to the
department commission according to the
guidelines adopted pursuant to subdivision (a).
(c) To the extent that an application follows the guidelines
adopted pursuant to subdivision (a) and specifically states what
activities shall be undertaken in accordance with those guidelines,
the department commission shall have
the authority to approve grant programs and shall award funding.
(d) Grants may be awarded to a community college district in the
California Community College system, a campus within the California
State University system, or a campus within the University of
California system, or a grouping of campuses within the segments.
(e) Total available grant funding to colleges by segment shall be
proportional to the number of students served by that segment but, in
no case shall the department commission
award more than five million dollars ($5,000,000) per campus,
per application.
(f) Grants shall only be awarded to a campus or campuses
that can show a dollar-for-dollar match of funds or another
match to be determined by the department,
commi ssion, in consultation with the applicant,
based on resources and existing mental health needs of students from
the campus. campus or campuses.
Matching funds can include in-kind funds, student health fee funds
after notification to the student association, and other appropriate
funds as determined by the department
commission and pursuant to the guidelines adopted pursuant to
subdivision (a).
(g) Grants shall be awarded to applicants on a competitive basis
based on their ability to meet the application standards and
prioritization of these standards as determined by the
department commission through the development of
the RFA guidelines adopted pursuant to subdivision (a).
(h) Individual grant award allocations shall be expended over at
least one year but not to exceed three years, as determined by the
department commission through the grant
award process.
(i) Administrative costs associated with administering an approved
program shall be limited to 5 percent of the total grant amount for
any grantee. Administrative costs incurred by the department
commission to administer this program
shall be reimbursed from the College Mental Health Services Trust
Account, and shall not exceed 5 percent of the total funds
expended annually from the account. annually.
(j) The funding provided pursuant to this part shall not be used
to supplant existing campus, state, or county funds utilized to
provide mental health services.
(k) The department commission shall
provide technical assistance to smaller colleges and county
behavioral health departments upon request during the application
process to ensure equitable distribution of the grant award.
5832.3. (a) Community colleges, campuses in the California State
University, and campuses in the University of California system that
have been awarded grants pursuant to this part shall report annually
on the use of grant funds to the department
commission and post the annual report on the use of the funds
on their Internet Web sites. This report shall include, but not be
limited to, all of the following:
(1) How grant funds and matching funds are being used.
(2) Available evaluation data, including outcomes of the campus
mental health programs funded pursuant to the grant program.
(3) Program information regarding services being offered and the
number of individuals being served.
(4) Plans for sustainability of mental health programming beyond
the funding from the College Mental Health Services Trust
Account. this part.
(b) The campuses shall electronically submit the reports required
pursuant to subdivision (a), annually, to the appropriate Chancellor'
s offices and the University of California Office of the President.
5832.4. (a) The department shall develop an evaluation
plan to assess the impact of the program. Upon an
appropriation of funds for the purposes of this section, the
commission shall contract with a public or private research
university or institute in this state to evaluate the program. The
commission shall develop the research design and issue a request for
proposal for a contract for the evaluation, with the assistance of
the Department of Finance. The commission shall develop an evaluation
plan to assess the impact of the program.
(b) The commission shall submit the final research design and
request for proposal required by subdivision (a) to the chairperson
of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee no more 30 days prior to
executing a contract for the evaluation.
(b)
(c) The department, commission,
in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code, shall
submit a report the evaluation established in
subdivision (a) to the Legislature by February 1,
2021, 2019, and annually thereafter by no later than
February 1 of each year, evaluating the impact of the program
and providing recommendations for further implementation. The
department commission shall make the
report available to the public and shall post the report on its
Internet Web site. The report shall include, but not be limited
to, the following:
(1) A financial accounting of all funds awarded, disbursed to
grant recipients, and remaining to be allocated.
(2) Available evaluation data, including outcomes of the mental
health programs funded pursuant to the grant program.
(3) Program information regarding services being offered and the
number of individuals being served.
(4) Plans for sustainability of mental health programming beyond
the funding from the grant program.
(5) A financial accounting of all administrative expenditures by
the commission.
5832.5. This part shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2022, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2022, deletes or extends
that date.