BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
Senator Loni Hancock, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: SB 515 Hearing Date: April 28, 2015
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|Author: |Beall |
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|Version: |April 6, 2015 |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
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|Consultant:|AA |
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Subject: Grant Programs
HISTORY
Source: Author
Prior Legislation:Proposition 47 - passed by the voters in
November 2014
Support: Unknown
Opposition:None Known
PURPOSE
The purpose of this bill is to require that at least two-thirds
of the grant funding administered by the Board of State and
Community Services under Proposition 47 be allocated to "public
behavioral health agencies, or other public agencies that
provide behavioral health services, that will use the grant
funds to provide evidence-based mental health services and
substance use disorder treatment services that are provided by
licensed or certified behavioral health professionals and
counselors."
Current law reflects the provisions of Proposition 47, also
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known as the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act, which was
approved by the voters in November 2014. Proposition 47 reduced
the penalties for certain drug and property crimes and directed
that the resulting state savings be directed to mental health
and substance abuse treatment, truancy and dropout prevention,
and victims' services, as specified. The initiative also made
additional changes to criminal laws. (See Legislative
Analyst's Office analysis of Proposition 47,
http://www.lao.ca.gov/ ballot/2014/prop-47-110414.pdf.)
Current law, as enacted by Proposition 47, requires that by
August 15 of each fiscal year beginning in 2016, the Controller
shall disburse moneys deposited in the Safe Neighborhoods and
Schools Fund as follows:
(1) Twenty-five percent to the State Department of
Education, to administer a grant program to public agencies
aimed at improving outcomes for public school pupils in
kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, by reducing
truancy and supporting students who are at risk of dropping
out of school or are victims of crime.
(2) Ten percent to the California Victim Compensation and
Government Claims Board, to make grants to trauma recovery
centers to provide services to victims of crime pursuant to
Section 13963.1 of the Government Code.
(3) Sixty-five percent to the Board of State and Community
Corrections, to administer a grant program to public
agencies aimed at supporting mental health treatment,
substance abuse treatment, and diversion programs for
people in the criminal justice system, with an emphasis on
programs that reduce recidivism of people convicted of less
serious crimes, such as those covered by this measure, and
those who have substance abuse and mental health problems.
(Government Code § 7599.2(a).)
This bill would require that of the 65 percent allocated to the
BSCC to administer, at least two-thirds of the grant funding
would be required to be allocated to "public behavioral health
agencies, or other public agencies that provide behavioral
health services, that will use the grant funds to provide
evidence-based mental health services and substance use disorder
treatment services that are provided by licensed or certified
behavioral health professionals and counselors."
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COMMENTS
1.Stated Need for This Bill
The author states:
Prop 47 requires savings accrued from the
implementation of the act be deposited into a newly
created Safe Neighborhoods & Schools Fund beginning in
August, 2016. These dollars will be allocated
exclusively for three purposes:
" 65% for mental health treatment, drug
treatment, and other diversion programs to be
disbursed to the Board of State and Community
Corrections (BSCC) to administer a grant program
to fund public agencies that support mental
health treatment, substance abuse treatment, and
diversion programs for people in the criminal
justice system.
" 25% for programs designed to improve
outcomes for K-12 public school students by
reducing truancy and supporting students who are
at risk of dropping out or are victims of crime.
" 10% for trauma recovery centers to provide
services to victims of crime.
The Legislative Analyst Office (LAO) estimates annual
state savings from Prop 47 will range from $100 to
$200 million beginning in 2016-17. Although local
savings accrued from Prop 47 are anticipated to be
much higher than state savings because the percentage
of individuals eligible Prop 47 in their system is
much greater, Prop 47 only applies to state savings.
Recently, the LAO made several recommendations
relating to the successful implementation of Prop 47.
SB 515 addresses one of those recommendations.
Specifically, the LAO recommends the State Legislature
prioritize how Prop 47 savings will be spent and
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identify which types of organizations will receive
grant funds in the event the BSCC receives more grant
application than funding available.
SB 515 requires the BSCC to allocate at least
two-thirds of the grant funding to public behavioral
health agencies or other public agencies that provided
behavioral health services to fund evidence-based
mental health services and substance use disorder
treatment services. Furthermore, SB 515 requires
services be provided by licensed or certified
behavioral health professionals or counselors.
SB 515 recognizes that a significant number of
individuals eligible under Prop 47 suffer from one or
more mental health or substance abuse disorders and
will need access to treatment and services upon their
release from custody.
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, 56
percent of state prisoners and 64 percent of jail
inmates nationwide were clinically diagnosed as having
a mental disorder, received treatment by a mental
health professional, or experienced symptoms of a
mental disorder in the previous 12 months.
The number of individuals with a substance use
disorder is even greater. According to the most recent
California Rehabilitation Oversight Board (C-ROB
report), 65.7 percent of offenders who have received a
needs assessment have a moderate to high need for
substance use treatment services.
Research shows access to treatment is most cost
effective use of limited funds. According to a Health
Research and Education Trust study, on average,
substance abuse treatment costs $1,583 and is
associated with a monetary benefit to society of
$11,487, representing a greater than 7:1 ratio of
benefits to costs.
Furthermore, building mental health and substance use
community treatment capacity makes California's
in-prison treatment investments more cost-effective. A
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2007 press release issued by the California Office of
Inspector General inmates pointed to a study that
showed in-prison treatment followed by at least 90
days of community-based aftercare had significantly
lower recidivism rates than nonparticipants.
1. What This Bill Would Do; Additional Considerations
Proposition 47, also known as the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools
Act, was approved by the voters in November 2014. Proposition
47 made a number of changes in criminal penalties and provided
that the resulting state savings be directed to mental health
and substance abuse treatment, truancy and dropout prevention,
and victims' services. (See Legislative Analyst's Office
analysis of Proposition 47,
http://www.lao.ca.gov/ballot/2014/prop-47-110414.pdf.)
Proponents of Proposition 47 submitted in part:
Proposition 47 is sensible. It focuses law
enforcement dollars on violent and serious crime while
providing new funding for education and crime
prevention programs that will make us all safer. . . .
Proposition 47 stops wasting money on warehousing
people in prisons for nonviolent petty crimes, saving
hundreds of millions of taxpayer funds every year. . .
. (Proposition 47) dictates the massive savings to
crime prevention strategies in K-12 schools,
assistance for victims of crime, and mental health
treatment and drug treatment to stop the cycle of
crime.<1>
As explained above, savings attributed to the sentencing
changes in Proposition 47 are split, with 25 percent for
education, 10 percent for victim services, and 65 percent
for a "grant program to public agencies aimed at supporting
mental health treatment, substance abuse treatment, and
diversion programs for people in the criminal justice
system, with an emphasis on programs that reduce recidivism
of people convicted of less serious crimes, such as those
covered by this measure, and those who have substance abuse
and mental health problems."
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<1> Ballot argument in favor of Proposition 47
(http://vig.cdn.sos.ca.gov/2014/general/pdf/proposition-47-argume
nts-rebuttals.pdf.)
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This bill would require that at least two-thirds of this 65
percent be allocated to public behavioral health agencies,
or other public agencies that provide behavioral health
services, that would use the grant funds to provide the
following:
evidence-based mental health services and
substance use disorder treatment services that are
provided by licensed or certified behavioral health
professionals and counselors.
Members may wish to discuss whether marshalling these
savings as a statewide, statutory priority would be
consistent with the somewhat broader language in the
initiative. As underscored by the author, data and
research illustrate the prevalence of behavior and
substance use disorder among criminal offenders. The
legislature has responded by supporting many efforts
designed to address this population, most recently with the
passage and funding of SB 1054 (Steinberg), the mentally
ill offender crime reduction grants. There also are other
valuable and needed assets for effectively addressing the
criminogenic needs of offender populations in the community
and reducing recidivism, such as housing assistance and
restorative justice programs. Members of the Committee and
the author may wish to consider whether codifying statewide
principles and objectives designed to strengthen the
ability and flexibility of local communities to identify
their needs, together with program fidelity and
accountability, might provide an enhanced level of
statewide leadership and direction for assuring the
Proposition 47 savings are reinvested as effectively as
possible.
SHOULD TWO-THIRDS OF THE PROPOSITION 47 FUNDING DEDICATED
TO MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT, SUBSTANCE ABUSE TREATMENT AND
DIVERSION PROGRAMS FOR LOW LEVEL OFFENDERS, BE ALLOCATED
FOR EVIDENCE-BASED MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES AND SUBSTANCE USE
DISORDER TREATMENT?
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