BILL ANALYSIS
SB 1769
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Date of Hearing: June 27, 2000
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HEALTH
Martin Gallegos, Chair
SB 1769 (Chesbro) - As Amended: June 7, 2000
SENATE VOTE : 25-10
SUBJECT : Mental Health Courts
SUMMARY : Encourages counties to submit crime reduction grant
proposals that establish or implement mental health courts.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Permits the development and implementation of a mental health
court to be part of a county's Mentally Ill Offender Crime
Reduction (MIOCR) grant plan.
2)Requires the Board of Corrections (BOC) to encourage counties
to submit crime reduction grant proposals to establish or
implement a mental health court.
3)Requires a mental health court to meet specified criteria,
including providing a single point of contact where a
defendant with a mental disability may receive court-ordered
treatment and support services in connection with a diversion
from prosecution, a sentencing alternative, or a term of
probation.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires BOC to award Mentally Ill Offender Crime Reduction
Grants on a competitive basis to counties that expand or
establish a continuum of swift, certain, and graduated
responses to reduce crime and criminal justice costs related
to mentally ill offenders.
2)Requires, as a condition of eligibility for a crime reduction
grant, a county to establish a strategy committee of law
enforcement and mental health representatives to develop a
comprehensive plan for providing a cost-effective continuum of
graduated responses for mentally ill offenders.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
SB 1769
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COMMENTS :
1)PURPOSE OF THIS BILL . The author is proposing this bill to
both reduce costs and to ensure that mentally ill offenders
are placed in appropriate treatment and compliance programs to
reduce recidivism among mentally ill offenders. The author
asserts that California spends $315 annually on persons with
mental illness who repeatedly end up in jail for what are
often minor violations.
2)SUPPORT . This bill is supported by the California Healthcare
Association (CHA), Families First, the Mental Health
Association in California, the Peace Officers Research
Association of California, the California Psychiatric
Association (CPA) and others. CHA notes that it is well
documented that a high percentage of jail and prison inmates
have serious mental disorders. CHA argues that mental health
courts offer an important avenue toward providing access to
treatment and breaking the cycle of repeated incarceration of
the mentally ill. CPA notes that programs in San Bernardino
and Placer Counties are being successful at moving mentally
ill persons from the criminal justice system into treatment.
3)RELATED LEGISLATION . There are numerous bills intended to
increase access to appropriate services for mentally ill
persons pending in the Legislature. SB 2062 (Perata) creates
mentally ill offender crime reduction grants for juveniles,
and is pending in the Rules Committee. The Health Committee
reserves the option of retrieving bills that do not resolve
policy or chaptering conflicts.
4)MENTAL HEALTH COURTS FUNDED IN BUDGET . The proposed 2000-2001
state budget approved by the Legislature includes a one-time
appropriation of $50 million for mental health courts.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Council of Community Mental Health Agencies
California Healthcare Association
California Psychological Association
California Psychiatric Association
Families First
Mental Health Association in California
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Peace Officers Research Association of California
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Ann Blackwood / HEALTH / (916) 319-2097