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2017 Regular Session
SENATE BILL NO. 187
BY SENATOR HEWITT
Prefiled pursuant to Article III, Section 2(A)(4)(b)(i) of the Constitution of Louisiana.
FISCAL CONTROLS. Provides for establishment of a pilot evidence-based budget proposal
process for mental health programs administered by the Louisiana Department of Health.
(7/1/17)
1 AN ACT
2 To enact R.S. 39:2(13.1), (33.1), (36.1), (36.2), (37.1), (37.2), (37.3), (40.1), and 87.7 and
3 to repeal R.S. 39:2(38) and (39), relative to the budget process; to provide for the
4 development of evidence-based budgeting practices that will enable data-driven
5 budget decisions in selected policy areas; to require legislative staff of the Senate and
6 the House of Representatives to develop guidelines for the establishment of a pilot
7 evidence-based budget proposal process for adult mental health programs; to provide
8 for the submission to and approval of the guidelines by the Joint Legislative
9 Committee on the Budget; to provide for certain terms and definitions; to provide for
10 an effective date; and to provide for related matters.
11 Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
12 Section 1. R.S. 39:2(13.1), (33.1), (36.1), (36.2), (37.1), (37.2), (37.3), (40.1), and
13 87.7 are hereby enacted to read as follows:
14 §2. Definitions
15 As used in this Chapter, except where the context clearly requires otherwise,
16 the words and expressions defined in this Section shall be held to have the meanings
17 here given to them.
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1 * * *
2 (13.1) "Evidence-based program" means a program or practice that has
3 had multiple site random controlled trials across heterogeneous populations
4 demonstrating that the program or practice is effective for the population.
5 * * *
6 (33.1) "Other programs and activities" means all programs and activities
7 that do not fit the definition of evidence-based, research-based, or promising
8 practices programs.
9 * * *
10 (38)(36.1) "Performance-based budget" means a budget which relates funding
11 to expected results.
12 (39)(36.2) "Performance standard" means the expected level of performance
13 associated with a particular performance indicator for a particular period.
14 * * *
15 (37.1) "Program catalogue" means a compendium of programs compiled
16 by a reputable source that publishes information for use by the government.
17 (37.2) "Program inventory" means the complete list of all proposed
18 agency programs and activities that meet any definition set out in this Section.
19 (37.3) "Promising practices" means a practice that presents, based upon
20 preliminary information, potential for becoming a research-based or
21 evidence-based program or practice.
22 * * *
23 (38) "Performance-based budget" means a budget which relates funding to
24 expected results.
25 (39) "Performance standard" means the expected level of performance
26 associated with a particular performance indicator for a particular period.
27 * * *
28 (40.1) "Research-based program" means a program or practice that has
29 some research demonstrating effectiveness, but that does not yet meet the
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1 standard of evidence-based practices.
2 * * *
3 §87.7. Evidence-based budget process
4 A. Legislative staff of the Senate and the House of Representatives shall
5 develop guidelines to incorporate the provisions of this Section to establish a
6 pilot evidence-based budget proposal process for adult mental health programs
7 administered by the Louisiana Department of Health. The guidelines shall be
8 submitted to the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget on or before July
9 1, 2018, for review and approval. The proposal shall include guidelines to utilize
10 program catalogues, program inventory, promising practices, and research-
11 based programs. No later than July 1, 2019, when possible, the Louisiana
12 Department of Health shall use the guidelines for evidence-based budgeting to
13 select programs for the delivery of care for adult mental health.
14 B. The legislative staff of the Senate and the House of Representatives
15 shall work in conjunction with the Louisiana Department of Health to:
16 (1) Inventory programs.
17 (2) Categorize all agency programs and activities as evidence-based,
18 research-based, promising practices, or other programs and activities with no
19 evidence of effectiveness, and compile them into an agency program inventory.
20 In categorizing programs, the staffs may consult the Washington State Institute
21 for Public Policy's Evidence-Based Practices Institute's program catalogue, the
22 Results First Clearinghouse Database, or any other comparable catalogue of
23 evidence-based programs.
24 Section 2. R.S. 39:2(38) and (39) are hereby repealed.
25 Section 3. This Act shall become effective on July 1, 2017.
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The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Ben Huxen.
DIGEST
SB 187 Engrossed 2017 Regular Session Hewitt
Proposed law provides that the legislative staff of the Senate and the House of
Representatives shall develop guidelines to incorporate the provisions of the proposed law
to establish a pilot evidence-based budget proposal process for adult mental health programs
administered by the Louisiana Department of Health. The guidelines shall be submitted to
the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget on or before July 1, 2018, for review and
approval. The proposal shall include guidelines to utilize program catalogues, program
inventory, promising practices, and research-based programs. No later than July 1, 2019,
when possible, the Louisiana Department of Health shall use the guidelines for
evidence-based budgeting to select programs for the delivery of care for adult mental health.
Proposed law provides that the legislative staff of the Senate and the House of
Representatives shall work in conjunction with the Louisiana Department of Health to:
(1)Inventory programs.
(2)Categorize all agency programs and activities as evidence-based, research-based,
promising practices, or other programs and activities with no evidence of
effectiveness, and compile them into an agency program inventory. In categorizing
programs, the staffs may consult the Washington State Institute for Public Policy's
Evidence-Based Practices Institute's program catalogue, the Results First
Clearinghouse Database, or any other comparable catalogue of evidence-based
programs.
(3)Determine benefit-cost ratios for all evidence-based programs in the selected policy
areas.
Effective July 1, 2017.
(Adds R.S. 39:2(13.1), (33.1), (36.1), (36.2), (37.1), (37.2), (37.3), (40.1), and 87.7; repeals
R.S. 39:2(38) and (39))
Summary of Amendments Adopted by Senate
Committee Amendments Proposed by Senate Committee on Finance to the original
bill
1. Deletes provisions providing that, beginning with the Fiscal Year 2019
budget cycle, the Legislative Fiscal Office shall require all agencies with
responsibilities to deliver services in the areas of child welfare, mental
health, and substance abuse (including local entities that receive state funding
for these areas), to comply with certain requirements with respect to the
inventorying of agency programs and the computation of benefit-cost ratios
for use in the budgeting process.
2. Deletes provisions requiring the Legislative Fiscal Office to report to the
Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget the results of all activities, with
recommendations for further evaluation of research-based or promising
practices programs, the elimination or replacement of ineffective programs,
and the funding of effective programs, based on benefit-cost ratios and the
learnings gained.
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3. Deletes provisions specifying that the Joint Legislative Committee on the
Budget may incorporate such recommendations into the Fiscal Year 2019
budget and appropriations bills, or delay such incorporation until the
committee is satisfied that the information collected and inventoried will
enhance accountability and performance measurement for the programs and
activities of state agencies.
4. Deletes provisions requiring the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget
to, no later than the 2020 Regular Session of the Legislature, make a
recommendation to the legislature regarding the application of the processes
and requirements of this Section to other policy areas with evidenced-based
programs.
5. Changes responsibility from the Legislative Fiscal Office to the legislative
staff of the Senate and the House of Representatives.
6. Requires that legislative staff of the Senate and the House of Representatives
shall develop guidelines to incorporate the provisions of the proposed law to
establish a pilot evidence-based budget proposal process for adult mental
health programs administered by the Louisiana Department of Health. The
guidelines shall be submitted to the Joint Legislative Committee on the
Budget on or before July 1, 2018, for review and approval. The proposal
shall include guidelines to utilize program catalogues, program inventory,
promising practices, and research-based programs. No later than July 1,
2019, when possible, the Louisiana Department of Health shall use the
guidelines for evidence-based budgeting to select programs for the delivery
of care for adult mental health.
Page 5 of 5
Coding: Words which are struck through are deletions from existing law;
words in boldface type and underscored are additions.