Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3553 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	87R7070 EAS-D
2	2	By: Neave H.B. No. 3553
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to a grant program for mobile crisis outreach teams.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 531, Government Code, is
10	10	amended by adding Section 531.09915 to read as follows:
11	11	Sec. 531.09915. GRANT PROGRAM FOR MOBILE CRISIS OUTREACH
12	12	TEAMS. (a) In this section, "mobile crisis outreach team" means a
13	13	group of mental health professionals who assist adults and children
14	14	who are experiencing a mental health crisis by providing a variety
15	15	of services.
16	16	(b) The executive commissioner shall establish and
17	17	administer a mobile crisis outreach team grant program to grant
18	18	money to municipalities and counties to establish local agencies
19	19	that, in partnership with local law enforcement and local mental
20	20	health authorities, provide an alternate response program under
21	21	which a mobile crisis outreach team may be deployed in the
22	22	municipality or county to appropriate situations determined not to
23	23	require police intervention, for the purpose of reducing the number
24	24	of incarcerations by the municipality or county of individuals
25	25	with:
26	26	(1) mental illness;
27	27	(2) substance use disorders; or
28	28	(3) intellectual or developmental disabilities.
29	29	(c) A grant application from a municipality or county to the
30	30	commission must be submitted on a form prescribed by the commission
31	31	and include a statement from the governing body of the municipality
32	32	or county regarding the municipal or county proposal to establish
33	33	an alternate response program that includes:
34	34	(1) training 9-1-1 emergency service dispatchers to
35	35	distinguish between situations in which the dispatcher must deploy
36	36	local law enforcement and situations in which a mobile crisis
37	37	outreach team may be deployed instead;
38	38	(2) creating collaborative training opportunities to
39	39	increase mental health and trauma awareness for emergency medical
40	40	services providers, local law enforcement, and mobile crisis
41	41	outreach teams;
42	42	(3) strengthening community engagement to raise
43	43	awareness about mobile crisis outreach teams, including by
44	44	establishing relationships between mobile crisis outreach teams
45	45	and:
46	46	(A) schools;
47	47	(B) child protective services providers;
48	48	(C) religious organizations;
49	49	(D) nonprofit food bank or food pantries;
50	50	(E) community health centers;
51	51	(F) recreation centers; and
52	52	(G) shelters designed to provide temporary
53	53	living accommodations, including:
54	54	(i) welfare hotels;
55	55	(ii) congregate shelters; and
56	56	(iii) transitional housing for persons with
57	57	mental illness;
58	58	(4) ensuring mobile crisis outreach teams provide
59	59	appropriate care to individuals, especially individuals who lack
60	60	adequate health insurance coverage, including by identifying
61	61	options for individuals to receive care through:
62	62	(A) shelters, as defined by Section 42.201, Human
63	63	Resources Code;
64	64	(B) crisis residential programs;
65	65	(C) treatment centers;
66	66	(D) after hours clinics; and
67	67	(E) inpatient and outpatient treatment programs;
68	68	(5) promoting access to any available free or
69	69	affordable care through community mental health services
70	70	providers;
71	71	(6) increasing the availability of public
72	72	transportation and other transportation options for individuals
73	73	who require mental health services;
74	74	(7) employing as mobile crisis outreach team members
75	75	individuals who:
76	76	(A) hold degrees in relevant behavioral health
77	77	fields and have received appropriate training to serve on a mobile
78	78	crisis outreach team; or
79	79	(B) are licensed mental health professionals;
80	80	and
81	81	(8) providing comprehensive and continuing training
82	82	to employees of mobile crisis outreach teams about:
83	83	(A) suicide;
84	84	(B) risk assessment;
85	85	(C) crisis intervention;
86	86	(D) issues relevant to marginalized populations;
87	87	and
88	88	(E) bias awareness.
89	89	(d) The executive commissioner shall develop criteria for
90	90	the evaluation of applications submitted under this section and the
91	91	selection of recipients for a grant under the mobile crisis
92	92	outreach team grant program. The executive commissioner shall award
93	93	grants on a competitive basis.
94	94	(e) A grant awarded under this section may not exceed $5
95	95	million.
96	96	(f) A municipality or county that receives a grant under
97	97	this section is required to leverage funds in an amount:
98	98	(1) equal to 50 percent of the grant amount if:
99	99	(A) the county has a population of less than
100	100	250,000; or
101	101	(B) the municipality is located in a county with
102	102	a population of less than 250,000;
103	103	(2) equal to 100 percent of the grant amount if:
104	104	(A) the county has a population of 250,000 or
105	105	more; or
106	106	(B) the municipality is located in a county with
107	107	a population of 250,000 or more; and
108	108	(3) equal to the percentage of the grant amount
109	109	otherwise required by this subsection for the largest county in
110	110	which a mobile crisis outreach team is located if the mobile crisis
111	111	outreach team is located in more than one county.
112	112	(g) A municipality or county that receives a grant under
113	113	this section may also accept:
114	114	(1) gifts, grants, and donations;
115	115	(2) money donated from the budget of a law enforcement
116	116	agency;
117	117	(3) money donated from the budget of a municipality or
118	118	county; and
119	119	(4) money donated from the budget of a local mental
120	120	health authority.
121	121	(h) The executive commissioner shall adopt all rules
122	122	necessary for the establishment of the mobile crisis outreach team
123	123	grant program under this section.
124	124	SECTION 2. As soon as practicable after the effective date
125	125	of this Act, the executive commissioner of the Health and Human
126	126	Services Commission shall adopt rules necessary to implement
127	127	Section 531.09915, Government Code, as added by this Act.
128	128	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.