89R4048 MPF-F
By: Menéndez S.B. No. 188
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the provision of behavioral health crisis services,
including the operation of crisis centers and mobile crisis
outreach teams; authorizing a fee.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 547, Government Code, as effective April
1, 2025, is amended by adding Subchapter K to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER K. BEHAVIORAL HEALTH CRISIS SERVICES
Sec. 547.0501. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
(1) "Crisis center" means a 988 Suicide & Crisis
Lifeline center participating in the National Suicide Prevention
Lifeline network to respond to statewide or regional
communications.
(2) "Mobile crisis outreach team" means a team of
qualified mental health professionals who provide crisis services,
including:
(A) facilitating emergency care services;
(B) providing urgent care services; and
(C) providing crisis follow-up and relapse
prevention services.
(3) "Youth crisis outreach team" means a mobile crisis
outreach team designed primarily to serve children or adolescents.
Sec. 547.0502. CRISIS CENTER STANDARDS. (a) A crisis
center operating in this state shall:
(1) contract with the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline;
(2) satisfy the requirements of and best practices
identified by the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline;
(3) provide and report any applicable data;
(4) be equipped to deploy a mobile crisis outreach
team or youth crisis outreach team;
(5) satisfy the requirements for serving at-risk and
specialized populations as identified by the Substance Abuse and
Mental Health Services Administration;
(6) provide linguistically and culturally competent
care, including by requiring training and providing policies for
transferring a crisis center caller to an appropriate mental health
care provider; and
(7) provide follow-up services to individuals who call
the crisis center, as appropriate.
(b) The executive commissioner shall adopt rules to allow
appropriate information sharing and communication across crisis
response systems and emergency response systems to provide
real-time crisis care coordination.
Sec. 547.0503. CRISIS CARE COORDINATION. (a) The
commission shall ensure that an individual who contacts a crisis
center is provided ongoing care through active collaboration and
coordination of services among crisis centers and mental health and
substance use disorder treatment providers, community mental
health centers, certified community behavioral health clinics,
community behavioral health centers, mobile crisis outreach teams,
youth crisis outreach teams, hospital emergency departments, and
inpatient psychiatric settings.
(b) The commission may contract with the entities listed
under Subsection (a) to ensure the coordination of services.
Sec. 547.0504. 988 SUICIDE AND CRISIS LIFELINE TRUST FUND.
(a) The 988 suicide and crisis lifeline trust fund is established
as a trust fund to be held by the comptroller outside the state
treasury and administered by the commission.
(b) The trust fund consists of:
(1) revenue derived from the fee described by Section
547.0505;
(2) legislative appropriations of money for the
purposes of this subchapter;
(3) available federal funding this state allocates for
the purposes of the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline;
(4) gifts, grants, and donations received by this
state for the purposes of the trust fund;
(5) interest, dividends, and other income of the trust
fund; and
(6) money from any other source that is deposited in or
transferred to the trust fund.
(c) Money deposited in the trust fund may only be used to:
(1) implement, maintain, or improve the 988 Suicide &
Crisis Lifeline, including personnel and technological
infrastructure improvements necessary to achieve operational and
clinical standards and best practices as provided by the National
Suicide Prevention Lifeline;
(2) provide funding for crisis outreach and other
services a community mental health center provides in response to
the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline;
(3) provide funding for uninsured individuals
receiving crisis and stabilization services;
(4) provide personnel for crisis centers, mobile
crisis outreach teams, and youth crisis outreach teams;
(5) fund data provision, reporting, participation in
evaluations, and other related quality improvement activities; and
(6) administer, oversee, and evaluate the trust fund.
(d) The state may not transfer or use trust fund assets for
any purpose other than the uses provided in this section.
(e) The executive commissioner shall submit an annual
report to the legislature and the Federal Communications Commission
detailing the trust fund deposits and expenditures in the preceding
year.
Sec. 547.0505. 988 SUICIDE AND CRISIS LIFELINE FEE. (a)
The commission, in collaboration with the Commission on State
Emergency Communications, may impose a 988 suicide and crisis
lifeline service fee to supplement any federal, state, or local
funding for suicide prevention or behavioral health crisis services
on each:
(1) local exchange access line or equivalent local
exchange access line, not including public telephone equipment
operated by coin or by card reader;
(2) wireless telecommunications connection;
(3) Voice over Internet Protocol service connection;
and
(4) purchase of a prepaid wireless telecommunications
service by any method.
(b) The executive commissioner by rule shall set the fee in
an amount sufficient to cover the costs of creating, operating, and
maintaining the suicide prevention services provided under this
subchapter, according to the national guidelines for crisis
services. The commission shall periodically adjust the fee amount
as necessary to provide for continuous operation, volume increases,
and maintenance.
(c) Revenue from the fee shall be deposited in the 988
suicide and crisis lifeline trust fund established under Section
547.0504.
(d) A fee collected under this section may only be used to
offset costs as provided by 47 U.S.C. Section 251a.
(e) Revenue from the fee may not be used for expenses that
are:
(1) reimbursable through Medicaid, Medicare, or
another insurer or governmental program; or
(2) covered because the service recipient's name and
health coverage information cannot be obtained or billed.
(f) The executive commissioner shall submit an annual
report to the legislature and the Federal Communications Commission
detailing the revenue generated by the fee in the preceding year.
Sec. 547.0506. ANNUAL REPORT. (a) The commission shall
prepare an annual report of the usage of crisis centers and the
services provided by the centers.
(b) The commission shall present the annual report to the
legislature and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration.
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.