Bill Text: HI HCR128 | 2023 | Regular Session | Introduced

Hawaii House Concurrent Resolution 128 (Prior Session Legislation)

Introduced

Bill Title: Requesting Increased Interagency Coordination And Collaboration Between County Law Enforcement Agencies, Social Service Providers, And Other Stakeholders To Assist And Divert More Individuals From The Criminal Justice System.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 11-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2023-03-15 - Referred to JHA, FIN, referral sheet 20 [HCR128 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2023-HCR128-Introduced.html

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.C.R. NO.	128
THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2023
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

requesting INCREASED INTERAGENCY COORDINATION AND COLLABORATION BETWEEN COUNTY LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES, SOCIAL SERVICE PROVIDERS, and other stakeholders to assist and divert more individuals from the criminal justice system.

WHEREAS, the assistance provided by law enforcement officers during interactions with individuals experiencing homelessness, behavioral health issues including substance use, or mental health issues is greatly enhanced when the officers are part of a coordinated and collaborative approach involving social service providers having specialized training and experience in addressing the needs of these individuals; and

WHEREAS, this coordinated approach was pioneered in King County, Washington, in 2011 as a voluntary diversion program for individuals who were repeatedly being arrested for low-level criminal activity, and included collaboration among the Seattle Police Department, King County Sheriff's Office, King County Prosecutor, Seattle City Attorney, Washington State Department of Corrections, and treatment providers and nonprofit organizations; and

WHEREAS, the King County program, also known as Seattle's LEAD or Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion program, diverted individuals engaged in low-level drug crimes, prostitution, and crimes associated with poverty away from the criminal justice system--thus bypassing prosecution and jail time�-and connected them with intensive case managers to provide crisis response, immediate psychosocial assessment, and long-term wraparound services, including substance use disorder treatment and stable housing; and

WHEREAS, this strategy of working with law enforcement officers to intercept and channel individuals into community-based interventions effectively disrupted the cycling of these individuals through the criminal justice system, using a harm reduction-based model of care that aimed to help program participants meet their basic needs and achieve stability in the community; and

WHEREAS, multiple evaluations of Seattle's LEAD program have identified reductions in recidivism and in use of the criminal justice system, along with meaningful improvements in housing and employment outcomes for program participants; and

WHEREAS, the LEAD model produced such a positive response that in 2015, the White House hosted a national convening of delegates from nearly thirty United States jurisdictions that included district attorneys, police chiefs, city council members, community police reform advocates, state legislators, and human services providers; and

WHEREAS, the LEAD model is now identified as a promising practice by the National Institute of Justice, and the Bureau of Justice Assistance of the United States Department of Justice is providing technical assistance grants for other jurisdictions interested in replicating the LEAD program; and

WHEREAS, in Hawaii, pilot efforts to adopt the LEAD model were made by county police departments and in 2017, the Legislature funded Honolulu's LEAD program through the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Division of the Department of Health, in collaboration with the Governor's Coordinator on Homelessness; and

WHEREAS, a two-year program evaluation report published in 2020 found that program clients reported decreased use of emergency shelters; decreased hospital admissions; fewer emergency room visits; decreased methamphetamine use; greater housing stability; and an overall improvement in quality of life, due to greater social support, less stress, and improved mental health; and

WHEREAS, given the demonstrated success of LEAD-style programs nationally, on Oahu, and in neighbor island counties, further efforts should be made to increase interagency coordination and collaboration between county law enforcement agencies, social service providers, and other stakeholders to assist and divert more individuals from the criminal justice system; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2023, the Senate concurring, that county police departments are requested to develop and provide updated and expanded training, in collaboration and consultation with the Department of Health and University of Hawaii, to officers having frequent contact with individuals experiencing homelessness, behavioral health issues including substance use, or mental health issues; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Health is requested to provide trained personnel to accompany county police officers to calls involving individuals experiencing homelessness, behavioral health issues including substance use, or mental health issues, for the purpose of providing assistance in addressing the particular needs of these individuals, including referrals to any necessary support and treatment services; and the Department of Health is also requested to collaborate and consult with county police departments to develop updated and expanded training curriculum for county police officers; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the University of Hawaii is requested to provide technical assistance to county police departments and the Department of Health, such as assistance with the following suggested endeavors:

(1) Training and professional development opportunities, including continuing education courses, for behavioral health and mental health personnel employed or contracted by the Department of Health;

(2) The development of a school-to-work pipeline to rapidly respond to the increased demand for behavioral health, mental health, and other social service providers, including the establishment of paid student externships wherein students enrolled in a health science- or social science-related program of the University of Hawaii system may gain practical work experience in assisting individuals experiencing homelessness, behavioral health issues including substance use, or mental health issues, under the supervision of qualified Department of Health personnel; and

(3) An assessment and evaluation of the current degree of coordination and collaboration between county law enforcement agencies, the Department of Health and any of its contracted service providers, and any other relevant stakeholders involved in assisting individuals experiencing homelessness, behavioral health issues including substance use, or mental health issues; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Governor's Coordinator on Homelessness; Director of Health; President of the University of Hawaii; Chiefs of Police of the counties of Hawaii, Maui, Kauai, and of the City and County of Honolulu; and Executive Director of Partners in Care.