Bill Text: TX SB1463 | 2023-2024 | 88th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to a grant program for a nonprofit organization or political subdivision to establish or expand a behavioral health crisis response program.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2023-03-16 - Referred to Health & Human Services [SB1463 Detail]
Download: Texas-2023-SB1463-Introduced.html
| 88R8789 MPF-F | ||
| By: West | S.B. No. 1463 | |
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| relating to a grant program for a nonprofit organization or | ||
| political subdivision to establish or expand a behavioral health | ||
| crisis response program. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 531, Government Code, is | ||
| amended by adding Section 531.09916 to read as follows: | ||
| Sec. 531.09916. GRANT PROGRAM FOR BEHAVIORAL HEALTH CRISIS | ||
| RESPONSE PROGRAMS. (a) In this section: | ||
| (1) "Behavioral health crisis response program" means | ||
| a program operated under a grant awarded under this section. | ||
| (2) "Multidisciplinary response team" means a group | ||
| composed of three or more persons that includes at least one | ||
| paramedic, one law enforcement officer, and one behavioral health | ||
| professional, who together provide services to persons | ||
| experiencing a behavioral health crisis. | ||
| (3) "Nonprofit organization" means an organization | ||
| that is exempt from federal income taxation under Section 501(a), | ||
| Internal Revenue Code of 1986, by being listed as an exempt entity | ||
| under Section 501(c)(3) of that code. | ||
| (4) "Political subdivision" means a county or | ||
| municipality in this state. | ||
| (b) The executive commissioner shall establish and | ||
| administer a grant program to award money to nonprofit | ||
| organizations and political subdivisions for the purpose of | ||
| establishing or expanding a behavioral health crisis response | ||
| program to: | ||
| (1) operate one or more multidisciplinary response | ||
| teams in the region in which the nonprofit organization is located | ||
| or within the political subdivision, as applicable; and | ||
| (2) employ one or more behavioral health professionals | ||
| to: | ||
| (A) assist in screening telephone calls made to a | ||
| 9-1-1 emergency call center dispatcher for law enforcement or | ||
| emergency medical assistance; | ||
| (B) assist in determining whether to dispatch a | ||
| multidisciplinary response team to service a call; and | ||
| (C) provide consultation and information to the | ||
| dispatched multidisciplinary response team. | ||
| (c) A behavioral health crisis response program that is | ||
| awarded a grant under this section must operate in accordance with | ||
| best practices for jail diversion and managing behavioral health | ||
| crises. | ||
| (d) A nonprofit organization that is awarded a grant under | ||
| this section must collaborate with one or more political | ||
| subdivisions to operate the behavioral health crisis response | ||
| program. A county that is awarded a grant under this section must | ||
| collaborate with one or more municipalities in the county to | ||
| operate the behavioral health crisis response program. | ||
| (e) A grant application from a nonprofit organization or | ||
| political subdivision must: | ||
| (1) be submitted on a form prescribed by the | ||
| commission; | ||
| (2) include, if the applicant is required to | ||
| collaborate with a political subdivision under Subsection (d), a | ||
| statement from the governing body of the political subdivision | ||
| providing information about the collaboration; and | ||
| (3) include, if the applicant is required to | ||
| collaborate with a political subdivision under Subsection (d), data | ||
| from each collaborating political subdivision on: | ||
| (A) the number of behavioral health-related | ||
| telephone calls for assistance received by the political | ||
| subdivision's 9-1-1 emergency call center; | ||
| (B) the number of paramedics and behavioral | ||
| health professionals available to serve on a political | ||
| subdivision's multidisciplinary response team; and | ||
| (C) the political subdivision's capacity to | ||
| accurately collect and report information concerning: | ||
| (i) the frequency and outcomes of | ||
| behavioral health-related calls for assistance; and | ||
| (ii) the number of telephone calls for | ||
| assistance primarily identified as involving a criminal offense | ||
| that also involved a demonstrated need for behavioral health | ||
| intervention services, crisis care referrals to community-based | ||
| providers, or de-escalation for the person making the call or for a | ||
| person who was the subject of a call made by another. | ||
| (f) In addition to funding received under a grant under this | ||
| section, a nonprofit organization or political subdivision grant | ||
| applicant, or a political subdivision collaborating with a grant | ||
| applicant under Subsection (d), may contribute local funds to the | ||
| operation of the behavioral health crisis response program. | ||
| (g) The commission may use any available state and federal | ||
| money and may accept gifts, grants, and donations from any source | ||
| for the purpose of awarding grants under this section. | ||
| (h) The executive commissioner shall adopt all rules | ||
| necessary for the establishment and governance of the grant program | ||
| under this section. | ||
| SECTION 2. As soon as practicable after the effective date | ||
| of this Act, the executive commissioner of the Health and Human | ||
| Services Commission shall adopt rules necessary to implement | ||
| Section 531.09916, Government Code, as added by this Act. | ||
| SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. | ||
