BILL NUMBER: AB 1133 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 26, 2015
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Achadjian
FEBRUARY 27, 2015
An act to amend Section 4380 4372 of
, and to add and repeal Chapter 4 (commencing with Section
4391) of Part 4 of Division 4 of, the Welfare and Institutions
Code, relating to mental health.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1133, as amended, Achadjian. School-based early mental health
intervention. intervention and prevention
services support program.
Existing law , the School-based Early Mental Health
Intervention and Prevention Services for Children Act of 1991,
authorizes the Director of Health Care Services, in consultation with
the Superintendent of Public Instruction, to provide matching grants
to local educational agencies to pay the state share of the costs of
providing school-based early mental health intervention and
prevention services to eligible pupils at schoolsites of eligible
pupils, subject to the availability of funding each year.
Existing law defines "eligible pupil" for this purpose as a pupil who
attends a publicly funded elementary school and who is in
kindergarten or grades 1 to 3, inclusive. Existing law also defines
"local educational agency" as a school district or county
office of education or a state special school.
This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to
those provisions. expand the definition of an
eligible pupil to include a pupil who attends a state preschool
program at a publicly funded elementary school and a pupil who is in
transitional kindergarten, thereby extending the application of the
act to those persons. The bill would also include charter schools in
the definition of local educati onal agency, thereby
extending the application of the act to those entities. The bill
would require the State Public Health Officer, in consultation with
the Superintendent of Public Schools and the Director of Health Care
Services, to establish a 4-year pilot program, the
School-Based Early Mental Health Intervention and Prevention Services
Support Program, to provide outreach, free regional training, and
technical assistance for local educational agencies in providing
mental health services at schoolsites. The bill would require the
State Department of Public Health to submit specified reports after 2
and 4 years. The bill would repeal these provisions as of January 1,
2021.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no
yes . State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all
of the following:
(a) The State of California has long recognized the mental health
needs of California's children and the value of addressing these
needs by supporting the provision of evidence-based mental health
services in publicly funded preschools and elementary schools, as
evidenced by the creation in 1981 of the Primary Prevention Project,
now named the Primary Intervention Program, and the creation in 1991
of the School-based Early Mental Health Intervention and Prevention
Services for Children Program, known as the Early Mental Health
Initiative (EMHI).
(b) From the 1992-93 fiscal year to the 2011-12 fiscal year, the
State Department of Mental Health awarded funds each year in matching
grants to local education agencies to fund prevention and early
intervention programs, including the Primary Intervention Program,
for students experiencing mild to moderate school adjustment
difficulty through the EMHI. In the 2011-12 fiscal year, the EMHI
received $15 million in state funds.
(c) Authorizing legislation specified that the EMHI would be
deemed successful if at least 75 percent of the children who complete
the program show an improvement in at least one of the following
four areas: learning behaviors, attendance, school adjustment, and
school-related competencies.
(d) The EMHI succeeded in meeting these legislative requirements.
According to the 2010/2011 Early Mental Health Initiative Statewide
Evaluation Report, of the 15,823 students located in 424 elementary
schools across 66 school districts participating in EMHI-funded
services during the 2010-11 school year, 79 percent exhibited
positive social competence and school adjustment behaviors more
frequently after completing services. Furthermore, the magnitude of
the improvements was exceptional in comparison to evaluations of
other programs, especially given the short-term and cost-effective
nature of the intervention.
(e) The 2010/2011 Early Mental Health Initiative Statewide
Evaluation Report described an unmet demand for EMHI-funded services
at participating schoolsites, as only 37 percent of the students that
scored in the mild to moderate school adjustment difficulty range
were served with EMHI-funded services due to program capacity and
funding constraints. Based on demographic considerations, similar
demand would be expected at schools that did not receive EMHI grants.
(f) The Governor's realignment for the 2011-12 fiscal year renamed
the State Department of Mental Health as the State Department of
State Hospitals and limited that department's mission.
(g) The Budget Act of 2012 disbursed Proposition 98 funds, which
had been used to fund the EMHI, directly to local education agencies
in order to provide local schools with enhanced flexibility to manage
their finances and give greater control of local decisions.
(h) It is in the interest of California's children, families,
schools, and communities that the State of California support local
decisions to provide funding for evidence-based services to address
the mental health needs of children in publicly funded preschools and
elementary schools.
SEC. 2. Section 4372 of the Welfare and
Institutions Code is amended to read:
4372. For the purposes of this part, the following definitions
shall apply:
(a) "Cooperating entity" means any federal, state, or local,
public or private nonprofit agency providing school-based early
mental health intervention and prevention services that agrees to
offer services at a schoolsite through a program assisted under this
part.
(b) "Eligible pupil" means a pupil who attends a
preschool program at a publicly funded elementary school, or who
attends a publicly funded elementary school and who is in
kindergarten , transitional kindergarten, or grades 1 to
3, inclusive.
(c) "Local educational agency" means any school district or county
office of education, or state special school
, or charter school .
(d) "Department" means the State Department of Public Health.
(d)
(e) "Director" means the State Director of Mental
Health.
(e)
(f) "Supportive service" means a service that will
enhance the mental health and social development of children.
SEC. 3. Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 4391)
is added to Part 4 of Division 4 of the Welfare and
Institutions Code , to read:
CHAPTER 4. SCHOOL-BASED EARLY MENTAL HEALTH INTERVENTION AND
PREVENTION SERVICES SUPPORT PROGRAM
4391. (a) The State Public Health Officer shall establish a
four-year pilot program, in consultation with the Superintendent of
Public Instruction and the Director of Health Care Services, to
encourage and support local decisions to provide funding for the
eligible support services as provided in this section.
(b) The department shall provide outreach to local education
agencies and county mental health agencies to inform individuals
responsible for local funding decisions of the program established
pursuant to this section.
(c) The department shall provide free regional training on all of
the following:
(1) Eligible support services, which may include any or all of the
following:
(A) Individual and group intervention and prevention services.
(B) Parent involvement through conference or training, or both.
(C) Teacher and staff conferences and training related to meeting
project goals.
(D) Referral to outside resources when eligible pupils require
additional services.
(E) Use of paraprofessional staff, who are trained and supervised
by credentialed school psychologists, school counselors, or school
social workers, to meet with pupils on a short-term weekly basis, in
a one-on-one setting as in the primary intervention program
established pursuant to Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 4343) of
Part 3.
(F) Any other service or activity that will improve the mental
health of eligible pupils.
(2) The potential for the eligible support services defined in
this section to help fulfill state priorities described by the local
control funding formula and local goals described by local control
and accountability plans.
(3) How educational, mental health, and other funds subject to
local control can be used to finance the eligible support services
defined in this section.
(4) External resources available to support the eligible support
services defined in this section, which may include workshops,
training, conferences, and peer learning networks.
(5) State resources available to support student mental health and
positive learning environments, which may include any of the
following:
(A) Foundational aspects of learning, mental health, toxic stress,
childhood trauma, and adverse childhood experiences.
(B) Inclusive multitiered systems of behavioral and academic
supports, Schoolwide Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports,
restorative justice or restorative practices, trauma-informed
practices, social and emotional learning, and bullying prevention.
(d) The department shall provide technical assistance to local
education agencies that provide or seek to provide eligible services
defined in this section. Technical assistance shall include
assistance in any of the following:
(1) Designing programs.
(2) Training program staff in intervention skills.
(3) Conducting local evaluations.
(4) Leveraging educational, mental health, and other funds that
are subject to local control and assisting in budget development.
(e) In providing outreach pursuant to subdivision (b), training
pursuant to subdivision (c), and technical assistance pursuant to
subdivision (d), the department shall select and support schoolsites
as follows:
(1) During the first 18 months of the program, the department
shall support, strengthen, and expand the provision of eligible
services at 30 schoolsites that previously received funding pursuant
to the School-Based Early Mental Health Intervention and Prevention
Services Matching Grant Program (Chapter 2 (commencing with Section
4380)) and have continued to provide eligible support services. In
working with these selected schoolsites, the department shall develop
methods and standards for providing services and practices to new
schoolsites.
(2) During the subsequent 18 months of the program, the department
shall select 30 new schoolsites that are not providing eligible
support services but that demonstrate the willingness and capacity to
participate in the program. The department shall work with these
schoolsites to deliver eligible support services.
(3) In selecting schoolsites and providing support, the department
shall prioritize geographic diversity, program effectiveness,
program efficiency, and long-term program sustainability.
(f) The department shall submit, in compliance with Section 9795
of the Government Code, an interim report to the Legislature at the
end of the second year of the pilot program that details the
department's work to support the schoolsites selected pursuant to
paragraph (1) of subdivision (e) and includes an assessment of the
demand and impact of funding for the School-Based Early Mental Health
Intervention and Prevention Services Matching Grant Program
established pursuant to Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 4390). The
department shall make the report available to the public and shall
post it on the department's Internet Web site.
(g) The department shall develop an evaluation plan to assess the
impact of the pilot program. The department, in compliance with
Section 9795 of the Government Code, shall submit a report to the
Legislature at the end of the four-year period evaluating the impact
of the pilot program and providing recommendations for further
implementation. The department shall make the report available to the
public and shall post it on the department's Internet Web site.
4392. This chapter shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2021, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2021, deletes or extends
that date.
SECTION 1. Section 4380 of the Welfare and
Institutions Code is amended to read:
4380. Subject to the availability of funding each year, the
Legislature authorizes the director, in consultation with the
Superintendent of Public Instruction, to award matching grants to
local educational agencies to pay the state share of the costs of
providing programs that provide school-based early mental health
intervention and prevention services to eligible pupils at
schoolsites of eligible pupils, as follows:
(a) The director shall award matching grants pursuant to this
chapter to local educational agencies throughout the state.
(b) Matching grants awarded under this part shall be awarded for a
period of not more than three years. No single schoolsite shall be
awarded more than one grant, except for a schoolsite that received a
grant prior to July 1, 1992.
(c) The director shall pay to each local educational agency that
has an application approved pursuant to requirements of this part the
state share of the cost of the activities described in the
application.
(d) Commencing July 1, 1993, the state share of matching grants
shall be a maximum of 50 percent in each of the three years.
(e) Commencing July 1, 1993, the local share of matching grants
shall be at least 50 percent, from a combination of school district
and cooperating entity funds.
(f) The local share of the matching grant may be in cash or
payment in-kind.
(g) Priority shall be given to those applicants that demonstrate
the following:
(1) The local educational agency will serve the greatest number of
eligible pupils from low-income families.
(2) The local educational agency will provide a strong parental
involvement component.
(3) The local educational agency will provide supportive services
with one or more cooperating entities.
(4) The local educational agency will provide services at a low
cost per child served in the project.
(5) The local educational agency will provide programs and
services that are based on adoption or modification, or both, of
existing programs that have been shown to be effective. No more than
20 percent of the grants awarded by the director may be utilized for
new models.
(6) The local educational agency will provide services to children
who are in out-of-home placement or who are at risk of being in
out-of-home placement.
(h) Eligible supportive services may include the following:
(1) Individual and group intervention and prevention services.
(2) Parent involvement through conferences or training, or both.
(3) Teacher and staff conferences and training related to meeting
project goals.
(4) Referral to outside resources when eligible pupils require
additional services.
(5) Use of paraprofessional staff, who are trained and supervised
by credentialed school psychologists, school counselors, or school
social workers, to meet with pupils on a short-term weekly basis, in
a one-on-one setting as in the primary intervention program
established pursuant to Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 4343) of
Part 3. A minimum of 80 percent of the grants awarded by the director
shall include the basic components of the primary intervention
program.
(6) Any other service or activity that will improve the mental
health of eligible pupils.
Prior to participation by an eligible pupil in either individual
or group services, consent of a parent or guardian shall be obtained.
(i) Each local educational agency seeking a grant under this
chapter shall submit an application to the director at the time, in a
manner, and accompanied by any information the director may
reasonably require.
(j) Each matching grant application submitted shall include all of
the following:
(1) Documentation of need for the school-based early mental health
intervention and prevention services.
(2) A description of the school-based early mental health
intervention and prevention services expected to be provided at the
schoolsite.
(3) A statement of program goals.
(4) A list of cooperating entities that will participate in the
provision of services. A letter from each cooperating entity
confirming its participation in the provision of services shall be
included with the list. At least one letter shall be from a
cooperating entity confirming that it will agree to screen referrals
of low-income children the program has determined may be in need of
mental health treatment services and that, if the cooperating entity
determines that the child is in need of those services and if the
cooperating entity determines that according to its priority process
the child is eligible to be served by it, the cooperating entity will
agree to provide those mental health treatment services.
(5) A detailed budget and budget narrative.
(6) A description of the proposed plan for parent involvement in
the program.
(7) A description of the population anticipated to be served,
including number of pupils to be served and socioeconomic indicators
of sites to receive funds.
(8) A description of the matching funds from a combination of
local education agencies and cooperating entities.
(9) A plan describing how the proposed school-based early mental
health intervention and prevention services program will be continued
after the matching grant has expired.
(10) Assurance that grants would supplement and not supplant
existing local resources provided for early mental health
intervention and prevention services.
(11) A description of an evaluation plan that includes
quantitative and qualitative measures of school and pupil
characteristics, and a comparison of children's adjustment to school.
(k) Matching grants awarded pursuant to this article may be used
for salaries of staff responsible for implementing the school-based
early mental health intervention and prevention services program,
equipment and supplies, training, and insurance.
( l ) Salaries of administrative staff and
other administrative costs associated with providing services shall
be limited to 5 percent of the state share of assistance provided
under this section.
(m) No more than 10 percent of each matching grant awarded
pursuant to this article may be used for matching grant evaluation.
(n) (1) No more than 10 percent of the moneys allocated to the
director pursuant to this chapter may be utilized for program
administration and evaluation.
(2) Program administration shall include both state staff and
field staff who are familiar with and have successfully implemented
school-based early mental health intervention and prevention
services. Field staff may be contracted with by local school
districts or community mental health programs. Field staff shall
provide support in the timely and effective implementation of
school-based early mental health intervention and prevention
services. Reviews of each project shall be conducted at least once
during the first year of funding.
(o) Subject to the approval of the director, at the end of the
fiscal year, a school district may apply unexpended funds to the
budget for the subsequent funding year.
(p) Contracts for the program and administration, or ancillary
services in support of the program, shall be exempt from the
requirements of the Public Contract Code and the State Administrative
Manual, and from approval by the Department of General Services.