86R2930 KJE-F

By: Whitmire S.B. No. 2003

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the establishment of school-based behavioral health centers by school districts and a grant program administered by the executive commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission for the operation of those centers.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Chapter 38, Education Code, is amended by adding Subchapter B-1 to read as follows:

SUBCHAPTER B-1. SCHOOL-BASED BEHAVIORAL HEALTH CENTERS

Sec. 38.081. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:

(1) "Behavioral health services" includes mental health assessments, crisis interventions, counseling, mental health treatments and referrals to a continuum of mental health services, including psychiatric care, community support programs, and inpatient or outpatient care programs.

(2) "Executive commissioner" means the executive commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission.

Sec. 38.082. ESTABLISHMENT OF SCHOOL-BASED BEHAVIORAL HEALTH CENTER. (a) A school district may establish a school-based behavioral health center to:

(1) provide accessible behavioral health services to students and their families;

(2) improve the emotional well-being and academic performance of medically underserved students and their families; and

(3) integrate behavioral health services in the school environment.

(b) A school district may combine a school-based behavioral health center with a school-based health center established under Subchapter B or any other district program that provides primary health care services to students.

Sec. 38.083. CENTER REQUIREMENTS. (a) A school-based behavioral health center must:

(1) be located at or near a school district facility;

(2) be organized with assistance from the community and relevant health care providers; and

(3) provide behavioral health services during school hours to students in accordance with:

(A) applicable federal, state, and local laws;

(B) established behavioral health standards; and

(C) community practice.

(b) A school-based behavioral health center must be administered by an eligible entity. An eligible entity must be a community-based organization that is:

(1) a school district;

(2) a hospital;

(3) a local health department;

(4) a federally qualified health center, as defined by 42 U.S.C. Section 1396d(l)(2)(B);

(5) a community mental health center, as defined by 42 U.S.C. Section 1395x(ff)(3)(B);

(6) a local mental health authority;

(7) a health care provider whose sole purpose is providing school-based behavioral health services; or

(8) any other appropriate nonprofit health care agency or behavioral health care agency.

Sec. 38.084. GRANTS. (a) The executive commissioner shall administer a program under which grants are awarded to assist school districts with the costs of operating school-based behavioral health centers.

(b) To be eligible to receive a grant under this section, a school district must:

(1) establish or propose to establish a school-based behavioral health center that meets the requirements under Section 38.083;

(2) provide sufficient information establishing local need for the behavioral health services provided by or proposed to be provided by the center;

(3) provide sufficient evidence that:

(A) the center will obtain parental consent before providing behavioral health services to children;

(B) the district will establish and maintain relationships with health care providers in the district;

(C) the center will offer:

(i) on-site access during each instructional day; and

(ii) 24-hour coverage through an on-call system to ensure year-round access to the center's services;

(D) the center will be integrated into the school environment and will coordinate behavioral health resources with district educators and other appropriate support personnel, including other school-based health care providers; and

(E) the entity administering the center will assume all responsibility for the administration, operation, and oversight of the center; and

(4) provide any other information the executive commissioner determines necessary.

(c) In awarding grants under this section, the executive commissioner shall give priority to school districts that seek funding for a school-based behavioral health center that meets at least two of the following criteria:

(1) the center has already been established;

(2) the center will be established at a campus that does not currently have a school-based behavioral health center;

(3) the center serves or will serve an area in which there are barriers to students accessing behavioral health services; or

(4) the center serves or will serve a campus at which 50 percent or more of the students in daily attendance at the campus are:

(A) uninsured, underinsured, or enrolled in a public health insurance program; or

(B) educationally disadvantaged.

(d) The executive commissioner shall determine the amount of each grant awarded under this section. In determining the amount of a grant, the executive commissioner shall consider:

(1) the financial need of the school district to operate the school-based behavioral health center;

(2) other funding provided to the school district for the operation of the center; and

(3) any other factor the executive commissioner determines relevant.

(e) A grant awarded under this section may be used only for:

(1) the salaries of health care providers who provide behavioral health services through the school-based behavioral health center;

(2) overhead costs of the center; or

(3) costs related to managing the center's programs.

(f) The executive commissioner shall provide to a school district that receives a grant under this section:

(1) technical assistance;

(2) fiscal and program management assistance and training;

(3) operational and administrative support; and

(4) information on best practices in offering behavioral health services through a school-based behavioral health center.

(g) The executive commissioner shall adopt rules as necessary to implement this section, including rules regarding the evaluation and monitoring of school-based behavioral health centers operated by school districts that receive a grant under this section.

SECTION 2. This Act applies beginning with the 2019-2020 school year.

SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2019.