Mental Health Services Act.

Existing law contains provisions governing the operation and financing of community mental health services for the mentally disordered in every county through locally administered and locally controlled community mental health programs. Existing law, the Mental Health Services Act, an initiative measure enacted by the voters as Proposition 63 at the November 2, 2004, statewide general election, funds a system of county mental health plans for the provision of mental health services, as specified. The act provides that it may be amended by the Legislature by a 23 vote of each house as long as the amendment is consistent with and furthers the intent of the act, and that the Legislature may also clarify procedures and terms of the act by majority vote. Existing law establishes the Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission. Under existing law, the commission is required to annually review and approve county mental health programs for expenditures relating to innovative programs and prevention and early intervention programs. Existing law authorizes the State Department of Mental Health to provide technical assistance to county mental health plans, as specified. This bill would delete the requirement for these annual reviews and would authorize the commission, instead of the department, to provide technical assistance to the county mental health plans. Existing law requires each county mental health program to prepare and submit a 3-year plan to be updated at least annually and approved by the department after review and comment by the commission. This bill would delete the annual update requirement for the 3-year plans and the requirement that the plans be approved by the department after review and comment by the commission. The act establishes the Mental Health Services Fund, continuously appropriated to and administered by the department, to fund specified county mental health programs. The act prohibits funds from the Mental Health Services Fund from being used to supplant existing state or county funds utilized to provide mental health services, and requires state financial support for mental health programs with not less than the same entitlements, amounts of allocations from the General Fund, and formula distributions as the 2003–04 fiscal year. Existing law also requires, subject to availability of funding, the department to distribute a single lump sum of the total amount of approved funding to each county. This bill would require the state, instead of the department, to administer the fund. The bill would authorize continued financial support for mental health programs to come from the Local Revenue Fund 2011 in the State Treasury, and would, commencing July 1, 2012, require the Controller to distribute to the counties all unexpended and unreserved funds on deposit in the Mental Health Services Fund monthly. Under existing law, moneys in the Mental Health Services Fund may be used only for specified purposes, including 5% for innovative programs, as specified, and 5% for administrative costs of the department, the California Mental Health Planning Council, and the commission. The bill would reduce the amount available for administrative costs to 3.5% and would make that distribution subject to appropriation each fiscal year in the annual Budget Act. The bill, for the 2011–12 fiscal year, would allocate specified funds in the Mental Health Services Fund for Medi-Cal specialty mental health services, mental health services for special education pupils, and the Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment program. By allocating moneys in the Mental Health Services Fund for new purposes, this bill would make an appropriation. Existing law requires the department to develop regulations, which may be enacted as emergency regulations, for the department or designated local agencies to implement the act. This bill, instead, would require the state to develop regulations for the department, the commission, or designated state and local agencies to implement the act. This bill would declare that it is consistent with and furthers the purpose of the act. The California Constitution authorizes the Governor to declare a fiscal emergency and to call the Legislature into special session for that purpose. Governor Schwarzenegger issued a proclamation declaring a fiscal emergency, and calling a special session for this purpose, on December 6, 2010. Governor Brown issued a proclamation on January 20, 2011, declaring and reaffirming that a fiscal emergency exists and stating that his proclamation supersedes the earlier proclamation for purposes of that constitutional provision. This bill would state that it addresses the fiscal emergency declared and reaffirmed by the Governor by proclamation issued on January 20, 2011, pursuant to the California Constitution. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.