Social services: Coordination of Care for At-Risk Individuals Grant Program.

Existing law establishes the Department of Housing and Community Development in the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency and requires the department to administer various housing programs. Existing law requires agencies and departments administering state programs to collaborate with the California Interagency Council on Homelessness to adopt guidelines and regulations that incorporate core components of housing policy, including Housing First. Existing law contains provisions governing the operation and financing of community mental health services for persons with mental health disorders in every county through locally administered and locally controlled community mental health programs. This bill would require, upon appropriation by the Legislature, the Department of Housing and Community Development to establish the Coordination of Care for At-Risk Individuals Grant Program to provide grants to counties currently enrolled in the Data Driver Recovery Project for the innovative identification and intervention of frequent utilizers, as defined, and to aid in providing those individuals with services. This bill would require a grant recipient to meet specified criteria, including an expressed intent in coordinating with fellow counties to share data in order to identify frequent utilizers. The bill would require an applicant to the program to provide a proposal containing specified information, including a viable plan to identify frequent utilizers and performance metrics and goals the applicant seeks to achieve through the program. The bill would require the department to score applicants to the program competitively according to specified criteria. The bill would require a grant recipient to use prearrest diversion when applicable and provide other services to vulnerable individuals to promote anti-recidivism, among others. The bill would require the department to distribute funds allocated to a grant recipient for a term of 3 years, subject to automatic renewal. The bill would also require a grant recipient to then execute contracts with community-based organizations to provide services to frequent utilizers. The bill would require a grant recipient to submit an annual report to the department on specified information, including the types of services provided to frequent utilizers and whether the grant recipient met the performance metrics identified in their application.