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SB-1229 Mental Health Workforce Grant Program.(2021-2022)

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Date Published: 04/28/2022 09:00 PM
SB1229:v96#DOCUMENT

Amended  IN  Senate  April 28, 2022
Amended  IN  Senate  April 18, 2022
Amended  IN  Senate  March 16, 2022

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2021–2022 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Bill
No. 1229

Introduced by Senator McGuire

February 17, 2022

An act to add Article 3 (commencing with Section 69540) to Chapter 2 of Part 42 of Division 5 of Title 3 of the Education Code, relating to student financial aid.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SB 1229, as amended, McGuire. Mental Health Workforce Grant Program.
Existing law establishes the Student Aid Commission as the primary state agency for the administration of state-authorized student financial aid programs available to students attending all segments of postsecondary education. Existing law requires the governing board of a school district to give diligent care to the health and physical development of pupils and authorizes the governing board of a school district to employ properly certified persons for this purpose.
This bill, subject to an appropriation by the Legislature for these purposes, would require the commission to administer the Mental Health Workforce Grant Program, which would be established by the bill, to increase the number of mental health professionals serving children and youth. The bill would require the commission to award up to 10,000 grants to postgraduate students over a 3-year period in amounts of up to $25,000 each, as specified. The bill would prescribe eligibility requirements for the grants, including that a grant recipient be enrolled on or after January 1, 2022, in an eligible California postgraduate or credential program. program at a University of California or California State University campus, or an independent institution of higher education, or department of social work, as specified. The bill would require the recipient to make specified commitments, including a commitment to work with an eligible California-based nonprofit entity, as defined, or a local educational agency for specified required supervised experience hours and a commitment that, upon completion of the postgraduate program, the recipient satisfies the requirements to become a registered associate clinical social worker, associate professional clinical counselor, or associate marriage and family therapist. practice in a specified profession.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   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) California is experiencing a shortage of licensed behavioral health professionals and the shortage is expected to grow over the next decade. Currently, just under 8,000,000 Californians, the majority of them being Latino, African American, and Native American, live in Mental Health Professional Shortage Areas (MHPSAs), a federal designation for geographic regions experiencing shortfalls of mental health care providers. California leads the nation in the highest number of MHPSAs, with 498 regions receiving this designation.
(b) In 2016, California had over 80,000 licensed behavioral health professionals. Yet, information from the Kaiser Family Foundation suggests that California is only meeting 30 percent of its overall need for a professionally trained behavioral health workforce. Much of the available workforce is concentrated in dense urban areas, resulting in an uneven distribution among the state. The bay area and the City of Los Angeles have less of a behavioral health workforce shortage than other areas, including the central valley and rural northern California.
(c) California is experiencing a behavioral health crisis among our youth. In June of 2021, more than 140,000 children in the United States had lost a primary or secondary caregiver due to COVID-19. In addition to death and illness of family members due to COVID-19, students have experienced increased anxiety and reduced interactions with peers, struggled with distance learning, and many saw their families’ financial situations worsen. In one metaanalysis of international youth during COVID-19, researchers discovered that one in four youth encountered clinically heightened depressive symptoms and one in five youth faced heightened anxiety symptoms. The recent United States Surgeon General’s Advisory on Protecting Youth Mental Health emphasizes that youth from communities of color, LGBTQ+ youth, and other specialized youth populations are at greater risk of mental health challenges during the current pandemic. Pediatric hospitalizations have doubled from one year ago.

SEC. 2.

 Article 3 (commencing with Section 69540) is added to Chapter 2 of Part 42 of Division 5 of Title 3 of the Education Code, to read:
Article  3. Mental Health Workforce Grant Program

69540.
 (a) Subject to moneys appropriated by the Legislature for the purposes of this article, the commission shall administer the Mental Health Workforce Grant Program, which is hereby established, to increase the number of mental health professionals serving children and youth.
(b) Under the program, the commission shall award up to 10,000 grants over a three-year period in amounts of up to twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) each.
(c) Each grant shall be awarded to an applicant who meets all of the following requirements:
(1) The applicant is enrolled, on or after January 1, 2022, in a California postgraduate program or pupil personnel services credential program at an accredited school a University of California or California State University campus, or an independent institution of higher education, as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 66010, or department of social work that meets the requirements of Section 4980.36, 4989.20, or 4999.33 of the Business and Professions Code, or the services credential with a specialization in pupil personnel services described in Section 44266.
(2) The applicant commits to all of the following:
(A) Working with an eligible California-based nonprofit entity or a local educational agency for their required supervised experience hours pursuant to Section 4980.36, 4989.20, or 4999.33 of the Business and Professions Code, or meeting the requirements of the services credential with a specialization in pupil personnel services described in Section 44266.
(B) Working with an eligible California-based nonprofit entity or a local educational agency for two years upon completion of the postgraduate or credential program.
(C) Upon completion of the postgraduate or credential program, satisfying the requirements to become a registered associate clinical social worker, associate professional clinical counselor, or associate marriage and family therapist. therapist, licensed educational psychologist, credentialed social worker, credentialed school psychologist, or credentialed school counselor.
(d) Funds appropriated for the program in the Budget Act of 2022 shall be available for encumbrance or expenditure by the commission until June 30, 2025.
(e) Grants shall be used to supplement and not supplant other sources of grant financial aid.
(f) The one-time grants issued pursuant to this article shall not exceed the amount appropriated for the program in the Budget Act of 2022.
(g) Except as provided in subdivision (j), a grant recipient shall agree to repay the state annually a proportional percentage of the total grant funds received by the applicant, as determined by the commission, up to full repayment of the received grant funds, for each year the recipient fails to fulfill the requirements in paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) or their commitments made in accordance with subparagraphs (A) to (C), inclusive, of paragraph (2) of subdivision (c).
(h) Nonperformance of the commitment to work with an eligible California-based nonprofit entity or local education agency shall be certified by the department.
(i) Nonperformance of the commitment to earn an eligible degree in a postgraduate or credential program described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) shall be certified by the commission.
(j) Any exceptions to the requirement for repayment shall be defined by the commission, and may include, but shall not necessarily be limited to, counting a school year towards fulfillment of a grant recipient’s two-year work commitment made pursuant to subparagraph (B) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (c), if a grant recipient is unable to complete the school year when any of the following occurs:
(1) The employer deems the recipient to have fulfilled the recipient’s contractual requirements for the school year for purposes of salary increases, probationary or permanent status, and retirement.
(2) The recipient was unable to fulfill their contractual requirements due to the financial circumstances of the nonprofit entity or local educational agency, including a decision to not reelect or rehire the recipient for the next succeeding school year.
(3) The recipient has a condition covered under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. Sec. 2601 et seq.) or similar state law.
(4) The recipient was called or ordered to active duty status for more than 30 days as a member of a reserve component of the Armed Forces of the United States.
(k) The commission may use up to 1 and one-half percent of funding appropriated for purposes of this article for program outreach and administration.
(l) The commission shall award at least 60 percent of the grants to eligible applicants who commit to working with a local educational agency for their required supervised experience hours, as described in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (c).
(m) The commission shall give priority in awarding grants to communities with the greatest need, as determined by the department, including factors such as adverse childhood experiences (ACES) experience (ACE) scores.
(n) The commission may award a grant to a grant recipient in a one-time payment or in two installment payments.
(o) As used in this section, unless the context requires otherwise, the following definitions apply:
(1) “Eligible California-based nonprofit entity” means a nonprofit entity located in California that provides mental health services to children and youth.
(2) “Grant program” or “program” means the Mental Health Workforce Grant Program established pursuant to this article.
(p) The commission may adopt regulations necessary for the implementation of the program. The commission may adopt emergency regulations it deems necessary for the implementation of this program, in accordance with the rulemaking provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code). For purposes of the Administrative Procedure Act, including Section 11349.6 of the Government Code, the adoption of those regulations shall be deemed to be an emergency and necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health and safety, or general welfare, notwithstanding subdivision (e) of Section 11346.1 of the Government Code.