[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8397 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8397

To provide funding to the Bureau of Prisons, States, and localities to 
  carry out mental health screenings and provide referrals to mental 
        healthcare providers for individuals in prison or jail.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 14, 2024

 Ms. Sherrill introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                       Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide funding to the Bureau of Prisons, States, and localities to 
  carry out mental health screenings and provide referrals to mental 
        healthcare providers for individuals in prison or jail.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Improving Mental Healthcare in the 
Re-Entry System Act of 2024''.

SEC. 2. GRANT PROGRAM.

    (a) Establishment.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall establish a grant 
program (hereinafter referred to as the ``Program'') to implement and 
administer mental health screenings to individuals at intake into an 
eligible detention center and refer such individuals to mental 
healthcare providers before or immediately after exit from an eligible 
detention center, as applicable.
    (b) Grant Authority.--In carrying out the Program, the Attorney 
General may award a grant on a competitive basis to an eligible 
recipient in accordance with this section.
    (c) Application.--The Attorney General may award a grant under the 
Program to a State or locality, determined by the Attorney General to 
carry out a project described in subsection (d).
    (d) Eligible Recipients.--
            (1) Hiring requirement.--To be eligible for a grant under 
        the Program, a State or locality shall hire a mental health 
        liaison staff member for each eligible detention center under 
        its jurisdiction. If an eligible detention center has a small 
        enough population, subject to approval by the Advisory Board, 
        one mental health liaison staff member may cover multiple 
        detention centers. The mental health liaison staff member shall 
        be responsible for--
                    (A) coordinating efforts between the prison or jail 
                and mental health providers in the local region to help 
                individuals currently or formerly in prison or jail 
                access mental healthcare;
                    (B) coordinating with the Advisory Board to ensure 
                that the Program is operating in accordance with this 
                section; and
                    (C) overseeing and coordinating activities of the 
                outreach team (as described in subsection (g)).
            (2) Plan.--To be eligible for a grant under the Program, a 
        State or locality shall submit a plan to the Advisory Board 
        explaining how the Program established shall meet the criteria 
        under subsection (e).
            (3) Relevant data.--To be eligible for a grant under the 
        Program, a State or locality shall partner with the Advisory 
        Board and an independent research organization to evaluate the 
        impact of their program as a condition of receiving a grant, 
        and are also required to share relevant data with the Advisory 
        Board and the research organization contracted with by the 
        Attorney General as specified by section 5(a) regarding 
        individuals' participation in the mental health screen and 
        referral program and their arrest, arraignment, and 
        incarceration rates.
    (e) Eligible Projects.--Grant funds awarded under the Program may 
only be used to:
            (1) Develop and administer a brief mental health screening 
        survey as required under subsection (f).
            (2) Develop any technology necessary for a prison or jail 
        to provide the survey under paragraph (1).
            (3) Hire any staff necessary for a prison or jail to 
        provide the survey under paragraph (1).
            (4) Establish an outreach team pursuant to subsection (g) 
        to refer an individual, if their responses to the survey 
        indicate severe mental illness, to a local mental healthcare 
        provider for further assessment and outreach, admission (when 
        necessary), and support for that individual in re-establishing 
        ties with a mental health provider.
            (5) Pay the salary or overtime pay of an outreach team as 
        established pursuant to subsection (g), including providing 
        direct funding to a prison, jail, or mental health center to 
        compensate staff members.
    (f) Brief Mental Health Screening Survey.--The mental health 
screening survey developed and administered under subsection (e) shall:
            (1) Be composed of 5 to 10 questions.
            (2) Be based on the questions and content of the Brief Jail 
        Mental Health Screen (BJMHS).
            (3) Seek to identify severe mental illnesses, including 
        schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depression.
            (4) Ask individuals about the symptoms of severe mental 
        illness they may be experiencing or have experienced and any 
        prior use of mental health-related medications or inpatient 
        care.
            (5) Identify the individual's place of residence.
            (6) Be administered by a trained staff member at the jail 
        or prison to all entering individuals who are incarcerated in 
        the jail or prison and to all incarcerated individuals who 
        entered the jail or prison before the survey was implemented.
    (g) Outreach Team.--
            (1) In general.--A referral to a mental healthcare 
        provider, as described in subsection (e), shall be made by a 
        mental health outreach team that is composed of--
                    (A) mental healthcare professionals and clinicians 
                from mental healthcare centers local to the prison or 
                jail;
                    (B) staff from the jail or prison, when applicable; 
                and
                    (C) a mental health liaison staff member who shall 
                oversee the outreach team.
            (2) Alert.--If an individual has been determined to need a 
        referral to a mental healthcare provider, the mental health 
        outreach team shall be notified immediately by jail or prison 
        staff and informed, when applicable, of the individual's 
        release date from such jail or prison and the individual's 
        trial date.
            (3) Contact attempts required.--
                    (A) In general.--A mental health outreach team 
                member shall first attempt to contact an individual 
                that has been determined to need a referral to a mental 
                healthcare provider in person at the jail or prison, 
                before such individual is released. If in person 
                contact was not made before such individual was 
                released from prison or jail, the outreach team member 
                shall attempt to contact via telephone such individual 
                within 24 hours, and at the latest within 48 hours, of 
                their release from jail or prison for the purpose of 
                making the mental health referral. The mental health 
                outreach team member shall not need to contact the 
                individual via telephone after release if such contact 
                was made in person.
                    (B) Additional contacts.--A mental health outreach 
                team member shall make at least three attempts at 
                telephone contact for each individual that has been 
                determined to need a referral to a mental healthcare 
                provider if in person contact before release was not 
                made. If phone contact is unsuccessful, a mental health 
                outreach team member shall attempt to contact the 
                individual in person at their place of residence, as 
                provided on the mental health survey.

SEC. 3. BUREAU OF PRISONS.

    Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
the Director of the Bureau of Prisons shall establish a program that is 
substantially similar to the Program established under section 2 to 
implement and administer mental health screenings to individuals at 
intake into an eligible detention center and refer such individuals to 
mental healthcare providers before or immediately after exit from an 
eligible detention center, as applicable.

SEC. 4. ADVISORY BOARD ON PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION.

    (a) Establishment.--Not later than 60 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall establish an Advisory 
Board to manage and administer the Program under section 2, with the 
responsibility to:
            (1) Evaluate and approve the plans submitted by a State or 
        locality as required under section 2 and to ensure that grant 
        funding is used as specified under section 2.
            (2) Monitor plans submitted by the Bureau of Prisons and 
        advise the Attorney General on compliance to ensure that 
        funding to the Bureau of Prisons is used as specified under 
        section 2.
            (3) Provide technical assistance to a State or locality to 
        help with the implementation and administration of mental 
        health screening and referral programs that maximize impact on 
        reducing crime rates and improving employment and wage rates 
        for individuals released from prison or jail, and to assist a 
        State or locality's coordination with the Attorney General in 
        implementing the Program.
            (4) Publish a database of completed evaluations of the 
        impact of a Program, as specified under section 5.
            (5) Create a working group of mental healthcare providers, 
        jail and prison administrators, law enforcement officials, and 
        operators of existing mental health screening and referral 
        programs, as of the creation of the working group, to share 
        best practices on how to create and implement mental health 
        screening and referral programs that have the largest impact on 
        reducing crime rates and improving employment and wage rates 
        for individuals released from prison or jail.
            (6) Work in coordination with mental health outreach teams 
        as established under section 2, to ensure that the Program is 
        operating as required.
            (7) Determine if a grant awarded by the Program is not 
        meeting the requirements of the Program and mandate necessary 
        changes and reduce funding if such changes are not made.
            (8) Oversee the completion of required program evaluations 
        as described under section 5, by--
                    (A) contracting with one or more independent 
                research organizations to carry out an evaluation of 
                the impact of each grant awarded under the Program on 
                arrest, arraignment, and incarceration rates, 
                employment and wage rates, and mental healthcare 
                utilization rates of individuals who have been 
                administered mental health screening; and
                    (B) working with the Bureau of Prisons, States, and 
                localities to ensure that the evaluation is 
                successfully completed.
    (b) Technical Assistance.--The Advisory Board shall provide 
technical assistance to the Bureau of Prisons, States, and localities 
in setting up and administering the Program and shall identify 
evidence-backed models for the administration of mental health 
screening and referral programs that the Bureau of Prisons, States, and 
localities can look to when designing their own programs.
    (c) Process Evaluation Activities.--Not later than one year after 
the Program begins, the Advisory Board shall conduct a process 
evaluation for a grant awarded under the Program, in which the 
implementation of the surveys and referrals in each prison or jail is 
monitored and evaluated to ensure that they are being carried out as 
specified in the plan submitted to the Advisory Board.
    (d) Membership.--
            (1) In general.--The Attorney General shall appoint members 
        to serve on the Advisory Board established under subsection (a) 
        who have expertise with respect to--
                    (A) designing and administering mental health 
                screenings and providing referrals for those 
                incarcerated in prisons or jails, or for those who have 
                recently left such facilities;
                    (B) mental healthcare within prisons or jails; or
                    (C) program evaluation using rigorous experimental 
                and quasi-experimental statistical methods.
            (2) Number of members.--The Attorney General shall appoint 
        as many members to the Advisory Board established under 
        subsection (a) as deemed necessary by the Attorney General.

SEC. 5. EVALUATION ACTIVITIES.

    (a) Independent Research Organizations.--The Attorney General shall 
provide funding directly to the Advisory Board for the purpose of 
contracting with one or more independent research organizations, in 
partnership with the Bureau of Prisons, States, and localities, to 
carry out an evaluation to determine whether each grant awarded under 
the Program is being implemented effectively and to measure the impact 
of such programs.
    (b) Impact Evaluation Activities.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than one year after a recipient 
        of a grant awarded under the Program receives an award they 
        shall conduct an impact evaluation for its program, in which 
        the surveys and referrals in each prison or jail will be 
        evaluated for their effect on the criminal justice and economic 
        outcomes of individuals who receive the survey. Such impact 
        evaluation shall be conducted by an independent research 
        organization, with oversight from the Advisory Board and 
        include an analysis of the impact of the survey and referral on 
        participant crime rates, including arrest, arraignment, and 
        incarceration rates, participant employment and wage rates, and 
        participant mental healthcare utilization rates for one year, 
        three years, five years, and ten years after the participant 
        has completed the survey and referral program. These analyses 
        will use administrative data collected by each State's 
        department of public safety, for the crime rate data, and each 
        State's Department of Labor, for the employment and wage rate 
        data. States shall provide this data to the independent 
        research organization. For the mental health utilization data, 
        data from mental health providers and, if necessary, from 
        outreach to the individuals who participated in the survey and 
        referral program shall be utilized.
            (2) Experimental design.--Program impact evaluations under 
        paragraph (1) shall use randomized control experimental or 
        quasi-experimental research designs. Randomized control 
        experimental designs are preferred and the Advisory Board will 
        provide the independent research organization, in partnership 
        with the Bureau of Prisons, State, or Locality, additional 
        resources to carry out a randomized control experimental 
        evaluation.
    (c) Database.--Once evaluations become available, the Advisory 
Board will be required to keep an updated database of the impact of 
programs funded under the grant program and how those programs were 
implemented and administered, with the goal of creating a repository of 
evidence regarding what drives impact on crime rates and employment and 
wage rates to guide policymakers and program operators in the future.

SEC. 6. FUNDING.

    (a) Authorization.--There is authorized to be appropriated to the 
Attorney General to carry out this Act--
            (1) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2025;
            (2) $110,000,000 for fiscal year 2026;
            (3) $120,000,000 for fiscal year 2027;
            (4) $130,000,000 for fiscal year 2028; and
            (5) $140,000,000 for fiscal year 2029.
    (b) Distribution of Funds.--Of the amounts made available under 
subsection (a), the Attorney General shall use--
            (1) 90 percent of such amount for a grant program under 
        sections 2 and 3, as applicable, of which--
                    (A) 20 percent shall go to the Bureau of Prisons 
                for screening and referral implementation activities at 
                Federal prisons;
                    (B) 20 percent shall go to States as competitive 
                grants to carry out screening and referral 
                implementation activities at State prisons; and
                    (C) 50 percent shall go to localities as 
                competitive grants to carry out screening and referral 
                implementation activities at locally-administered 
                jails;
            (2) 5 percent of such amount to carry out evaluation 
        activities under section 5; and
            (3) 5 percent of such amount for the Advisory Board to 
        provide technical assistance to the Bureau of Prisons, States, 
        and localities and for general operations as described in 
        section 4.

SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) State.--The term ``State'' means any State of the 
        United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of 
        Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the 
        Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
            (2) Locality.--The term ``locality'' means any city, 
        county, township, town, borough, parish, village, or other 
        general purpose political subdivision of a State.
            (3) Mental healthcare provider.--The term ``mental 
        healthcare provider'' means a fully-licensed professional or 
        group of professionals who diagnose mental health conditions 
        and provide mental health treatment, and who operate near to 
        the relevant jail or prison. Mental healthcare providers may 
        provide services at hospitals or at private clinics.
            (4) Mental healthcare center.-- The term ``mental 
        healthcare center'' means any facility where one or more mental 
        healthcare providers offer mental health services, such as a 
        hospital or private clinic.
            (5) Jail or prison administrator.--The term ``jail or 
        prison administrator'' means any individual who has been 
        appointed to a supervisory position in a Federal, State, or 
        local incarceration facility by the Federal Government, a 
        State, or a locality.
            (6) Law enforcement official.--The term ``law enforcement 
        official'' means any officer of an entity administered by a 
        locality, State, or the Federal Government that exists 
        primarily to prevent and detect crime and enforce criminal laws 
        who is designated by the leadership of that entity to represent 
        the entity.
            (7) Eligible detention center.--The term ``eligible 
        detention center'' means any prison or jail administered by the 
        Bureau of Prisons or a State or any jail administered by a 
        State or locality.
            (8) Severe mental illness.--The term ``severe mental 
        illness'' means one or more mental, behavioral, or emotional 
        disorders that results in serious functional impairment and 
        substantially interferes with or limits major life activities.
            (9) Independent research organizations.--The term 
        ``independent research organization'' means an entity that is 
        not operated or controlled by a governmental body that conducts 
        high-quality and rigorous experimental and quasi-experimental 
        evaluations.
            (10) Randomized control experimental research design.-- The 
        term ``randomized control experimental research design'' means 
        a study design that utilizes a randomized control trial 
        methodology to determine the impact of the program on 
        participants, by comparing program outcomes between a randomly 
        assigned sample population that has received the survey and 
        referral and a randomly assigned control population that has 
        not received the survey and referral.
            (11) Responses to the survey indicate severe mental 
        illness.--The term ``responses to the survey indicate severe 
        mental illness'' means an individual answer's ``yes'' to 
        multiple questions with respect to the symptoms of a severe 
        mental illness or to any question relating to prior use of a 
        mental health-related medication or inpatient care related to a 
        mental illness.
            (12) Quasi-experimental research design.--The term ``quasi-
        experimental research design'' means a study design that 
        utilizes a non-randomized methodology and model to determine 
        the impact of the program on participants, by comparing program 
        outcomes between a non-randomly assigned sample population that 
        has received the survey and referral and a non-randomly 
        assigned control population that is constructed to be 
        statistically identical to the sample population but without 
        having received the survey and referral.
                                 <all>