[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 213 (Wednesday, December 16, 2020)]
[House]
[Pages H7213-H7216]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CRISIS STABILIZATION AND COMMUNITY REENTRY ACT OF 2020
Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill
(S. 3312) to establish a crisis stabilization and community reentry
grant program, and for other purposes.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
S. 3312
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 ``Crisis Stabilization and
Community Reentry Act of 2020''.
SEC. 2. MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS STABILIZATION.
(a) Planning and Implementation Grants.--Title I of the
Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C.
10101 et seq.) is amended by inserting after part NN the
following:
``PART OO--CRISIS STABILIZATION AND COMMUNITY REENTRY PROGRAM.
``SEC. 3051. GRANT AUTHORIZATION.
``(a) In General.--The Attorney General may make grants
under this part to States, for use by State and local
correctional facilities, for the purpose of providing
clinical
[[Page H7214]]
services for people with serious mental illness and substance
use disorders that establish treatment, suicide prevention,
and continuity of recovery in the community upon release from
the correctional facility.
``(b) Use of Funds.--A grant awarded under this part shall
be used to support--
``(1) programs involving criminal and juvenile justice
agencies, mental health agencies, community-based
organizations that focus on reentry, and community-based
behavioral health providers that improve clinical
stabilization during pre-trial detention and incarceration
and continuity of care leading to recovery in the community
by providing services and supports that may include peer
support services, enrollment in healthcare, and introduction
to long-acting injectable medications or, as clinically
indicated, other medications, by--
``(A) providing training and education for criminal and
juvenile justice agencies, mental health agencies, and
community-based behavioral health providers on interventions
that support--
``(i) engagement in recovery supports and services;
``(ii) access to medication while in an incarcerated
setting; and
``(iii) continuity of care during reentry into the
community;
``(B) ensuring that offenders with serious mental illness
are provided appropriate access to evidence-based recovery
supports that may include peer support services, medication
(including long-acting injectable medications where
clinically appropriate), and psycho-social therapies;
``(C) offering technical assistance to criminal justice
agencies on how to modify their administrative and clinical
processes to accommodate evidence-based interventions, such
as long-acting injectable medications and other recovery
supports; and
``(D) participating in data collection activities specified
by the Attorney General, in consultation with the Secretary
of Health and Human Services;
``(2) programs that support cooperative efforts between
criminal and juvenile justice agencies, mental health
agencies, and community-based behavioral health providers to
establish or enhance serious mental illness recovery support
by--
``(A) strengthening or establishing crisis response
services delivered by hotlines, mobile crisis teams, crisis
stabilization and triage centers, peer support specialists,
public safety officers, community-based behavioral health
providers, and other stakeholders, including by providing
technical support for interventions that promote long-term
recovery;
``(B) engaging criminal and juvenile justice agencies,
mental health agencies and community-based behavioral health
providers, preliminary qualified offenders, and family and
community members in program design, program implementation,
and training on crisis response services, including
connection to recovery services and supports;
``(C) examining health care reimbursement issues that may
pose a barrier to ensuring the long-term financial
sustainability of crisis response services and interventions
that promote long-term engagement with recovery services and
supports; and
``(D) participating in data collection activities specified
by the Attorney General, in consultation with the Secretary
of Health and Human Services; and
``(3) programs that provide training and additional
resources to criminal and juvenile justice agencies, mental
health agencies, and community-based behavioral health
providers on serious mental illness, suicide prevention
strategies, recovery engagement strategies, and the special
health and social needs of justice-involved individuals who
are living with serious mental illness.
``(c) Consultation.--The Attorney General shall consult
with the Secretary of Health and Human Services to ensure
that serious mental illness treatment and recovery support
services provided under this grant program incorporate
evidence-based approaches that facilitate long-term
engagement in recovery services and supports.
``(d) Behavioral Health Provider Defined.--In this section,
the term `behavioral health provider' means--
``(1) a community mental health center that meets the
criteria under section 1913(c) of the Public Health Service
Act (42 U.S.C. 300x-2(c)); or
``(2) a certified community behavioral health clinic
described in section 223(d) of the Protecting Access to
Medicare Act of 2014 (42 U.S.C. 1396a note).
``SEC. 3052. STATE APPLICATIONS.
``(a) In General.--To request a grant under this part, the
chief executive of a State, or such agency as the chief
executive may designate, shall submit an application to the
Attorney General--
``(1) in such form and containing such information as the
Attorney General may reasonably require;
``(2) that includes assurances that Federal funds received
under this part shall be used to supplement, not supplant,
non-Federal funds that would otherwise be available for
activities funded under this part; and
``(3) that describes the coordination between State
criminal and juvenile justice agencies, mental health
agencies and community-based behavioral health providers,
preliminary qualified offenders, and family and community
members in--
``(A) program design;
``(B) program implementation; and
``(C) training on crisis response, medication adherence,
and continuity of recovery in the community.
``(b) Eligibility for Preference With Community Care
Component.--
``(1) In general.--In awarding grants under this part, the
Attorney General shall give preference to a State that
ensures that individuals who participate in a program, funded
by a grant under this part will be provided with continuity
of care, in accordance with paragraph (2), in a community
care provider program upon release from a correctional
facility.
``(2) Requirements.--For purposes of paragraph (1), the
continuity of care shall involve the coordination of the
correctional facility treatment program with qualified
community behavioral health providers and other recovery
supports, pre-trial release programs, parole supervision
programs, half-way house programs, and participation in peer
recovery group programs, which may aid in ongoing recovery
after the individual is released from the correctional
facility.
``(3) Community care provider program defined.--For
purposes of this subsection, the term `community care
provider program' means a community mental health center or
certified community behavioral health clinic that directly
provides to an individual, or assists in connecting an
individual to the provision of, appropriate community-based
treatment, medication management, and other recovery
supports, when the individual leaves a correctional facility
at the end of a sentence or on parole.
``(c) Coordination of Federal Assistance.--Each application
submitted for a grant under this part shall include a
description of how the funds made available under this part
will be coordinated with Federal assistance for behavioral
health services currently provided by the Department of
Health and Human Services' Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration.
``SEC. 3053. REVIEW OF STATE APPLICATIONS.
``(a) In General.--The Attorney General shall make a grant
under section 3051 to carry out the projects described in the
application submitted under section 3052 upon determining
that--
``(1) the application is consistent with the requirements
of this part; and
``(2) before the approval of the application, the Attorney
General has made an affirmative finding in writing that the
proposed project has been reviewed in accordance with this
part.
``(b) Approval.--Each application submitted under section
3052 shall be considered approved, in whole or in part, by
the Attorney General not later than 90 days after first
received, unless the Attorney General informs the applicant
of specific reasons for disapproval.
``(c) Restriction.--Grant funds received under this part
shall not be used for land acquisition or construction
projects.
``(d) Disapproval Notice and Reconsideration.--The Attorney
General may not disapprove any application without first
affording the applicant reasonable notice and an opportunity
for reconsideration.
``SEC. 3054. EVALUATION.
``Each State that receives a grant under this part shall
submit to the Attorney General an evaluation not later than 1
year after receipt of the grant in such form and containing
such information as the Attorney General, in consultation
with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, may
reasonably require.
``SEC. 3055. AUTHORIZATION OF FUNDING.
``For purposes of carrying out this part, the Attorney
General is authorized to award not more than $10,000,000 of
funds appropriated to the Department of Justice for State and
local law enforcement activities for each of fiscal years
2020 through 2025.''.
(b) National Criminal Justice and Mental Health Training
and Technical Assistance.--Section 2992(c)(3) of title I of
the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34
U.S.C. 10652(c)(3)) is amended by inserting before the
semicolon at the end the following: ``, which may include
interventions designed to enhance access to medication.''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from
California (Ms. Bass) and the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr.
Reschenthaler) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from California.
General Leave
Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have
5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include
extraneous material on the bill under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from California?
There was no objection.
Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I am proud to support S. 3312, the Crisis Stabilization
and Community Reentry Act of 2020. Today, with this bill, the House
takes additional affirmative steps to promote the successful reentry
into their communities of individuals leaving correctional facilities.
[[Page H7215]]
The bill provides funding to State, local, and community
organizations to provide incarcerated and recently released individuals
with mental health and substance abuse treatment. Providing continuity
of care in relation to mental health and substance abuse treatment when
individuals are released from correctional facilities is a critical
bridge back into their communities; but continuity of care of this sort
is seldom available to returning citizens. This bill addresses that
gap.
At a series of hearings this Congress, the Judiciary Committee has
explored the many challenges that recently released individuals face.
These returning citizens confront a myriad of barriers that hamper
reentry. Unfortunately, many struggle with mental health and substance
abuse. Navigating reentry, which is already daunting, can be made even
more difficult due to these additional challenges.
Because the need is great, the reach of this bill is broad. The
grants awarded by S. 3312 improve mental health and substance abuse
treatment during pretrial detention, throughout incarceration, and upon
return to the community. Eligible grantees include juvenile justice
agencies, mental health agencies, and community-based behavioral health
providers.
The bill's keen focus on the provision of care by local, community-
based providers is deliberate, as this is consistent with long-term
reentry success. This is why I am particularly supportive of this
provision of the bill that implements a preference for grantees that
provide community-based care and promote policies that reduce the
number of technical probation violations.
Also notable in S. 3312 is the broad panoply of mental health
services that it incorporates. These include peer support, enrollment
in long-term healthcare programs, and introduction to clinically proven
medications. This bill recognizes that no single reentry solution will
work for every returning individual.
The programs authorized in S. 3312 would further promote much-needed
cooperative efforts among criminal and juvenile justice agencies,
mental health agencies, and community-based behavioral health
providers.
The programs receiving funding under this bill would engage relevant
stakeholders in the formulation of program design, implementation,
training on services, and examination of healthcare reimbursement
issues that may pose a barrier to ensuring long-term financial
sustainability of these programs.
The holistic approach to reentry that this bill adopts has
consistently been shown to promote successful reentry and offer better
long-term solutions.
In recent years, Congress passed the hallmark Second Chance Act and a
number of other bills, including H.R. 8161, the One Stop Community
Reentry Program Act, focused on promoting successful reentry and, in
turn, supporting public safety. Like those bills, S. 3312, the Crisis
Stabilization and Community Reentry Act, is a necessary tool to ensure
that proper services reach people involved in the criminal justice
system.
Finally, I thank our colleague, Representative David Trone, for
championing the companion bill in the House.
Mr. Speaker, I urge all my colleagues to support this bill, and I
reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of S. 3312, the Crisis
Stabilization and Community Reentry Act of 2020. I was proud to
introduce this House companion bill, this bipartisan piece of
legislation, with Representatives Rutherford, Trone, Armstrong, Dean,
and Scanlon.
The Crisis Stabilization and Community Reentry Act authorizes grants
for State and local correctional facilities to partner with community
mental health and behavioral health providers to provide clinical
services for people with serious mental illness and substance abuse
disorders.
When I served as a district judge in southwestern Pennsylvania, many
of those who came before my bench were suffering from untreated and
undiagnosed mental illness. In fact, according to a 2012 Bureau of
Justice Statistics survey, approximately 1 in 7 State and Federal
prisoners, and 1 in 4 jail inmates met the threshold for serious
psychological distress in the 30 days prior.
S. 3312 ensures that we provide these individuals with treatment,
suicide prevention, and tools for long-term recovery upon release from
a correctional facility. By ensuring continuity of mental healthcare,
we can facilitate successful reentry, which is critical to reducing
recidivism; in turn, improving public safety and saving taxpayer
dollars.
I want to, again, thank my fellow sponsors in the House, as well as
Senators Cornyn and Blumenthal, for prioritizing this important issue.
I am proud to support this bipartisan, bicameral bill that will give
law enforcement the tools that they need to keep our communities safe,
while also ending the revolving door between prison and the streets.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support S. 3312, and I reserve
the balance of my time.
{time} 1545
Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume
to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Rutherford).
Mr. RUTHERFORD. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague and good friend
from Pennsylvania for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Crisis Stabilization and
Community Reentry Act of 2020.
I can tell you, Mr. Speaker, as a former sheriff with over 40 years
of experience in law enforcement, I understand the issues people face
as they leave and transition from incarceration to a free society.
Throughout my time in law enforcement, I saw many individuals--too many
individuals--re-offend time and time again, often with the same
offenses involving substance abuse and mental health issues.
Part of the problem back then was, when a prisoner was released from
State prison, literally all we gave them was a blue bag for their
valuables and a bus ticket home. And we wondered why they failed and
returned to a life of crime--not much for rehabilitation.
So, when I became the sheriff of Jacksonville, I partnered with the
Florida Secretary of Corrections and community groups to implement
programs that provided continued treatment and services to individuals
during and after they left prison because those exiting prison systems
face numerous challenges as they go back to their communities, often
with little or no support from friends or family.
As my colleague just mentioned, the Bureau of Justice Statistics
calculates that one in seven individuals in State and Federal prisons,
and one in four individuals in jails, experience serious psychological
distress. Their battles with psychological distress and substance abuse
do not stop when they exit prison. In fact, they are exacerbated upon
their release. Indeed, during this transition phase, that support is
often needed the most.
Today's bipartisan legislation would streamline mental health and
medical services for these individuals, preventing a lapse of care
between prison and society, and, instead, creating a continuum of care
for those at greater risk of relapse.
The Crisis Stabilization and Community Reentry Act establishes a warm
handoff of care between law enforcement, community-based groups, and
mental health specialists. The partnership between law enforcement and
community groups is critical as they both share a common goal to lower
recidivism and ensure people can thrive and succeed when they return
back to their communities.
By offering grants through the Department of Justice, States and
communities would be able to provide medication-assisted treatment,
counseling, and other transition services that are prioritized for
those who need it most.
This bipartisan legislation is supported by the National Sheriffs'
Association, the Major Cities Chiefs Association, the National Council
for Behavioral Health, and the National Alliance on Mental Illness, and
the Treatment Advocacy Center.
[[Page H7216]]
I am proud to support this initiative as a member of the
congressional bipartisan Opioid Task Force, as a member of the Mental
Health Caucus, and also as a proud member of the Law Enforcement
Caucus, because as a sheriff, I have seen firsthand and know the
success a bill like this can accomplish.
This bill is going to save lives, it is going to save money, and it
is going to reduce crime. With a renewed focus on those people in
greatest need, we can work together to ensure that pattern of
recidivism can become a problem in the past rather than one that will
be shouldered by future generations to come.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to
support this bill, which, again, Mr. Speaker, is going to save lives,
save dollars, and reduce recidivism.
Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, in closing, once again, I would like
to urge my colleagues to support S. 3312, and I yield back the balance
of my time.
Ms. BASS. Mr. Speaker, the Crisis Stabilization and Community Reentry
Act of 2020 represents a significant step toward ensuring that
incarcerated people receive appropriate mental health and substance
abuse care while in a correctional facility and that those services are
available upon their reentry into the community.
I am encouraged by the bipartisan and bicameral support for this
bill. I, again, thank Representative Trone, as well as Senators Cornyn
and Blumenthal and my colleague from the Judiciary Committee,
Representative Reschenthaler.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this bill
today, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, as a senior member of the Judiciary,
Committee, I rise in strong support of S. 3312, the ``Crisis
Stabilization and Community Reentry Act,'' bipartisan legislation that
ensures people experiencing a mental health crisis receive appropriate
care while in a correctional facility.
Specifically, the Crisis Stabilization and Community Reentry Act
would authorize $10 million in grants to communities to create
collaborative programs involving justice agencies and community-based
behavioral health providers, including Certified Community Behavioral
Health Clinics (CCBHCs).
Mr. Speaker, this legislation addresses the challenges faced by many
person during their period of incarceration and as they seek to reenter
the community.
This includes access to proper medication and additional training for
law enforcement officers so they can address the needs of our most
vulnerable individuals.
The bill also calls for a warm handoff between law enforcement and
community mental health clinics upon re-entry into the community to
ensure the best possible start.
It would also create a national technical assistance center to serve
communities around the country.
Crisis Stabilization and Community Reentry Act grants would support
community-level crisis response programs, including collaboratively
designed crisis response services and technical support programs that
promote medication adherence and continuity of care.
This grant funding will also support targeted training programs
related to medication adherence and continuity of care; including the
purchase and use of long-acting antipsychotic medications to support
adherence.
Importantly, the infusion of funding will strengthen local agency and
provider capacity to reduce suicides during incarceration.
Finally, the legislation establishes a national technical assistance
center to support justice and mental health agencies, community
behavioral health providers, CCBHCs, and other stakeholders in
developing training and treatment approaches for justice-involved
persons with mental illness, as well as payment strategies that promote
best-practices with respect to care for this vulnerable group of
persons.
This legislation is strongly supported by and has earned the
endorsement of The National Council, which is another reason why I
strongly support this bipartisan, common-sense criminal justice reform
and urge all Members to join me in voting to pass S. 3312, the Crisis
Stabilization and Community Reentry Act.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Bass) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, S. 3312.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
____________________