SENATE, No. 1764

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

221st LEGISLATURE

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2024 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Senator  PAUL D. MORIARTY

District 4 (Atlantic, Camden and Gloucester)

SYNOPSIS

     Requires DCF to publish and disseminate information on early childhood mental health to certain professionals.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

     Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.

An Act concerning children and mental health and supplementing Title 9 of the Revised Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1.   a.  The Department of Children and Families, in collaboration with the Department of Human Services and the Department of Education, shall publish information on early childhood mental health on its Internet website and disseminate the information to social workers, teachers, and child care workers, whose work consists primarily of providing services to children who are five years of age or younger. 

     b.    The information established pursuant to this section shall include, but not be limited to:

     (1) discussing the importance for early childhood mental health awareness;

     (2) appropriately relaying mental health concerns to a parent or guardian; and

     (3) referring a parent or guardian to State or community resources to assess a child’s mental health needs;

     c.     The Department of Children and Families may provide in-service training of social workers, teachers, and child care workers on the information published and disseminated pursuant to this section.

     2.    The Department of Children and Families, in accordance with Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), shall adopt rules and regulations to implement the provisions of this act.

     3.  This act shall take effect no later than 360 days after the date of enactment.

STATEMENT

     This bill requires the Department of Children and Families to publish and disseminate information on early childhood mental health to certain professionals.

     Specifically, the Department of Children and Families, in collaboration with the Department of Human Services and the Department of Education, is to publish information on early childhood mental health on its Internet website and disseminate the information to social workers, teachers, and child care workers, whose work consists primarily of providing services to children who are five years of age or younger. 

     The bill provides that the information is to include, but not be limited to:  (1) discussing the importance for early childhood mental health awareness; (2) appropriately relaying mental health concerns to a parent or guardian; and (3) referring a parent or guardian to State or community resources to assess a child’s mental health needs.

     Under the bill, the Department of Children and Families may provide in-service training of social workers, teachers, and child care workers on the information published and disseminate pursuant to the bill’s provisions.