S4413

An Act concerning student mental health, supplementing chapter 40 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes and Title 9A of the New Jersey Statutes, and making an appropriation.

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

1. a. The Commissioner of Education, in consultation with the Commissioner of Children and Families, shall establish guidelines for the development of a comprehensive mental health support and partnership program by a school district, charter school, and renaissance school project in accordance with section 2 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).

b. The guidelines shall, at a minimum:

(1) include information on common consent forms; laws and regulations governing patient privacy, including the “Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996,” Pub.L.104-191; and regional or school-based care coordination teams;

(2) clarify when a school district, charter school, or renaissance school project may request a mental health evaluation by a provider employed outside of the school district; the appropriate documentation for the mental health evaluation request; and how schools, families, and providers should communicate in a way that protects student privacy;

(3) promote consistency across school districts, charter schools, and renaissance school projects, and reduce administrative requirements that can delay a student’s return to school; and

(4) encourage school districts, charter schools, and renaissance school projects to develop written transition and support plans for students returning to school from a mental health crisis that address methods of communication with families, coordination with providers, and short-term follow-up supports within the school.

2. a. Each school district, charter school, and renaissance school project shall develop, in accordance with guidelines established by the Commissioner of Education pursuant to section 1 of P.L. ,

c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), a comprehensive mental health support and partnership program in the schools of the district, the charter school, or the renaissance school project. The purpose of the program shall be to connect students, who have been identified as requiring longer-term mental health care or who have high-acuity behavioral health needs, with the School-Based Partnerships for Access and Resilience for Kids (SPARK) program navigator, pursuant to section 3 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).

b. No student shall be connected to the School-Based Partnerships for Access and Resilience for Kids (SPARK) program navigator, pursuant to subsection a. of this section, without written authorization from the student’s parent or legal guardian.

c. Each school district, charter school, and renaissance school project shall be required to have either a designated staff member to provide school-based counseling services for students, a formalized arrangement with a community-based mental health care provider, or a formalized arrangement with the New Jersey Statewide Student Support Services program to provide services with outlined criteria for when they will be utilized.

3. a. Notwithstanding the provision of any law or regulation to the contrary, there is established in the Department of Children and Families the School-Based Partnerships for Access and Resilience for Kids (SPARK) program, which shall be operated and administered by the New Jersey Pediatric Psychiatry Collaborative under contract to the department.

b. The New Jersey Pediatric Psychiatry Collaborative will serve as the School-Based Partnerships for Access and Resilience for Kids (SPARK) program navigator, and will provide:

(1) same-day psychiatric consultation, assessment, and triage support for school districts;

(2) referrals and linkages to care, as necessary, with community-based outpatient psychiatric providers and therapists;

(3) behavioral health care navigation, coordination, and family engagement;

(4) short-term medication management, stabilization support, and bridging services for students and families awaiting treatment or services from community-based providers;

(5) school re-entry planning, psychiatric clearance, and transition coordination following student behavioral health crises, hospitalizations, or emergency department visits;

(6) educational support, consultation, and behavioral health guidance for school district personnel; and

(7) consultation and guidance for State and local school leaders to craft and implement evidence-based student mental health policies.

c. All School-Based Partnerships for Access and Resilience for Kids (SPARK) program services provided pursuant to subsection b. of this section shall be made available for students in kindergarten through grade 12, upon a referral by a teaching staff member or school mental health professionals and only with the written authorization of the student’s parent or legal guardian.

d. The Commissioner of Children and Families, in consultation with the Commissioner of Education, shall establish a process by which public school districts, charter schools, and renaissance school projects may access services available through the School-Based Partnerships for Access and Resilience for Kids (SPARK) program pursuant to section 2 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).

4. a. No later than 90 days after the effective date of P.L. ,

c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), the Commissioner of Children and Families shall establish and implement a process and issue a request for proposals by which mobile mental health platforms may apply to be awarded the State’s single contract to provide a mobile mental health application that delivers universal, age-appropriate mental health information and resources specifically tailored to students in kindergarten through grade 12 and their families.

b. The Commissioner of Children and Families shall ensure that the universal, age appropriate mental health information and resources provided via the mobile application pursuant to subsection a. of this section complements the services available to students and families through the School-Based Partnerships for Access and Resilience for Kids (SPARK) program established pursuant to section 3 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).

5. a. As a condition of participation in and accessing School-Based Partnerships for Access and Resilience for Kids (SPARK) program services, as listed in subsection b. of section 3 of P.L. ,

c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), a school district, charter school, and renaissance school project shall report annually to the Department of Children and Families and the Department of Education:

(1) the number of students accessing School-Based Partnerships for Access and Resilience for Kids (SPARK) program services during the most recent school year;

(2) the number of students and families referred by the School-Based Partnerships for Access and Resilience for Kids (SPARK) program navigator to community-based behavioral health providers;

(3) the number of school personnel receiving educational support, consultation, and behavioral health guidance; and

(4) any other information, as required by the Commissioner of Children and Families and the Commissioner of Education.

b. The Commissioner of Children and Families shall establish a public-facing data platform on the Department of Children and Families’ website to display, in a searchable format, the information provided pursuant to subsection a. of this section.

6. The Commissioner of Children and Families shall report annually to the Governor, and to the Legislature pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1) concerning the information required to be collected by school districts, charter schools, and renaissance school projects pursuant to subsection a. of section 5 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).

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

8. There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Children and Families the sum of $44,000,000 to administer the School-Based Partnerships for Access and Resilience for Kids (SPARK) program established pursuant to section 3 of this act.

9. The provisions of section 1 of this act shall take effect immediately, and the provisions of section 4 shall take effect 90 days following the date of enactment. The provisions of section 2 of this act shall take effect six months following the date of enactment. Finally, the provisions of sections 3, 5, and 6 shall take effect on the first day of the 25th month next following the date of enactment. The Commissioner of Children and Families and the Commissioner of Education may take any anticipatory administrative action in advance of these effective dates as shall be necessary for the implementation of this act.

STATEMENT

The bill would require school districts, charter schools, and renaissance school projects, according to guidelines to be established by the Commissioner of Education, to establish a comprehensive mental health support and partnership program for students. The program would rapidly connect students, identified as requiring ongoing mental health care or having high-acuity behavioral health needs, with community-based behavioral health services via the School-Based Partnerships for Access and Resilience for Kids (SPARK) program.

The SPARK program, which would be established in the Department of Children and Families, would be operated and administered by the New Jersey Pediatric Psychiatry Collaborative (collaborative) under contract to the department. The collaborative would serve as the SPARK program navigator, and would provide:

· same-day psychiatric consultation, assessment, and triage support for schools;

· referrals and linkages to outpatient psychiatry and community-based therapists;

· behavioral health care navigation, coordination, and family engagement;

· short-term medication management, stabilization, and bridging services;

· school re-entry planning and clearance following behavioral health crises;

· educational support and consultation for school personnel; and

· consultation and guidance for State and local school leaders to implement evidence-based student mental health policies.

All SPARK services would be available for students in kindergarten through grade 12, upon a referral by school personnel, and only with written authorization from the student’s parent or legal guardian.

Each school district, charter school, and renaissance school project would be required to have either a designated staff member to provide school-based counseling services for students, or a formalized arrangement with a community-based mental health provider or with the New Jersey Statewide Student Support Services program.

Within 90 days of the bill’s effective date, the Commissioner of Children and Families would issue a request for proposals for a mobile mental health application that delivers universal mental health information and resources for students in Kindergarten through Grade 12 and their families.

To access SPARK services, schools would be required to report annually to the department and the Department of Education: the number of students accessing SPARK services during the most recent school year; the number of students and families referred by the SPARK navigator to community-based providers; the number of school personnel receiving educational support, guidance, and consultation; and any other information required by the commissioners. The commissioner would provide this information via a searchable, public-facing data platform on the department’s website, and would be required to report these data annually to the Governor and the Legislature..

The bill appropriates $44.0 million to implement the provisions therein.