Senate Approves Gonzales, Lee Bill to Increase Behavioral Health Access, Divert Coloradans in Need Away from Criminal Justice System
Legislation invests over $60 million to help folks get treatment for mental health and substance use support
DENVER, CO - The Senate today approved legislation sponsored by Senators Julie Gonzales, D-Denver, and Pete Lee, D-Colorado Springs, to make major investments in behavioral health services for individuals in – or at risk of becoming involved in – the criminal justice system. The legislation is based on recommendations from the Behavioral Health Transformational Task Force.
SB22-196 would invest $50.7 million for the Early Intervention, Deflection, and Redirection from the Criminal Justice System Grant Program to help communities prevent people with mental health conditions and substance use disorders from becoming involved with the criminal justice system. The funding would also be used to redirect individuals with behavioral health needs away from the criminal justice system and into appropriate treatment.
“For far too long, Colorado has tried to arrest and jail our way out of the behavioral health crisis, and it simply hasn’t worked,” Gonzales said. “Criminalizing people with behavioral health needs is the most expensive and least effective way to provide mental health care services to the folks who need it most. I am proud of the approaches we take in SB22-196 to intentionally intervene, deflect, and divert people out of the criminal justice system in order to get them the behavioral health resources they need.”
“Far too many Coloradans with mental health conditions and substance use disorders are struggling in jail cells without proper care and treatment to get them back on their feet, and that is simply unacceptable,” said Lee. “Jailing folks with behavioral health needs will only exacerbate their condition and lead to more recidivism, so we’re proposing measures today to ensure these individuals get the treatment they need before they enter the criminal justice system in the first place.”
The bill also includes investments to help the Department of Corrections, the Division of Criminal Justice, and the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing support the continuity of care and treatment for individuals in the criminal justice system with opioid use disorders and mental health disorders, as well as investments in the Judicial Department to support pretrial diversion programs designed to keep individuals with behavioral health conditions out of jail.
The bill will now move to the House for further consideration. Track the progress of the bill HERE.