H-2885.1

SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 1929

ByHouse Health Care & Wellness (originally sponsored by Representatives Cortes, Eslick, Ortiz-Self, Leavitt, Duerr, Ramel, Slatter, Taylor, Orwall, Ryu, Reed, Simmons, Ormsby, Fey, Callan, Peterson, Timmons, Kloba, Macri, Street, Gregerson, Doglio, Paul, Chopp, Mena, Goodman, Lekanoff, Reeves, Fosse, Pollet, and Davis)

AN ACT Relating to supporting young adults following inpatient behavioral health treatment; adding a new section to chapter 74.09 RCW; and creating a new section.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

(2) The legislature finds that young people who exit behavioral health inpatient treatment are the largest group of people who become homeless within three to 12 months of all the young people who exit any publicly funded system of care, as identified in a 2023 report produced by the research and data analysis division of the department of social and health services.

(3) The legislature has invested significant funding in the behavioral health system and finds that ensuring a person's safe return to the community postinpatient treatment is a high priority and a major opportunity to end their experience with homelessness. In addition, the legislature finds that a young person who enters treatment demonstrates the courage to engage in their personal health and creates the opportunity for family and community reunification, career development, and a full life.

(4) The legislature further finds that it often takes more time and resources than expected during a person's inpatient treatment episode to identify a return to community plan that includes long-term, safe housing and a developmentally and culturally responsive support system that includes relationships, services, and passions.

(5) For these reasons, the legislature finds that having an interim housing option that provides a safe and soft landing postinpatient treatment, located on each side of the state, that has well-trained staff and peers who have behavioral health expertise, is a sound investment in our young people and our collective goals to prevent and end homelessness.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 74.09 RCW to read as follows:

(1) Subject to the availability of amounts appropriated for this specific purpose, the postinpatient housing program for young adults is established to provide supportive transitional housing with behavioral health support focused on securing long-term housing for young adults exiting inpatient behavioral health treatment.

(2) To be eligible for the postinpatient housing program for young adults created under this section, a person must:

(a) Be 18 through 24 years of age;

(b)(i) Be exiting inpatient behavioral health treatment; or

(ii) Have exited inpatient behavioral health treatment within the last month and be engaged in a recovery plan; and

(c) Not have secured long-term housing.

(3) Subject to the availability of amounts appropriated for this specific purpose and to fulfill the requirements of this section, the authority shall:

(a) Provide funding to a community-based organization or organizations or federally recognized tribes within Washington or tribal organizations that serve American Indians and Alaska Natives in Washington with expertise in working with young people experiencing unaccompanied homelessness, behavioral health conditions, or both, to operate a residential program or programs as described in this subsection (3)(a). The organization selected to operate a residential program or programs in this subsection (3)(a) may choose whether or not to serve individuals eligible according to the criteria established in subsection (2) of this section. The residential program or programs must be voluntary for participants and may not be a secure facility, or a facility that limits residents' ingress and egress pursuant to chapter 71.24 RCW, or a facility at which individuals may be detained pursuant to chapter 71.05 RCW. In addition, the authority shall consult with a transition support provider when soliciting and selecting a community-based organization or organizations under this subsection. The funding provided under this subsection must be used to:

(i) Establish at least two residential programs with six to 10 beds with one program on either side of the Cascade mountain range;

(ii) Establish a developmentally and culturally responsive environment that values healing and recovery;

(iii) Engage peers with behavioral health experience in the support and recovery of individuals served by the program;

(iv) Serve individuals determined eligible according to the criteria established in subsection (2) of this section for up to 90 days; and

(v) Support and strengthen the ongoing healing and learning that occurred for those served by the program during their inpatient treatment;

(b) Provide additional funding to the transition support provider for:

(i) Consultation and training services to the residential program or programs selected under (a) of this subsection;

(ii) Return-to-community planning for the individuals served by the residential programs described under (a) of this subsection; and

(iii) To the extent possible, making contact with individuals served by the residential programs described under (a) of this subsection at regular intervals after those individuals leave the residential program and reporting this information to the authority;

(c) Provide flexible funding to support individuals served by the residential programs described under (a) of this subsection. The flexible funding provided under this subsection may be provided to support the immediate needs of the individual. Uses of the flexible funding provided under this subsection may include, but are not limited to, the following:

(i) Car repair or other transportation assistance;

(ii) Rental application fees, a security deposit, or short-term rental assistance; or

(iii) Other uses that will help support the person's housing stability, education, or employment, or meet immediate basic needs; and

(d) Provide funding to contract with individuals or entities that provide behavioral health support to individuals determined eligible according to the criteria established in subsection (2) of this section, which may include, but are not limited to:

(i) On-site and community-based behavioral health supports;

(ii) Peer supports; and

(iii) Medication management.

(4) For purposes of this section, "transition support provider" means a community-based organization selected by the authority that continues to:

(a) Provide information and support services related to safe housing and support services for youth exiting inpatient behavioral health treatment; and

(b) Organize a coalition of community housing providers, federally recognized tribes within Washington or tribal organizations that serve American Indians and Alaska Natives in Washington, inpatient behavioral health discharge planners, and young people with lived experience of behavioral health conditions or unaccompanied homelessness.

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