Rep. Norm Thurston — Voting Record

Bill

Number

H.B. 413 First Substitute (2024GS)

Sponsor

Rep. Eliason, S.

Final action

Governor Signed 3/12/2024

Outcome

Became law — signed by Gov. Spencer J. Cox

Summary

What it does

• This bill:
• amends the student mental health screening program to clarify that a local education agency (LEA) that fails to make a determination to be a participating LEA by the deadline will default to becoming a participating LEA for the following school year;
• provides instructions to the State Board of Education on how to distribute funds to participating LEAs; and
• makes technical changes.

Every vote on this bill

Bill text

STUDENT MENTAL HEALTH AMENDMENTS
GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Steve Eliason
Senate Sponsor: 
 Ann Millner
LONG TITLE
General Description:
This bill amends provisions related to the student mental health screening program.
Highlighted Provisions:
This bill:
▸ amends the student mental health screening program to clarify that a local education
agency (LEA) that fails to make a determination to be a participating LEA by the
deadline will default to becoming a participating LEA for the following school year;
▸ provides instructions to the State Board of Education on how to distribute funds to
participating LEAs; and
▸ makes technical changes.
Money Appropriated in this Bill:
None
Other Special Clauses:
None
Utah Code Sections Affected:
AMENDS:
53F-2-415
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2023, Chapters 98, 328 and 342
53F-2-522
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2023, Chapters 193, 328
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
Section 1. Section 
53F-2-415
 is amended to read:
53F-2-415.
Student health and counseling support -- Qualifying personnel --
Distribution formula -- Rulemaking.
(1) As used in this section:
(a) "Behavioral health support personnel" means an individual who:
(i) works under the direct supervision of qualifying personnel to:
(A) support and track a student's progress and access to and completion of school
curriculum; and
(B) support students by prompting, redirecting, encouraging, and reinforcing positive
behaviors;
(ii) is not certified or licensed in mental health; and
(iii) meets the professional qualifications as defined by state board rule;
(b) "Qualifying personnel" means a school counselor or other counselor, a school
psychologist or other psychologist, a school social worker or other social worker, or a school
nurse who:
(i) is licensed; and
(ii) collaborates with educators and a student's parent on:
(A) early identification and intervention of the student's academic and mental health
needs; and
(B) removing barriers to learning and developing skills and behaviors critical for the
student's academic achievement.
(c) "Telehealth services" means the same as that term is defined in Section 
26B-4-704
.
(2) (a) Subject to legislative appropriations, and in accordance with Subsection (2)(b),
the state board shall distribute money appropriated under this section to LEAs to provide
targeted school-based mental health support, including clinical services and trauma-informed
care, through:
(i) employing qualifying personnel;
(ii) employing behavioral health support personnel; or
(iii) entering into contracts for services provided by qualifying personnel, including
telehealth services.
(b) (i) The state board shall, after consulting with LEA governing boards, develop a
formula to distribute money appropriated under this section to LEAs.
(ii) The state board shall ensure that the formula described in Subsection (2)(b)(i)
incentivizes an LEA to provide school-based mental health support in collaboration with the
local mental health authority of the county in which the LEA is located.
(iii) The state board shall provide guidance for LEAs regarding the training,
qualifications, roles, and scopes of practice for qualifying personnel and behavioral health
support personnel that incorporates parent consent and partnership as key components in
addressing the mental health and behavioral health needs of students.
(3) To qualify for money under this section, an LEA shall submit to the state board a
plan that includes:
(a) measurable goals approved by the LEA governing board on improving student
safety, student engagement, school climate, or academic achievement;
(b) how the LEA intends to meet the goals described in Subsection (3)(a) through the
use of the money;
(c) how the LEA is meeting the requirements related to parent education described in
Section 
53G-9-703
; and
(d) whether the LEA intends to provide school-based mental health support in
collaboration with the local mental health authority of the county in which the LEA is located.
(4) The state board shall distribute money appropriated under this section to an LEA
that qualifies under Subsection (3)
, based on the formula described in Subsection (2)(b).
(5) An LEA may not use money distributed by the state board under this section to
supplant federal, state, or local money previously allocated to:
(a) employ qualifying personnel;
(b) employ behavioral health support personnel; or
(c) enter into contracts for services provided by qualified personnel, including
telehealth services.
(6) In accordance with Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act, the
state board shall make rules that establish:
(a) procedures for submitting a plan for and distributing money under this section;
(b) the formula the state board will use to distribute money to LEAs described in
Subsection (2)(b); and
(c) in accordance with Subsection (7), annual reporting requirements for an LEA that
receives money under this section.
(7) An LEA that receives money under this section shall submit an annual report to the
state board, including:
(a) progress toward achieving the goals submitted under Subsection (3)(a);
(b) if the LEA discontinues a qualifying personnel position or a behavioral health
support personnel position, the LEA's reason for discontinuing the positions; and
(c) how the LEA, in providing school-based mental health support, complies with the
provisions of Section 
53E-9-203
.
(8) Beginning on or before July 1, 2019, the state board shall provide training that
instructs school personnel on the impact of childhood trauma on student learning, including
information advising educators against practicing medicine, giving a diagnosis, or providing
treatment.
(9) The state board may use up to:
(a) 2% of an appropriation under this section for costs related to the administration of
the provisions of this section; and
(b) $1,500,000 in nonlapsing balances from fiscal year 2022 for the purposes described
in this section to provide scholarships for up to four years to certain LEA employees, as defined
by the state board, for education and training to become a school social worker, a school
psychologist, or other school-based mental health worker.
(10) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, money appropriated under this
section may be used, as determined by the state board, for:
(a) the SafeUT Crisis Line described in Section 
53B-17-1202
; [
or
]
(b) (i) youth suicide prevention programs described in Section 
53G-9-702
; or
(ii) a comprehensive prevention plan, as that term is defined in Section 
53F-2-525
[
.
]
;
or
(c) providing grants to LEAs as provided in Subsection 
53F-2-522
(5).
Section 2. Section 
53F-2-522
 is amended to read:
53F-2-522.
Public education mental health screening.
(1) As used in this section:
(a) "Division" means the Division of Integrated Healthcare within the Department of
Health and Human Services.
(b) "Non-participating LEA" means an LEA that does not administer an approved
mental health screening program described in this section.
(c) "Participating LEA" means an LEA that has an approved screening program
described in this section.
(d) "Participating student" means a student in a participating LEA who participates in a
mental health screening program.
(e) "Qualifying parent" means a parent:
(i) of a participating student who, based on the results of a screening program, would
benefit from resources that cannot be provided to the participating student in the school setting;
and
(ii) who qualifies for financial assistance to pay for the resources under rules made by
the state board.
(f) "Screening program" means a student mental health screening program selected by
a participating LEA and approved by the state board in consultation with the division.
(2) (a) On or before July 1, 2023, an LEA governing board shall determine whether the
LEA will be a participating LEA or a non-participating LEA for the 2023-24 school year.
(b) (i) During the 2023-24 school year, and each year after, a participating LEA may
change the LEA's participation status and become a non-participating LEA for the next school
year by reporting the status change to the state board [
by the end of the current school year
] 
on
or before July 1, 2024
.
(ii) An LEA that changed the LEA's status from participating to non-participating in
Subsection (2)(b)(i) is subject to the requirements of a non-participating LEA described in
Subsection (2)(c).
(c) (i) During the 2023-24 school year, and each year after, a non-participating LEA's
governing board shall submit a record of determination to the state board [
by the end of the
school year
] 
on or before July 1, 2024
, which record shall state whether the non-participating
LEA will:
(A) maintain the LEA's non-participating status; or
(B) change the LEA's status to be a participating LEA.
(ii) If the non-participating LEA determines the LEA will change participation status
and become a participating LEA, the LEA's status of participation will change at the end of the
current school year.
(d) (i) If an LEA governing board failed to make the determination required in
Subsection (2)(a) on or before July 1, 2023, the LEA governing board shall determine whether
the LEA will be a participating LEA for the 2024-25 school year and notify the state board of
the determination on or before July 1, 2024.
(ii) If the LEA fails to make the determination and notify the state board on or before
July 1, 2024, as required in Subsection (2)(d)(i), the LEA is designated as a participating LEA
for the 2024-25 school year.
(e) If an LEA governing board fails to make the a determination described in
Subsection (2)(b) or (c) for a given year, the LEA is designated as a participating LEA for the
following school year.
(3) The state board shall:
(a) make rules in accordance with Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative
Rulemaking Act, to:
(i) establish a process for a participating LEA to submit a selected screening program
to the state board for approval;
(ii) in accordance with Title 53E, Chapter 9, Student Privacy and Data Protection, and
the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, 20 U.S.C. 1232g, establish who may access
and use a participating student's screening data;
(iii) establish a requirement and a process for appropriate LEA or school personnel to
attend annual training related to administering the screening program;
(iv) determine whether a parent is eligible to receive the financial support described in
Subsection (5)(a) as a qualifying parent; and
(v) apply for and distribute the financial support described in Subsection (5)(a);
(b) in consultation with the division, approve an evidence-based student mental health
screening program selected by a participating LEA that:
(i) is age appropriate for each grade in which the screening program is administered;
(ii) screens for the mental health conditions determined by the state board and division;
and
(iii) is an effective tool for identifying whether a student has a mental health condition
that requires intervention; and
(c) on or before November 30 of each year, submit a report on the screening programs
to
the State Suicide Prevention Coalition created under Subsection 
26B-5-611
(2) and
the Education Interim Committee in accordance with Section 
53E-1-201
 that contains
the following:
(i) the approximate number of participating students that were screened in each
participating LEA the previous school year;
(ii) the names and number of:
(A) participating LEAs; and
(B) non-participating LEAs;
(iii) an overview of how participating LEAs utilized distributed funds; and
(iv) whether the amount of distributed funds to each participating LEA was sufficient
for the participating LEA's needs.
(4) A participating LEA shall:
(a) in accordance with rules made by the state board under Subsection (3)(a), submit a
selected evidence-based screening program to the state board for approval;
(b) implement and administer a state board-approved mental health screening program
to participating students in the participating LEA by:
(i) annually notifying each parent with a student in the participating LEA that the
parent may have the student screened for mental health conditions;
(ii) obtaining prior written consent from a student's parent, that complies with Section
53E-9-203
, and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, 20 U.S.C. Sec. 1232g, before
the participating LEA screens a participating student;
(iii) screening the student for mental health conditions; and
(iv) if results of a participating student's screening indicate a potential mental health
condition, notifying the parent of the participating student of:
(A) the participating student's results; and
(B) resources available to the participating student, including any services that can be
provided by the school mental health provider or by a partnering entity;
(c) use state board-distributed funds for the purposes described in Subsection (5)(a);
and
(d) provide the state board with necessary information and data for the state board to
complete the report described in Subsection (3)(c).
(5) (a) Within appropriations made by the Legislature for this purpose, the state board
may distribute funds to a participating LEA to use to:
(i) implement and administer a mental health screening for participating students as
described in Subsection (4)(b); and
(ii) assist a qualifying parent to pay for resources described in Subsection (4)(b)(iv)(B)
that cannot be provided by a school mental health professional in the school setting.
(b) To distribute funds as described in Subsection (5)(a), the state board shall:
(i) distribute 90% of the available funds to participating LEAs based on the previous
year's average daily membership count; and
(ii) distribute the remaining 10% of the available funds on an as-needed basis to
participating LEAs if the LEA has exhausted the funds distributed under Subsection (5)(b)(i)
and has additional need.
[
(b)
] 
(c)
 The state board may not distribute funds described in Subsection (5)(a) to a
non-participating LEA.
(6) A school employee trained in accordance with rules made by the state board under
Subsection (3)(a)(iii), who administers an approved mental health screening in accordance with
this section in good faith, is not liable in a civil action for an act taken or not taken under this
section.
Section 3. 
Effective date.
This bill takes effect on May 1, 2024.