This week NAMI California spotlights SB 1054, a bill authored by Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg.

This bill would appropriate $50,000,000 from the General Fund in the 2014-15 fiscal year for the mentally ill offender crime reduction (MIOCR) grant program, and require that half of that amount be used for adult offenders and half for juvenile offenders. These funds are used to create diversion, re-entry, and training programs for persons living with mental illness who are justice involved. Potential uses of the grants include establishing mental health courts, creating pre-booking diversion programs, or creating collaborative reentry programs that provide treatment and training for persons living with mental illness who previously incarcerated.

Grants will be awarded on a competitive basis to counties that expand or establish a continuum of swift, certain, and graduated responses to reduce crime and criminal justice costs related to mentally ill offenders.

NAMI California commends the author for leadership in seeking to revive funding for the Mentally Ill Offender Crime Reduction Grant (MIOCRG) program. This program is invaluable in ensuring that persons living with mental illness who offend as a result of behavior deriving from that illness are provided with needed treatment in the least restrictive setting and are provided with the tools and support to reintegrate into society.

Read the full bill HERE.