SECTIONS 5857-5860 - California Statutes

WELFARE AND INSTITUTIONS CODE

SECTION 5857-5860

5857. (a) The State Department of Mental Health shall issue a
request for applications for funding for new children's system of
care programs to nonparticipating counties in each year that
additional funds are provided for statewide expansion pursuant to
this part.
(b) Applications shall be submitted to the department by a county
mental health department with joint approval of collaborating local
agencies including, but not limited to, special education, juvenile
court, probation, child protective services agencies, the board of
supervisors, and the mental health advisory board.
(c) Program staff from the department shall review all
applications for funding for compliance with all requirements of law
and the application guidelines established by the department.
(d) The department may accept letters of intent from a county in
lieu of an application if moneys are not available to the county, to
affirm commitment by the county to participate in the request for
applications for funding process when moneys become available. Upon
approval of an application by the director, a county shall be funded
for an initial three-year contract period as described in Section
5854 and annually thereafter, consistent with the provisions of this
part. If a county is complying with the provisions of this part, the
department shall assure that the county receives an annual allocation
consistent with departmental guidelines for full funding, as
resources are made available.

5859. If applications are deficient and not ready for approval,
department program staff shall provide specific written descriptions
of areas of deficiency to counties and provide, to the extent
feasible, any requested training, consultation, and technical
assistance to assist the applicant county to achieve necessary
compliance and department approval.

5860. (a) Final selection of county proposals shall be subject to
the amount of funding approved for expansion of services under this
part.
(b) Counties shall use funds distributed under this part only in
support of a mental health system serving seriously emotionally
disturbed children in accordance with the principles and program
requirements associated with the system of care model described in
this part. The State Department of Mental Health shall audit and
monitor the use of these funds to ensure that the funds are used
solely in support of the children's system of care program and in
accordance with the performance contract described in subdivision
(c). If county programs receiving children's system of care funding
do not comply with program and audit requirements determined by the
department, funds shall be redistributed to other counties to
implement, expand, or model children's system of care programs.
(c) The department shall enter into annual performance contracts
with the selected counties and enter into training and consultation
contracts as necessary to fulfill its obligations under this part.
These annual performance contracts shall be in addition to the county
mental health services performance contracts submitted to the
department under Section 5650. Any changes in the staffing patterns
or protocols, or both, approved in the original program proposal
shall be identified and justified in these annual performance
contracts. Annual performance contracts filed by counties operating
the program as of January 1, 2001, shall, if approved by the
department, serve as the baseline contract for purposes of this
subdivision. The contracts shall be exempt from the requirements of
the Public Contract Code and the State Administrative Manual and
shall be exempt from approval by the Department of General Services.