California Legislature Approves Expansion Criteria For The State Mental Health Services Act

On September 14, 2023, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced that the state legislature had passed two bills with criteria to reform and expand for the state’s Mental Health Services Act (MHSA). He has until October 14 to sign them, which will allow the proposals to be presented for voter approval in March 2024. The reforms will direct a significant share of existing MHSA funding to prioritize state residents with serious mental illness, serious addiction disorder, or unhoused homelessness. With the expansion to cover addiction disorder, the bill renames the MHSA as the Behavioral Health Services Act (BHSA).

The state . . .