|
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.C.R. NO. |
225 |
|
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2008 |
H.D. 1 |
|
|
STATE OF HAWAII |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
|
||
HOUSE CONCURRENT
RESOLUTION
REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO PROVIDE A COMPREHENSIVE REPORT OF POST FELIX CONSENT DECREE CHILD AND ADOLESCENT MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES AND FUNDING.
WHEREAS, the Felix v. Cayetano Consent Decree (Consent Decree) mandated fundamental change, wherever necessary, to provide educational, mental health, and related services to disabled children that satisfies the law and the principles of the Child and Adolescent Service System Program; and
WHEREAS, the Consent Decree provided that eligible children receive free and appropriate public education, as required under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Section 504, and that the system provide a continuum of services, programs, and placements according to family- and child-centered principles; and
WHEREAS, to benefit from their education, the Consent Decree mandated that the State identify children and youth ages 0-20 who are in need of behavioral and emotional support, and to provide adequate and timely intervention and delivery of culturally relevant services in home-based, school-based, and community-based settings; and
WHEREAS, by June 30, 2000, the State was obligated to design and implement a system of care that functions in accordance with the standards and operating principles of the Consent Decree, which was terminated in 2006; and
WHEREAS, despite the removal of court oversight, there are critical issues that have been identified that need more attention at this point in time by the Department of Health (DOH) and Department of Education (DOE), including:
(1) Providing consistent and appropriate quality services;
(2) Lack of service system development in certain areas in the state;
(3) Lack of accountability systems; and
(4) The numbers of children being sent to mainland placement because of lack of local alternatives;
and
WHEREAS, budgetary shortfalls and lack of oversight at DOH and DOE may contribute to inadequate services and infrastructure to build and maintain an adequate system of care; and
WHEREAS, the No Child Left Behind Act requires schools to focus on annual progress and test children with disabilities at grade level rather than at their developmental level, resulting in DOE's shift in focus from services to children with mental health needs to meeting annual progress and test scores; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-fourth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2008, the Senate concurring, that DOH, in coordination with DOE, is requested to provide a comprehensive report of post Consent Decree child and adolescent mental health services and funding; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that DOH and DOE include in the report:
(1) The funding levels of child and adolescent mental health and special education services, currently, and also while DOH and DOE were operating under court oversight, including identifying all state, federal, and federal matching dollar streams of funding;
(2) The numbers of children with mental health needs served and client outcomes, currently, and also while the DOH and DOE were operating under court oversight; and
(3) The number of vacant positions, along with issues related to filling vacant positions within DOE, and similar information provided by the Department of Human Resources Development for filling vacant positions within DOH's Child and Adolescent Mental Health Division;
and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that reports related to the above issues be submitted to the Legislature no later than 60 days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2009; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Governor, Superintendent of Education, Chairperson of the Board of Education, Director of Health, Director of Human Resources Development, Director of Human Services, Chairperson of the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Task Force, and President and Chief Executive Officer of Mental Health America of Hawaii.
Felix Consent Decree; DOH – DOE Report