ACMI Action Alert: Arizona’s 2021 Budget, Please Include These Items for SMI

SB1142 a modest (up to $1 million) tax incentive bill for employers who hire one of Arizona’s 40,000 individuals diagnosed as Seriously Mentally Ill. It serves 2 purposes: offset initial training costs and gives purpose and meaning to individuals ready to take the next step towards recovery and independence.

SB1786 a prisoner transition program designed specifically for individuals with the most serious mental diseases. Transition programs work for those with a serious mental illness and who are most at risk for harming themselves or others without effective transitioning (cost $1.3 million).

On their own, these bills do not solve every gap in Arizona’s continuum of care for individuals with chronic mental illness. However, they are vital parts of that continuum and important steps forward. People with serious mental illness can find support transitioning out of prison and others can find meaning and purpose through employment and inclusion in the community.

SB1030 — The PSRB Bill. With agreed upon floor amendments, this bill will not have a budget impact. It reforms the Psychiatric Security Review Board and will have a significant impact on Public Safety. You can read more about this important work in a recent Op-Ed published in the Arizona Capitol Times.

SB1716.  The Arizona State Hospital (ASH) Bill.  The Bill does not have an impact on the budget this year as well.  We are confident that this is the beginning of reforming the bottleneck that leaves so many in Maricopa County languishing in inappropriate hospital settings or worse. This legislation also seeks to bring more accountability to ASH for the services it provides and improve patient safety.

But we need YOUR help NOW!

Please take a moment to email or call your State Representatives and Senator and ask them to support the two budget items! Every email or phone call matters and makes a huge difference!! Thank You!

Here is a link to find your AZ Representative’s and Senator’s email. You can also quickly email all House and Senate members through this site:

The Arizona Peoples Lobbyist – Your Voice – Your Choice (azpeopleslobbyist.com)

UPDATE:

SCR1018 —  The Concurrent Resolution. This expresses support for community-based efforts to provide clinically appropriate care to individuals with chronic serious mental illness; Passed unanimously in both the Senate and House!  Please take some time to read this Resolution and thank our legislators on social media and through emails.

This Resolution acknowledges the needs of individuals and families living with chronic serious mental illness in Arizona and our legislators unanimously agreed that we must work toward providing a full continuum of care, including access to the Arizona State Hospital, for this group of people.

SENATOR BARTO — We continue to be grateful for Senator Nancy Barto’s tireless work on addressing these gaps in the continuum of care on behalf of the Chronically Mentally Ill in Arizona down at our State Capitol every week! Please express your appreciation when you have a moment as well to other legislators who support these important bills.