SB 1-FN-A - AS AMENDED BY THE SENATE
01/19/2023 0055s
01/26/2023 0124s
2023 SESSION
23-0931
04/10
SENATE BILL 1-FN-A
SPONSORS: Sen. Carson, Dist 14; Sen. Bradley, Dist 3; Sen. Innis, Dist 7; Sen. Gray, Dist 6; Sen. Ward, Dist 8
COMMITTEE: Judiciary
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AMENDED ANALYSIS
This bill requires the closure of the Sununu youth services center, and sets out parameters for the contract for a replacement facility. The bill also establishes a commission to study the public safety of the youth development center and surrounding communities.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
01/19/2023 0055s
01/26/2023 0124s 23-0931
04/10
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Three
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Statement of Findings. The general court finds that:
I. Placement in corrections settings can be harmful to children and lead to increased delinquency and adult criminal behavior. It should therefore be reserved for those circumstances in which the safety of a child or of the community requires such confinement.
II. Placement of children who are not serious violent offenders in settings other than the Sununu youth services center (SYSC) complies with The Families First Act, P.L. 115-123, and the New Hampshire system of care established pursuant to 2019; 44 (SB 14), which prioritize community-based treatment of children.
III. This act is in furtherance of these goals.
2 Department of Health and Human Services; Sununu Youth Services Center; Construction and Operation of a Replacement Secure Facility.
I. The department of health and human services shall be responsible to construct a secured treatment facility that has a maximum physical capacity of 18 beds with an operational plan to support 12 beds to replace the current Sununu youth services center (SYSC). The department shall consult with the community selected for the location and operation of any new facility, as well as any municipality bordering the selected community. The department shall, to the extent practicable, implement any reasonable requests by the communities to ensure the safe operation of the facility, implement a payment in lieu of taxes arrangement to prevent the shifting of costs to local taxpayers, and ensure co-operation with the prospective community. The facility shall not be administered by any non-governmental entity. The facility shall be administered by the department of health and human services with support and shared services contracts as appropriate. The facility shall be designed to meet the unique needs of youth who are at the facility pursuant to RSA 169-B:14, detention; RSA 169-B:19, commitment; RSA 169-B:24, transfer to superior court; RSA 169-B:32 or RSA 651:17-a, service of adult sentence of incarceration at the youth development center; and RSA 169-A, the interstate compact on juveniles. Upon opening, the facility shall be referred to as the youth development center (YDC) as identified in RSA 169-B and RSA 621. The facility shall have the capability for alternative flexible use when the census so permits.
II. The department of health and human services, in collaboration with the department of administrative services, shall issue a request to procure a qualified architect on or before March 1, 2023, and shall collaborate to issue a request to procure a contractor to build the resulting construction project, and complete the project on or before November 1, 2024. The SYSC shall immediately be closed for detention, or admission of any child when the secured treatment facility authorized by this chapter is sufficiently completed that children can be legally and safely housed there.
III. The facility shall be designed to include:
(a) A physical design that complements therapeutic and trauma-informed care of children, including a home-like interior and exterior to the maximum extent practicable.
(b) Staff visibility and proximity to children, including administrative offices built within the secured facility in proximity to children and staff, to the maximum extent practicable.
(c) Capacity to provide services to meet the medical, physical, and behavioral health needs of all potentially eligible residents if appropriate for the child.
(d) Space for no more than 18 beds, including space with flexibility to meet the need for safety and security, crisis stabilization, admissions, and discharges for all children. The operational support plan shall anticipate 12 residents.
(e) Adequate space to meet the educational needs of all children including children with special education needs, while using virtual educational support services if appropriate for the child.
(f) Adequate space for indoor and outdoor recreation.
(g) Capacity to meet the nutritional needs of all children.
(h) Necessary elements to be architecturally secure and equipped with video surveillance in compliance with RSA 169-B:15-c.
(i) Operations may utilize virtual and shared services.
IV. The facility programming and operations shall include:
(a) The development of staff qualifications and standard job descriptions comprising required licensing or skill attainment. Staff qualifications shall be designed to ensure the provision of treatment to children with behavioral health challenges exacerbated by considerable trauma histories. Job description requirements, where appropriate shall include self and group protection, training in therapeutic approaches to address challenging behaviors, including the use of de-escalation techniques.
(b) Use of evidence-based practices, as defined in RSA 170-G:1, V-a, selected to match the needs of the population served at the facility.
(c) Utilization of the uniform assessment, as specified in RSA 170-G:4-e, for all detained and committed youth to understand treatment needs and determine if a different level of care is indicated to meet the youth’s needs, and where problem behavior appears patterned, a functional behavior analysis to inform effective behavioral interventions.
(d) Provision of care management services by a care management entity, as established in RSA 135-F:4, to begin immediate wraparound support upon admission to plan for discharge.
(e) Provision of frequent visitation opportunities with family, opportunities to include family in appropriate activities and daily access to family through telephonic or video conferencing.
(f) Provision of educational programing and staffing that meets the individualized educational needs of each child, including children with special education needs, creates meaningful educator-child pairings, maintains connections with sending school districts, and which includes availability of Hi-SET preparation and testing as appropriate. Virtual educational opportunities shall be leveraged appropriately to help meet the residents’ needs.
(g) Integration of clinical sessions and recreational large muscle movement activities throughout the day.
(h) Access by the office of the child advocate, in real-time, as established in RSA 21-V:4, II, to the electronic case management system used by the facility, regular access to youth placed in the facility under RSA 21-V:4, III, and video surveillance and general access to the facility pursuant to RSA 21-V:2, VII.
(i) Provision of adequate security to maintain the safety of staff and residents as well as the safety of the surrounding community and the general public.
(j) Training that emphasizes the treatment of youth with behavioral health challenges using approaches that include the employment of de-escalation techniques and that recognizes the risk that children may have considerable trauma histories, and that is otherwise applicable to the facility.
(k) Procedures for supporting children in the community with flexible assignments based upon census changes.
V. The department of health and human services shall begin to implement the programming changes in subparagraphs IV(a) through (k) without regard to whether children are at the SYSC or the new facility as soon as reasonably practicable.
VI. The department of health and human services shall submit quarterly progress reports to the joint legislative committee on health and human services established under RSA 126-A:13, the fiscal committee of the general court established under RSA 14:30-a, and the office of the child advocate established under RSA 21-V beginning no later than 60 days after the passage of this act, until such time as the facility is operational. Each quarterly report shall include a statement indicating whether the reported progress is sufficient to meet the November 1, 2024 deadline for the opening of the facility. In the event that sufficient progress to meet this deadline has not been made, the progress report shall include the reasons for any projected delay in meeting the November 1, 2024 deadline, a description of the efforts being undertaken to minimize any delay in the development and opening of the facility and projected completion date. In addition, the quarterly progress reports shall include the following information:
(a) Progress towards retaining an architectural consultant to design the plan for the facility;
(b) Progress towards completion of the design for the facility;
(c) Progress towards contracting with the company that will construct the replacement facility;
(d) The anticipated date construction of the replacement facility will be completed; and
(e) The anticipated date by which the replacement facility will be operational.
VII. The governor, with the approval of the fiscal committee of the general court, may delay the November 1, 2024 project completion date under paragraph II for construction delays or other unforeseen circumstances provided any such delay be no more than one year.
3 Possession and Relinquishment of the Sununu Youth Services Center (SYSC). As of the date of the opening of the youth development center set forth in section 2 of this act, the department of administrative services shall take possession of the entire property currently housing the SYSC on South River Road in Manchester, New Hampshire. The department shall relinquish the property and any revenues received shall be deposited in the general fund. The department shall consult with the city of Manchester, the New Hampshire department of business and economic affairs, and other organizations, as appropriate, prior to any sale of the property. In relinquishing the property, the return of the property to an entity that will enhance the tax and business tax rolls of the city of Manchester and the state of New Hampshire shall be a high priority. Any relinquishment of the SYSC shall be approved by the governor and council.
4 Appropriation; Construction and Operation of a Replacement Secure Facility.
I. The sum of $15,000,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2023 is hereby appropriated to the department of health and human services for the design and construction of the new secured youth development facility, as described in section 2 of this act. Such funds shall be nonlapsing and continually appropriated to the department for the purposes of this act, and shall not be transferred or used for any other purpose.
II. In order to provide funding for said appropriation, the governor shall first use any available discretionary funds appropriated in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, Public Law 117-2 or any other federal funds which can be used for this purpose. The governor is authorized to draw a warrant for the remaining general fund share of said sum out of any money in the treasury not otherwise appropriated.
III. In no event shall total expenditures, from all sources, for the design and construction of the new secured youth development facility exceed $15,000,000.
5 Repeal. 2021, 91:329 and 91:330, relative to provisions for the closure date of the Sununu youth services center, are repealed.
6 New Subdivision; Commission to Study Public Safety of the Secured Youth Development Center. Amend RSA 169-B by inserting after section 47 the following new subdivision:
Commission to Study Public Safety of the Secured Youth Development Center
169-B:48 Commission to Study the Public Safety of the Secured Youth Development Center.
I. There is established a commission to study the public safety of the secured youth development center and surrounding communities. Notwithstanding RSA 14:49, the commission shall consist of the following members:
(a) Three members of the house of representatives, appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives.
(b) Three senate members, appointed by the senate president.
(c) The commissioner of the department of health and human services or designee.
(d) The commissioner of the department of safety or designee.
(e) The child advocate or their designee.
(f) A representative from the New Hampshire Sheriff’s Association, appointed by that organization.
(g) A representative from a local law enforcement agency, appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives.
(h) A representative from a municipal governing body, appointed by the senate president.
II. Legislative members of the commission shall receive mileage at the legislative rate when attending to the duties of the commission. The commission's study shall include procedures and practices of the secured youth development facility meant to ensure the safety of the youths held at the facility, facility staff, the people of the municipality where the facility is located, and neighboring municipalities.
III. The commission may solicit input from any person or entity the commission deems relevant to its study.
IV. The members of the commission shall elect a chairperson from among the members. The first meeting of the commission shall be held within 45 days of the effective date of this section and be called by the first-named senate member. Six members of the commission shall constitute a quorum.
V. The commission shall submit a preliminary report including its findings and any recommendations for proposed legislation on or before November 1, 2023 and a final report on or before November 1, 2024 to the speaker of the house of representatives; the president of the senate, the house clerk, the senate clerk, the governor, and the state library.
7 Repeal. RSA 169-B:48, relative to a commission to study the public safety of the secured youth development center and surrounding communities, is repealed.
I. Section 5 of this act shall take effect February 28, 2023.
II. Section 7 of this act shall take effect November 1, 2024.
III. The remainder of this act shall take effect upon its passage.
23-0931
Amended 1/20/23
SB 1-FN-A- FISCAL NOTE
AS AMENDED BY THE SENATE (AMENDMENT #2023-0055s)
AN ACT relative to the Sununu youth services center.
FISCAL IMPACT: [ X ] State [ ] County [ ] Local [ ] None
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| Estimated Increase / (Decrease) | ||||
STATE: | FY 2023 | FY 2024 | FY 2025 | FY 2026 | |
Appropriation | $15 million | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Expenditures | Indeterminable | Indeterminable | Indeterminable | Indeterminable | |
Funding Source: | [ X ] General [ ] Education [ ] Highway [ X ] Other - Federal Funds | ||||
The Legislative Budget Assistant is still awaiting information from the Department of Health and Human Services in response to this bill. The information attributed to DHHS below is based on input provided by that department in response to a similar bill.
METHODOLOGY:
This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services to construct a secured treatment facility for juveniles, with a maximum physical capacity of up to 18 beds and an operational plan to support 12 beds. The facility shall be operated by the Department, with support and shared services contracts as appropriate. The bill stipulates time frames by which the project must be initiated and completed, as well as various design parameters. Under current law, the existing Sununu Youth Services Center (SYSC) is scheduled to close on March 1, 2023. This bill would delay the SYSC's closure until the opening of the new facility, which shall be no later than November 1, 2024. The Department anticipates indeterminable cost savings compared to the current costs of the existing SYSC.
The Department of Administrative Services assumes that the design and construction of a new facility may take longer than the time frame established by the bill, with the project potentially not being completed until 2026. Regardless of time frame, the Department estimates total design and construction costs of $21.6 million.
The bill provides for a $15 million appropriation in FY 2023 for the design and construction of the new facility. The appropriation is to be funded first with federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) or other federal funds, with any remainder coming from the state general fund.
AGENCIES CONTACTED:
Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Administrative Services