The Mendocino County Grand Jury has released a report gently critical of the Measure B committee and the lack of progress on the critical need for local mental health infrastructure.
Measure B is a half-cent sales tax that raises about $7 million per year. The money is supposed to go to building three facilities in the county: 1. a crisis stabilization unit which is a locked facility where law enforcement can bring people in mental health crisis to be held and treated on a short term basis; 2. a psychiatric health facility, also a locked facility for longer term care; and 3. a crisis residential treatment center, where people could voluntarily go for up to a month for mental health or addiction treatment.
It has been 18 months since the passage of Measure B and not only have none of these things been started, we don’t even have an idea where we’re going to locate them.
The process is overseen by an 11-member Measure B committee which has been meeting once a month since it was formed, but has not really accomplished much of anything. It is important to note that this committee can make suggestions to the Mendocino County Board of Supervisors, but only the supervisors can make decisions about how to spend the money.
The grand jury thinks part of the problem is that the 11-member committee is just to big and unwieldy to get things done in a timely way. They suggested the committee form two small ad hoc committees. One would look exclusively at locations for these facilities, and the other would focus on operations and the treatment plans for these facilities. Then those committees could report back to the full committee to make recommendations to the board. This idea makes sense to us. Smaller groups dedicated to one topic can get a lot more done more quickly. Any 11-member group is going to be off topic 25-40 percent of the time.
The grand jury also suggests that the Board of Supervisors do more to prepare for the decisions they will need to make when the Measure B committee makes it recommendations. Things like setting goals now to get recommendations and planning for the construction of these facilities, wherever they are located. We agree that the board should be doing more to push this process along. So far they seem to just be sitting back waiting for the Measure B committee to act.
Measure B is a critical part of our county’s mental health system. It’s what the voters put their faith in, concrete facilities to deal with our mental health crisis. We agree with the grand jury that it’s taking too long to get it done.
July 7, 2019
The Ukiah Daily Journal
By UDJ
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