The Commission for Behavioral Health voted to approve its fiscal year 2024–25 expenditure plan and associated contracts following a midyear update from administrative staff.

The decision came after Deputy Director Norma Pate briefed commissioners on the commission's current-year spending, unspent balances and a set of requested reappropriations tied to active grant work. Pate said the office had absorbed higher-than-expected information‑technology and legal costs and adjusted operating line items to meet a state spending reduction requirement of $1.5 million.

Staff framed the motion as approval of the midyear spending plan and recommended contract actions, which included reallocation of an existing $3,000,000 appropriation to expand EMPATH emergency psychiatric observation site grants and the re‑use of an unspent older‑adult grant allocation (about $995,300) to support related grantees. Norma Pate described those reuses as one‑time reallocations to be spent before the fiscal expiration dates.

The commission recorded the motion and a second; Vice Chair Roulette seconded the staff recommendation. A roll‑call vote was taken and commissioners recorded their approvals. The recorded voting statements shown in the meeting record were affirmative by the commissioners present at the roll call.

What the vote does and does not do: the approval authorizes staff to proceed with the expenditure plan and execute the specified contracts within the current appropriations; it does not create new multi‑year obligations beyond the amounts and expiration dates already specified in the fiscal plan. Pate told the commission the midyear projection leaves a modest unencumbered balance after reserves and set‑asides for known commitments.

Staff comments and next steps

Pate said the commission’s operating budget has 56 funded positions (with remaining vacancies) and that approvals were structured to preserve critical local assistance and technical assistance work already underway, including Behavioral Health Student Services Act (BHSSA) grants, Mental Health Wellness Act programs, and ongoing evaluation contracts. She noted the office is continuing several active procurements for advocacy, maternal mental health technical assistance and a second‑phase evaluation for full‑service partnerships.

Commissioners who spoke during the vote period emphasized the need to track outcomes from grants and ensure transparency in how dollars flow to counties and community‑based organizations. Several commissioners asked staff to provide more detail on proposed expansions of EMPATH projects and how reallocated funds would be spent.

The vote as recorded in the meeting minutes met the required procedural steps for an action item: a motion, a second and a roll‑call vote. Staff will return to the commission with contract documents and reporting milestones for the grants funded under the plan.

Ending

With the fiscal action approved, staff will begin implementing the reallocated awards and return with contract documents and follow‑up reporting on outcomes and spending progress at future commission meetings. The commission also signaled that it expects more frequent updates this year as state and federal budget uncertainty continues to affect health‑care funding streams.