Cumberland County commissioners voted July 23 to approve proposed amendments to the Cumberland-Perry Mental Health and Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities (MH/IDD) Advisory Board bylaws, changes county staff said would improve board engagement and reflect modern meeting practices.

Annie Strait presented the amendments and said the primary changes are shortening the required gap for reappointment from six years to two years; reducing the board’s required meetings from 10 per year to six; and allowing a simple majority for votes with hybrid participation. "The bylaws are based on the Mental Health Procedures Act, which was written in 1963," Strait said, noting that hybrid meetings and remote participation have become common since the pandemic.

Strait told commissioners the change to meeting frequency would let advisory board members serve on committees (for mental health and for intellectual and developmental disabilities) and increase community engagement outside the full-board meetings. Commissioners discussed the revisions briefly; one commissioner said the changes were "good" and moved for adoption. The motion passed unanimously.

The adopted amendments, as explained at the meeting, bring the advisory board’s procedures in line with current practice and lower the barrier for reappointment, potentially allowing experienced community members to return to the board after a two-year gap. County staff will implement the revised bylaws and continue to livestream or hybridize meetings to preserve public access.