Committee rejects amendment to halt S36 repeal; members split over use of correctional lockups for "incapacitated" persons

The House Human Services Committee took a straw poll on an amendment to S.36 that would have delayed a scheduled repeal and added statutory guardrails on lodging "persons who are incapacitated" in lockups or community correctional centers.

Lead presenter Representative Barbara Rachelson framed the amendment as a way to preserve oversight while the state expands community-based options. Katie McLennan of the Office of Legislative Council described the amendment as replacing two sections in the Senate-passed bill and (1) postponing the effective date of the repeal to July 1, 2027 and (2) inserting limits on when an incapacitated person may be lodged in a lockup, including a 24-hour maximum holding period and a requirement that placement occur "if and only if" no approved substance-abuse-with-detox provider or a staff physician at a licensed general hospital within a 60-mile radius will accept the person.

McLennan said the substitution also added a requirement that, when an incapacitated person is lodged, next of kin be notified "as promptly as possible" unless the adult requests no notification; it required prompt return of personal belongings on release and return to the location where the person was first encountered if requested.

The committee conducted a show-of-hands straw poll on the amendment. The clerk reported a tally of 2 in favor, 8 opposed and 1 absent; the amendment did not carry in the committee.

Why members split

Supporters of the amendment said they sought to keep a statutory backstop while the administration develops community-based PIP (public inebriate/protective) options and to require clearer notification and property-return rules. Opponents said the committee's earlier testimony from emergency departments, providers and administrators showed that an outright rollback of the repeal would risk shifting more people into emergency departments and that the committee's substitute language already tries to prioritize expansion of community services and asks the administration to include expansion proposals in its FY 2027 budget materials.

Reporting and next steps

The amendment would have required the Department for Children and Families (and other AHS components in the committee language) to prioritize counties or regions for expansion of community-based services and to include expansion proposals in the department's FY 2027 budget presentation to the Legislature. With the amendment defeated by the straw poll, the committee proceeded with earlier committee language; the bill will be reported out of committee for further consideration with the committee's prior recommendations.

Action recorded in this article is from a committee straw poll and not a formal chamber floor roll-call vote.