Department proposes renaming regional human service centers to state-operated behavioral health clinics; committee hears broad technical and policy changes in S

Jonathan Ulm, chief legal officer for the Department of Health and Human Services, told the Senate Human Services Committee the department introduced Senate Bill 2113 to align statutory language with current practice and to add provisions needed for certified community behavioral health clinics.

"Most of the changes in senate bill 2113 changes the title of the regional human service centers to the state operated behavioral health clinics," Ulm said in his opening testimony, summarizing the bill’s technical and substantive changes.

Why the change matters

Ulm testified the bill renames and redefines multiple statutory sections to reduce confusion between human service centers and human service zones, adds a statutory definition of "certified community behavioral health clinic," and updates the department’s authority and responsibilities for community behavioral health services. Key elements described in testimony include:

- Changing the label "regional human service centers" to "state operated behavioral health clinics" across multiple sections (50601 et seq.) to reflect current organizational structure and services. - Creating a process to establish certified community behavioral health clinics and directing the department to adopt rules and deny requests when appropriate…