Committee advances bill moving mental‑health and substance‑use rules into Idaho code

Senate Bill 1024, presented to the Idaho Senate Health and Welfare Committee by Sen. Julie VanOrden (R.-Dist. 30), would move existing administrative rules for children's mental-health services, adult mental-health services and substance use disorder services into Idaho statute.

VanOrden said the bill does not change the level of services or eligibility; it moves definitions, certification standards and eligibility/screening requirements from departmental rule into relevant chapters of Idaho Code. "So nothing has been there's not an increase or decreased services to anyone. It's just taking that part of administrative rule and applying it to the code," VanOrden told the committee.

The bill relocates rule text into code: the first two sections relocate children's mental-health definitions and eligibility/screening requirements into chapter 24, title 16; nine sections addressing substance use disorder definitions and certification standards are moved into the appropriate chapter for substance use services; and three sections for adult mental-health services (definitions and screening) are moved to chapter 31, title 39. The bill also repeals the three affected rules and makes the statutory provisions effective July 1.

There was no public testimony against the bill. Senator Blaylock moved that the committee send SB 1024 to the Senate floor with a "due pass" recommendation; the motion was seconded and passed by voice vote. The chair stated the bill will be sent to the floor.

Committee members framed the change as a housekeeping measure intended to consolidate long-standing rule text into statute so elected legislators can more directly oversee the provisions going forward rather than relying solely on agency rulemaking.