Travis County outlines local bill package, including Austin State Hospital lease for jail-diversion work

Travis County deputy intergovernmental relations officer Cecily Kaye told a joint subcommittee of county, city and school officials on March 3 that the county is pursuing six local bills this legislative session, including a proposal to allow state-owned Austin State Hospital property to be leased to the county for mental‑health and jail‑diversion services.

The county’s proposal would authorize the Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) to lease decommissioned buildings and vacant land on the Austin State Hospital campus to Travis County so the county can develop a mental‑health jail diversion center, Kaye said. County staff have secured sponsors in both the state House and Senate but had not filed the bill as of the presentation; Kaye said the county expected to file before the March 14 bill‑filing deadline.

Kaye said the county has been working for more than two years on alternatives for people in the county jail who need care for behavioral health or substance use disorders and that the county lacks…