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Senators press DHS on 988 expansion, proposed 40¢ telecom fee and Bamboo Health contract
Summary
At the May 6 hearing, DHS defended a proposed 40¢ monthly telecom fee to fund a $67M annual 988 crisis system and described a previously awarded Bamboo Health contract expansion for 988 dispatch and electronic referrals; senators sought assurances funds will be dedicated and competitively structured.
The Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee questioned DHS officials on two related items: funding and implementation of an expanded 988 suicide and crisis lifeline and a budget line explicitly naming Bamboo Health for additional 988 functionality.
Commissioner Sarah Edelman said 988 has handled more than 56,000 calls since its July 2022 launch and that full implementation of the state's 988 crisis continuum will cost about $67 million annually. To fund the expansion, DHS proposed a 40¢ monthly telecom fee per line that Edelman said would generate roughly $61 million annually and that the administration and legislators are exploring statutory language to ensure funds are dedicated to 988. "At full implementation, which will hit in FY27, it will cost about $67,000,000 annually to run the 988 system," Edelman said.
Senators raised practical and statutory concerns. Several lawmakers asked whether the fee could be constitutionally dedicated and worried about fee proliferation on consumer phone lines; an example scenario—four cell phones plus a landline—would mean 40¢ per line or about $2 per month for that household. Edelman told senators the federal statute requires 988 fee proceeds be directed to the program and that state statute would further specify use if enacted.
Separately, senators asked why the FY26 budget included a $1 million line item explicitly naming Bamboo Health for an open-beds web-based solution and dispatch expansion. DHS officials said Bamboo Health was already an awarded vendor supporting aspects of the 988 lifeline and that the new line funds an expansion of previously procured work (analogous to a change order) to add dispatch services for mobile crisis outreach teams and electronic referral functions. DHS said the original award was about $12.6 million and this allocation continues previously contracted work rather than initiating a new competitive procurement.
Lawmakers asked DHS to provide procurement documentation and to clarify whether additional competitive processes applied to the expanded scope. DHS agreed to supply follow-up materials and to explain the funding and procurement timeline in writing.
The committee did not take any formal vote on the fee or on procurement during the session; senators indicated they would continue scrutinizing statutory language and funding mechanics as the budget process continued.
