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Appropriations committee advances $25M for secure behavioral-health residential facilities after emotional testimony
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Summary
Senators gave SB 14-42 a due-pass recommendation after family advocates and providers described gaps for people with serious mental illness; the bill would appropriate $25M to build up to five secure facilities, with reporting and outcome measures required.
The Senate Appropriations Committee voted to give Senate Bill 14-42 a due-pass recommendation after extended testimony from families, providers and system stakeholders describing repeated failures to place individuals who are seriously mentally ill and ‘nonrestorable’ in secure long-term settings.
Staff described the bill’s scope: a $25,000,000 appropriation from the state general fund in FY2026 to AHCCCS to construct and support up to five Secure Behavioral Health Residential Facilities (SBURFs), with allocations capped at $5,000,000 per recipient and prioritization for facilities that can open within one year. The bill requires reporting on qualitative and quantitative clinical and functional outcomes.
Family advocates — including members of ‘Mad Moms’ — recounted prolonged emergency-room stays, repeated short discharges and public-safety and health crises for loved ones; one testified that released individuals are often returned to streets because county beds are capped. Joshua Moselle, representing the Association for the Chronically Mentally Ill, said the problem has persisted despite legislation passed in 2019 that enabled these facilities, and that funding has been repeatedly allocated and later clawed back.
Access (state health agency) testified as neutral and raised fiscal and programmatic concerns. Damien Carpenter said preliminary construction cost estimates now suggest a new SBURF could cost roughly $8.4 million (not including land), and recommended bill language add flexibility and guardrails so the RFP process succeeds. Several senators voiced strong support but asked sponsors to update cost estimates and meet with Access to align reimbursement and procurement expectations.
The committee recorded the motion and then voted; SB 14-42 received a due-pass recommendation (8 ayes, 1 aye recorded with reservations/explanations). Sponsors were urged to continue stakeholder meetings to address unit costs, population separation (Title 13 vs Title 36) and reporting requirements before the bill reaches the floor.
Next steps: Sponsor indicated continued stakeholder engagement with Access and legislative follow-up on appropriate per-facility funding amounts and procurement language.
