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Senate subcommittee hears plan for 40‑bed restoration unit, $27M hospital design to ease jail wait times
Summary
The Senate Appropriations Health subcommittee heard Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities testimony calling for capital funding to expand competency restoration capacity — including a $20.7M, 40‑bed Augusta facility — and urged clearer language for a House‑included $27M Atlanta hospital design appropriation to reduce long jail wait times for treatment.
The Senate Appropriations Health and Human Services Development Subcommittee heard a briefing from Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities Commissioner Tanner about amended budget items intended to reduce jail wait times for people awaiting competency restoration services.
Commissioner Tanner told senators the department received more than 2,500 adult pre‑trial evaluation orders in 2025 and that "nearly 70 percent of individuals ordered for evaluation remain in jail while they wait on our services." He said the state currently has more than 800 people waiting in jails for hospital beds and reported year‑over‑year increases of about 38% in FY2023 and 42% in FY2025.
To address the backlog, Tanner described capital and operating proposals on the bonds tracking sheet. He said roughly $20,740,730 is identified to build a standalone 40‑bed jail‑based restoration facility at the Georgia Regional Hospital in Augusta, and he applauded the governor's earlier design dollars for similar projects. Tanner also told the committee the House included $27,000,000 "to begin the hospital facility on our Atlanta campus," but cautioned the committee that the House language appears to authorize construction while DBHDD intends to use the money for design and engineering. "Before we can move forward with full construction, we'd have to obviously have the full amount budgeted in a budget," he said, urging a tweak to the bill language to specify design and engineering.
Tanner also sought $500,000 in one‑time funding for a rate study to evaluate compensating hospitals that hold individuals who are clinically ready for discharge but awaiting placement for developmental disabilities and co‑occurring behavioral health needs. He said the study would likely be contracted out and could take about a year.
Senators acknowledged the proposals as tools to reduce strain on local jails and to ensure timely care. One member noted the $27M figure as an "investment in the future," while another asked for clarity on prior rate studies; Tanner said no prior study of that specific compensation issue exists.
The presentation closed with offers to provide further details; the committee did not take a formal vote during the session and requested follow‑up information on the proposed rate study and the precise scope of the Atlanta project.
