§ 11760.5

(a) The Legislature recognizes that alcohol and other drug abuse should be viewed and treated as a health problem, as well as a public safety problem. The alcohol and other drug abuse problem has significant public impact and must, in addition to public safety, be given community, education, social, and health attention if prevention and amelioration are to be achieved. These approaches should be coordinated into a multiagency and multifaceted program for alcohol and other drug abuse control in the counties of the state.

(b) It is the intent of the Legislature that community alcohol and other drug abuse services shall be organized through locally administered and locally controlled community alcohol and other drug abuse programs. The community alcohol and other drug abuse programs shall operate under the principle that services are designed to be equally accessible to all persons, including persons who because of differences in language, cultural differences in language, cultural traditions, or physical disabilities, confront barriers to knowing about or to using the alcohol and other drug abuse services that are offered.

(Amended by Stats. 2012, Ch. 36, Sec. 18. (SB 1014) Effective June 27, 2012. Operative July 1, 2012, by Sec. 83 of Ch. 36.)