Santa Clara County Municipal Code Ch. VII Behavioral Health Board

Footnotes:

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Editor's note— Ord. No. NS-300.951, adopted November 2, 2021, amended Ch. VII in its entirety to read as herein set out. Former Ch. VII pertained to the same subject matter, and derived from Ord. No. NS-300.880, adopted September 9, 2014.

There is hereby established the County of Santa Clara Behavioral Health Board.

(Ord. No. NS-300.951, § 1, 11-2-21)

The Behavioral Health Board shall carry out the following duties, to comply with Welfare and Institutions Code section 5604.2:

(a) Review and evaluate the community's behavioral health needs, services facilities, and special problems in any facility within the county where mental health or substance use disorder (SUD) evaluations or services are being provided, including, but not limited to, schools, emergency departments, and psychiatric facilities;

(b) Review any County agreements entered into pursuant to Welfare and Institutions Code section 5650. Make recommendations to the Board of Supervisors regarding concerns identified within these agreements;

(c) Advise the Board of Supervisors and the County Behavioral Health Director as to any aspect of the County's Behavioral Health Services Department system, and may request assistance from the local patients' rights advocates when reviewing and advising on mental health or substance use disorder evaluations or services provided in public facilities with limited access;

(d) Review and approve the procedures used to ensure citizen and professional involvement at all stages of the planning process. Involvement shall include individuals with lived experience of mental illness substance use disorder, or both, and their families, community members, advocacy organizations, and behavioral health professionals. It shall also include other professionals that interact on a daily basis with individuals living with mental illnesses or substance use disorders such as education, emergency services, employment, health care, housing, law enforcement, local business owners, social services, seniors, transportation, and veterans;

(e) Submit an annual report to the Board of Supervisors on the needs and performance of the County's behavioral health system;

(f) Review and make recommendations on applicants for the position of County Behavioral Health Director. The Behavioral Health Board shall be included in the selection process prior to the appointment by the appointing authority;

(g) Review and comment on the County's performance outcome data and communicate its findings to the California Behavioral Health Planning Council;

(h) Assess the impact of the realignment of services from the State to the County on services delivered to clients/consumers and on the local community, and assess the effective use of these funds in the community; and

(i) Carry out any other duties given to the Behavioral Health Board by the Board of Supervisors.

(Ord. No. NS-300.951, § 1, 11-2-21; Ord. No. NS-300.1000, § 1, 10-16-25)

(a) Composition. The following requirements comply with Welfare and Institutions Code § 5604:

(1) The Behavioral Health Board shall consist of 16 members appointed by the Board of Supervisors. Each member of the Board of Supervisors shall appoint three members. One member of the Board of Supervisors shall serve as a member of the Behavioral Health Board. When the designated Supervisor is unable to attend the Behavioral Health Board's regular meeting, the Supervisor's aide may represent the Supervisor by having a seat and voice, but may not cast a vote.

(2) At least 50 percent of the Behavioral Health Board membership shall be consumers or the parents, spouses, siblings, or adult children of consumers, who are receiving or who have received behavioral health services. One of these members shall be an individual who is 25 years of age or younger. A majority of that group shall also be consumers or the parents, spouses, siblings, or adult children of consumers who have received behavioral health services from a public agency. At least 20 percent of the total membership shall be consumers, and at least 20 percent shall be families of consumers, who are receiving or who have received behavioral health services.

(3) In addition, a cross section of at least five members shall have experience (personal, family member, or professional) with an SUD and at least one of the three members appointed by each Supervisor shall have experience (personal, family member, or professional) with an SUD.

(4) Behavioral Health Board membership should reflect the diversity of the client/consumer population in the County to the extent possible.

(5) At least one member shall be a veteran or veteran advocate. The County Office of Veterans Services must be notified regarding vacancies on the Behavioral Health Board. A "veteran advocate" means either a parent, spouse, or adult child of a veteran, or an individual who is part of a veterans' organization, including the Veterans of Foreign Wars or the American Legion.

(6) At least one member of the Behavioral Health Board shall be an employee of a local educational agency. The Santa Clara County Office of Education shall be notified about vacancies on the Behavioral Health Board.

(b) Nominating procedure.

(1) The Behavioral Health Board may recommend appointees to the Board of Supervisors.

(2) A member who wishes to resign shall submit their resignation in writing to the Behavioral Health Board Liaison Team, who will forward the resignation to the Board of Supervisors and the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors.

(c) Terms.

(1) The terms of each Behavioral Health Board member, except the member of the Board of Supervisors, shall be three years, with one-third of the appointments expiring each year. A member may continue to serve until the member is reappointed or replaced. No member shall be eligible to serve on the Behavioral Health Board for more than three consecutive terms without a break in service from the Behavioral Health Board for at least one year, except that a partial term will not count toward the three-term limit.

(2) The Behavioral Health Board member who is a member of the Board of Supervisors serves at the discretion of the Board of Supervisors; their term automatically terminates if they are no longer a member of the Board of Supervisors.

(d) Quorum. One person more than half of the membership seats of the Behavioral Health Board (nine of 16) shall constitute a quorum.

(e) Attendance. The active participation by all of its members is essential to the function of the Behavioral Health Board. Therefore:

(1) The Behavioral Health Board will issue an email of concern to the member and follow-up with a copy by mail, and a copy to their appointing Supervisor, when the lack of attendance at meetings impairs the functioning of the Behavioral Health Board.

(2) A member may submit a written request to the chairperson of the Behavioral Health Board for a leave of absence. The request should clearly state the proposed start and end dates for the requested leave of absence. The chairperson shall issue a written response, granting or denying the request and may grant a leave of absence of up to three months.

(3) Failure to attend three consecutive Behavioral Health Board meetings without a leave of absence from the chairperson, or to attend four total meetings in a Behavioral Health Board year without a leave of absence from the chairperson, will result in notification to the appointing authority, which may result in the removal of the member from the Behavioral Health Board.

(f) Transition from Mental Health Board to Behavioral Health Board. All members of the Mental Health Board immediately prior to the enactment of the bylaws of the Behavioral Health Board shall automatically become members of the Behavioral Health Board. For each such member, the time served as a member of the Mental Health Board shall count towards the membership term limit as if it were served as a member of the Behavioral Health Board.

(Ord. No. NS-300.951, § 1, 11-2-21; Ord. No. NS-300.1000, § 2, 10-16-25)

The Behavioral Health Board shall approve the full year's calendar of regular meetings prior to the first meeting in January of that year. Special meetings may be called by the chairperson or by a quorum of the Behavioral Health Board.

(Ord. No. NS-300.951, § 1, 11-2-21)