News/Issues

Board & Commission News

1. ​​​Board/Commission News (This Page)
2. Children & Youth
   1. Children's Issues
   2. Foster Children
   3. Transitional Age Youth​
3. Co-Occurring
   1. Dementia
   2. Developmental Disabilities
   3. Substance Use Disorder
   4. Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
4. Coordinated Care
5. Courts
6. Crisis Care Continuum
7. ​Cultural Issues​
8. Disaster Recovery
9. Employment
10. Homeless/Housing
11. Jails/Prisons
12. Laura's Law
13. Law Enforcement
14. Legislation
15. LGBTQ
16. Lanterman Petris Short (LPS) Act
17. Navigator Programs
18. Parity
19. Patients' Rights
20. Peer Supports
21. Psychiatric Advance Directives (PADs)
22. Seniors
23. Stigma
24. Substance Use Disorder​
25. ​Suicide
26. ​Veterans
27. Whole Person Care
28. Workforce​
29. Youth Issues (ages 16-25)

Brown Act Updates - See Brown Act Page for changes effective January 1, 2026

Bylaws, Duties, Expenses & Membership - See Welfare & Institutions Code (WIC) Page for CA law related to local behavioral health boards/commissions, including changes effective January 1, 2025.

WIC 5604 Update - 2022

• Veteran Requirement:  One member shall be a veteran or veteran advocate (For counties with a population of 100,000 or more )
• Veteran Encouragement: A county shall give a strong preference to appointing at least one member of the board who is a veteran or a veteran advocate. (For counties with a population fewer than 100,000)
• Vacancy Notification:  A county shall notify its county veterans service officer about vacancies on the board, if a county has a veterans service officer.
• Definition:  “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.  

WIC Update - 2020
The CA government updated Welfare & Institution Code for local mental/behavioral health boards & commissions in the following areas: Bylaws, Duties, MHSA Duties, Expenses, Membership
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Mental Health Consumers can work for County AND serve on Boards/Commissions - 2015: ​There is an important change affecting all CA Mental & Behavioral Health Boards and Commissions. This change affects the criteria for members of Mental/Behavioral Health Boards. Consumers (adults with mental illness) who work for County Mental Health (or contractors) can now be appointed to boards, provided certain criteria are met.