Department
Behavioral Health and Development Disabilities
Requested Action (Identify appropriate Action or Motion, purpose, cost, timeframe, etc.)
title
Request approval of Subrecipient Award Agreements with the Atlanta/Fulton County Pre-Arrest Diversion Initiative, Inc. (PAD) and Research Evaluation Services, LLC (RES), successor to Applied Research Services, Inc. (ARS), to support implementation of the COSSUP grant awarded to Fulton County, on behalf of the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (DBHDD), in the total amount of $1,599,999.00 from the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance. The proposed subrecipient agreements include: (a) PAD in the amount of $564,093.00 to provide diversion services; and (b) RES, as the successor entity to ARS, in the amount not to exceed $150,000.00 to provide data collection and evaluation services for the grant. These agreements are effective upon BOC approval and remain in effect through December 31, 2026. The payment period for eligibility for payments from the grant utilized in funding these Agreements is effective for the duration of the eligibility/service period of the grant (October 1, 2023 through September 30, 2026) but shall not extend beyond December 31, 2026. This item is 100% grant funded. The County Attorney is authorized to approve the agreements as to form and make necessary changes thereto prior to execution.
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Requirement for Board Action (Cite specific Board policy, statute or code requirement)
Official Code of Georgia Section 36-10-1: All official contracts entered into by the County governing authority and with other persons on behalf of the County shall be in writing and entered in its minutes.
Strategic Priority Area related to this item (If yes, note strategic priority area below)
Health and Human Services
Commission Districts Affected
All Districts ☒
District 1 ☐
District 2 ☐
District 3 ☐
District 4 ☐
District 5 ☐
District 6 ☐
Is this a purchasing item?
No
Summary & Background
Fulton County Department of Behavioral Health and Disabilities (DBHDD) in partnership with the Atlanta/Fulton County Prearrest Diversion Initiative, Inc. (PAD) propose the Fulton County Diversion and Deflection Recovery Program (FDR) to respond to substance use, promote public safety, and support access to Substance Use Disorders (SUD) treatment and recovery services for individuals in Fulton County, GA. This FDR proposal builds upon the successes of DBHDD’s FY20 COSSAP to expand to Fulton County’s most underserved areas and increase deflection and diversion across the county. The proposed FDR program will: (i) provide training to new law enforcement officers and ongoing quarterly professional development for existing officers to promote diversion to The Center, expanding to several precincts within Fulton County; (ii) provide intensive care navigation for at least 425 diverted participants and increased access to recovery housing for those in need; (iii) provide evidence-based mobile behavioral health services to diverted individuals in recovery housing; and (iv) conduct deflection outreach to targeted areas of high crime and high usage in North and South Fulton to connect individuals with needed SUD services before they reach involvement with the criminal justice system.
Scope of Work: Deflection. A DBHDD FDR mobile team will be responsible for conducting targeted outreach throughout Fulton County to deflect individuals experiencing homelessness and/or with SUD/COD before they reach justice system involvement. Diversion. The Center has been open since Spring 2024 and offers services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. The Center prioritizes diversions by the top arresting agencies in Fulton County, with the goal of providing a drop-off location for use by any Fulton County police officer, regardless of jurisdiction ranging from North to South Fulton County and across all 15 cities. PAD coordinates with the Atlanta Police Department and other top arresting agencies in Fulton County to engage law enforcement through focus groups, tours of The Center, and diversion protocol training to develop a train-the trainer strategy for new law enforcement recruits and to provide ongoing quarterly refresher training as The Center gains traction. This training covers diversion protocols, harm reduction, and barriers faced by people experiencing mental health or substance use needs. In addition to formal training, PAD engages officers at roll call visits on a weekly basis. PAD will accept referrals from The Center and provide an initial needs assessment, the Coordinated Entry housing assessment, intensive case management, linkages to community-based behavioral health supports, referrals for recovery housing, municipal IDs, benefits enrollment, legal aid, and additional support as needed. Evaluation. RES will develop a project logic model and obtain approval and oversight of the work by an Institutional Review Board (IRB). It will work with the core partners and representative stakeholder groups to design efficient systems to collect and store program data. Dr. Kevin Baldwin, Lead Evaluator from RES, is a clinical psychologist with a dual emphasis on research and forensics who provides criminal justice research and policy analysis nationally. RES works with the core partners and representative stakeholders to secure data to identify and track project participants. RES helps create data sharing agreements to collect diversion data from respective sources that comply with IRB requirements, HIPAA regulations, and other protocols to protect client confidentiality and personally identifying information. At each partner meeting, the agenda will include time allotted to identify and discuss barriers to accessing data.
Community Impact: Fulton County, through DBHDD, desires to continue providing shared resources for support and coordination of pre-arrest diversion services for adult participants.
Department Recommendation: DBHDD recommends the approval of these two COSSUP Grant Subrecipient Agreements.
Project Implications: Policing and Alternatives and Diversion Initiative(PAD) will assist all stakeholders with the implementation and operation of the Atlanta/Fulton County Policing and Alternatives and Diversion Initiative as described in paragraph 1.5 of the agreements.
Community Issues/Concerns: None
Department Issues/Concerns: None
Fiscal Impact / Funding Source
Funding Line 1:
461 755 COS1