§ 53F-2-522 — Public education mental health screening.

(1) As used in this section:
(1)(a) "Division" means the Division of Integrated Healthcare within the Department of Health and Human Services.
(1)(b) "Non-participating LEA" means an LEA that does not administer an approved mental health screening program described in this section.
(1)(c) "Participating LEA" means an LEA that has an approved screening program described in this section.
(1)(d) "Participating student" means a student in a participating LEA who participates in a mental health screening program.
(1)(e) "Qualifying parent" means a parent:
(1)(e)(i) of a participating student who, based on the results of a screening program, would benefit from resources that cannot be provided to the participating student in the school setting; and
(1)(e)(ii) who qualifies for financial assistance to pay for the resources under rules made by the state board.
(1)(f) "Screening program" means a student mental health screening program selected by a participating LEA and approved by the state board in consultation with the division.
(2) (2)(a) On or before July 1, 2023, an LEA governing board shall determine whether the LEA will be a participating LEA or a non-participating LEA for the 2023-24 school year.
(2)(b) (2)(b)(i) During the 2023-24 school year, and each year after, a participating LEA may change the LEA's participation status and become a non-participating LEA for the next school year by reporting the status change to the state board on or before August 1, 2024.
(2)(b)(ii) An LEA that changed the LEA's status from participating to non-participating in Subsection (2)(b)(i) is subject to the requirements of a non-participating LEA described in Subsection (2)(c).
(2)(c) (2)(c)(i) During the 2023-24 school year, and each year after, a non-participating LEA's governing board shall submit a record of determination to the state board on or before August 1 of each year, which record shall state whether the non-participating LEA will:
(2)(c)(i)(A) maintain the LEA's non-participating status; or
(2)(c)(i)(B) change the LEA's status to be a participating LEA.
(2)(c)(ii) If the non-participating LEA determines the LEA will change participation status and become a participating LEA, the LEA's status of participation will change at the end of the current school year.
(2)(d) If an LEA governing board failed to make the determination required in Subsection (2)(a) on or before July 1, 2023, the LEA governing board shall determine whether the LEA will be a participating LEA for the 2024-25 school year and notify the state board of the determination on or before August 1, 2024.
(3) The state board shall:
(3)(a) make rules in accordance with Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act, to:
(3)(a)(i) establish a process for a participating LEA to submit a selected screening program to the state board for approval;
(3)(a)(ii) in accordance with Title 53E, Chapter 9, Student Privacy and Data Protection, and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, 20 U.S.C. 1232g, establish who may access and use a participating student's screening data;
(3)(a)(iii) establish a requirement and a process for appropriate LEA or school personnel to attend annual training related to administering the screening program;
(3)(a)(iv) determine whether a parent is eligible to receive the financial support described in Subsection (5)(a) as a qualifying parent; and
(3)(a)(v) apply for and distribute the financial support described in Subsection (5)(a);
(3)(b) in consultation with the division, approve an evidence-based student mental health screening program selected by a participating LEA that:
(3)(b)(i) is age appropriate for each grade in which the screening program is administered;
(3)(b)(ii) screens for the mental health conditions determined by the state board and division; and
(3)(b)(iii) is an effective tool for identifying whether a student has a mental health condition that requires intervention; and
(3)(c) on or before August 30 of each year, submit a report on the screening programs to the State Suicide Prevention Committee created under Section 26B-5-611 and the Education Interim Committee in accordance with Section 53E-1-201 that contains the following:
(3)(c)(i) the approximate number of participating students that were screened in each participating LEA the previous school year;
(3)(c)(ii) the approximate number of participating students referred to additional services or for whom intervention was required;
(3)(c)(iii) the names and number of:
(3)(c)(iii)(A) participating LEAs;
(3)(c)(iii)(B) non-participating LEAs; and
(3)(c)(iii)(C) LEAs that failed to make and report to the state board the determination to be participating or non-participating LEAs;
(3)(c)(iv) information regarding:
(3)(c)(iv)(A) reasons why an LEA failed to make a determination to be a participating or non-participating LEA; and
(3)(c)(iv)(B) any LEA that determined to be a participating LEA but failed to implement a mental health screening program;
(3)(c)(v) an overview of how participating LEAs utilized distributed funds; and
(3)(c)(vi) whether the amount of distributed funds to each participating LEA was sufficient for the participating LEA's needs.
(4) A participating LEA shall:
(4)(a) in accordance with rules made by the state board under Subsection (3)(a), submit a selected evidence-based screening program to the state board for approval;
(4)(b) implement and administer a state board-approved mental health screening program to participating students in the participating LEA by:
(4)(b)(i) annually notifying each parent with a student in the participating LEA that the parent may have the student screened for mental health conditions;
(4)(b)(ii) obtaining prior written consent from a student's parent, that complies with Section 53E-9-203, and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, 20 U.S.C. Sec. 1232g, before the participating LEA screens a participating student;
(4)(b)(iii) screening the student for mental health conditions; and
(4)(b)(iv) if results of a participating student's screening indicate a potential mental health condition, notifying the parent of the participating student of:
(4)(b)(iv)(A) the participating student's results; and
(4)(b)(iv)(B) resources available to the participating student, including any services that can be provided by the school mental health provider or by a partnering entity;
(4)(c) use state board-distributed funds for the purposes described in Subsection (5)(a); and
(4)(d) provide the state board with necessary information and data for the state board to complete the report described in Subsection (3)(c).
(5) (5)(a) Within appropriations made by the Legislature for this purpose, the state board may distribute funds to a participating LEA to use to:
(5)(a)(i) implement and administer a mental health screening for participating students as described in Subsection (4)(b); and
(5)(a)(ii) assist a qualifying parent to pay for resources described in Subsection (4)(b)(iv)(B) that cannot be provided by a school mental health professional in the school setting.
(5)(b) To distribute funds as described in Subsection (5)(a), the state board shall:
(5)(b)(i) distribute 90% of the available funds to participating LEAs based on the previous year's average daily membership count; and
(5)(b)(ii) distribute the remaining 10% of the available funds on an as-needed basis to participating LEAs if the LEA has exhausted the funds distributed under Subsection (5)(b)(i) and has additional need.
(5)(c) The state board may not distribute funds described in Subsection (5)(a) to a non-participating LEA.
(6) A school employee trained in accordance with rules made by the state board under Subsection (3)(a)(iii), who administers an approved mental health screening in accordance with this section in good faith, is not liable in a civil action for an act taken or not taken under this section.

Legislative History

Amended by Chapter 73, 2024 General Session; Amended by Chapter 245, 2024 General Session