(1) Subject to the availability of amounts appropriated for this specific purpose, the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs, in consultation with the law enforcement assisted diversion national support bureau, shall develop and implement a grant program aimed at supporting local initiatives to properly identify criminal justice system-involved persons with substance use disorders and other behavioral health needs and engage those persons with therapeutic interventions and other services, the efficacy of which have been demonstrated by experience, peer-reviewed research, or which are credible promising practices, prior to or at the time of jail booking, or while in custody.

(2) Grants must be awarded to local jurisdictions based on locally developed proposals to establish or expand existing programs. The lead proposing agency may be a law enforcement agency, other local government entity, tribal government entity, tribal organization, urban Indian organization, or a nonprofit community-based organization. All proposals must include governing involvement from community-based organizations, local government, and law enforcement, and must also demonstrate engagement of law enforcement, prosecutors, civil rights advocates, public health experts, harm reduction practitioners, organizations led by and representing individuals with past justice system involvement, and public safety advocates. A peer review panel appointed by the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs in consultation with the law enforcement assisted diversion national support bureau, integrated managed care organizations and behavioral health organizations must review the grant applications. The peer review panel must include experts in harm reduction and civil rights experts.

(3)(a) Programs preferred for the award of grant funding are those that have a prebooking diversion focus and demonstrate how they will impact one or more of the expected outcomes of the grant program. Preferred programs must contain one or both of the following components:

(i) Employment of tools and strategies to accurately identify individuals with substance use disorders and other behavioral health needs who are known to commit law violations, at or prior to the point of arrest, and immediately engage those individuals with appropriate community-based care and support services that have been proven to be effective for marginalized populations by experience or peer-reviewed research or that are credible promising practices; and

(ii) Capacity to receive ongoing referrals to the same community-based care approach for persons with substance use disorders and other behavioral health needs encountered in jail, with an emphasis on securing the release of those individuals whenever possible consistent with public safety and relevant court rules.

(b) Proposals targeting prebooking diversion may use funds to identify and refer persons who are encountered in jail to community-based services.

(4) Up to twenty-five percent of the total funds appropriated for the grant program may be allocated to proposals containing any of the following components:

(a) Utilization of case manager and peer support services for persons with substance use disorders and other behavioral health needs who are incarcerated in jails;

(b) Specialized training for jail staff relating to incarcerated individuals with substance use disorders and other behavioral health needs;

(c) Comprehensive jail reentry programming for incarcerated persons with substance use disorders and other behavioral health needs; and

(d) Other innovative interventions targeted specifically at persons with substance use disorders and other behavioral health needs who are brought to jail for booking or are incarcerated in jails.

(5) Proposals must provide a plan for tracking client engagement and describe how they will impact one or more of the expected outcomes of the grant program. Grant recipients must agree to comply with any data collection and reporting requirements that are established by the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs in consultation with the law enforcement assisted diversion national support bureau. Grant recipients whose proposals include prebooking diversion programs must engage with the law enforcement assisted diversion national support bureau for technical assistance regarding best practices for prebooking diversion programs, and regarding establishment of an evaluation plan. Subject to appropriated funding, grant awards will be eligible for annual renewal conditioned upon the recipient’s demonstration that the funded program is operating in alignment with the requirements for the grant program.

(6) The Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs must ensure that grants awarded under this program are separate and distinct from grants awarded pursuant to RCW 36.28A.440. Grant funds may not be used to fulfill minimum medical and treatment services that jails or community mental health agencies are legally required to provide.

(7) Once the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs, after consultation with the law enforcement assisted diversion national support bureau, certifies that a selected applicant satisfies the proposal criteria, the grant funds will be distributed. To the extent possible, grant awards should be geographically distributed on both the east and west sides of the crest of the Cascade mountain range. Grant applications that include local matching funds may be prioritized. Grant recipients must be selected no later than March 1, 2020.

(8)(a) The grant program under this section must be managed to achieve expected outcomes which are measurable and may be used in the future to evaluate the performance of grant recipients and hold them accountable for the use of funding. The initial expected outcomes defined for the grant program include:

(i) To reduce arrests, time spent in custody, and/or recidivism for clients served by the program;

(ii) To increase access to and utilization of nonemergency community behavioral health services;

(iii) To reduce utilization of emergency services;

(iv) To increase resilience, stability, and well-being for clients served; and

(v) To reduce costs for the justice system compared to processing cases as usual through the justice system.

(b) Programs which apply for and are awarded grant funding may focus on a subset of these outcomes and may target a segment of an outcome, such as reducing time spent in custody but not arrests. The Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs, in consultation with the law enforcement assisted diversion national support bureau, must develop a plan, timetable, and budget by December 1, 2019, to transition the grant program into a performance-based contracting format and to establish an evidence-based evaluation framework. The plan may include making reasonable modifications to the initial expected outcomes for use in grant contracts. Delivery of the plan to the governor and appropriate committees of the legislature may be combined with the annual report provided in subsection (9) of this section. The research and data division of the department of social and health services and Washington institute for public policy must provide technical support and consultation to support plan development as requested.

(9) The Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs must submit an annual report regarding the grant program to the governor and appropriate committees of the legislature by December 1st of each year the program is funded. The report must be submitted in compliance with RCW 43.01.036. The report must include information on grant recipients, use of funds, and outcomes and other feedback from the grant recipients. In preparing the report, the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs may consult with the law enforcement assisted diversion national support bureau.

(10) Nothing in this section prohibits the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs from soliciting or accepting private funds to support the program created in this section.

(11) No civil liability may be imposed by any court on the state or its officers or employees, an appointed or elected official, public employee, public agency as defined in RCW 4.24.470, combination of units of government and its employees as provided in RCW 36.28A.010, nonprofit community-based organization, tribal government entity, tribal organization, or urban Indian organization based on the administration of this grant program or activities carried out within the purview of a grant received under this program except upon proof of bad faith or gross negligence.