SS/SCS/SB 57 - This act creates provisions relating to funding to certain organizations to deter criminal behavior.CRITICAL INCIDENT STRESS MANAGEMENT PROGRAM (Section 590.192)
This act establishes the "Critical Incident Stress Management Program" within the Department of Public Safety. The program shall provide services for peace officers to assist in coping with stress and potential psychological trauma resulting from a response to a critical incident or emotionally difficult event. A "critical incident" is any event outside the usual realm of human experience that is markedly distressing or evokes reactions of intense fear, helplessness, or horror and involves the perceived threat to a person's physical integrity or the physical integrity of someone else.
This act provides that all peace officers shall be required to meet with a program service provider once every three to five years for a mental health check-in. The program service provider shall send a notification to the peace officer's commanding officer that he or she completed such check-in. Any information disclosed by a peace officer shall be privileged and shall not be used as evidence in criminal, administrative, or civil proceedings against the peace officer, except as in certain instances as provided in the act.
Additionally, this act creates the "988 Public Safety Fund" within the state treasury and shall be used by the Department of Public Safety for the purposes of providing services for peace officers to assist in coping with stress and potential psychological trauma resulting from a response to a critical incident or emotionally difficult event. Such services may include consultation, risk assessment, education, intervention, and other crisis intervention services.
These provisions are identical to provisions in SS/SCs/SBs 53 & 60 (2021) and substantially similar to SCS/SB 551 (2021) and to provisions in SS#2/SB 26 (2021) and similar to SB 18 (First Extraordinary Session 2020).
ECONOMIC DISTRESS ZONE FUND (Section 650.550)
This act establishes the "Economic Distress Zone Fund" which shall be a fund used solely by the Department of Public Safety to provide funding to organizations registered with the IRS as a 501(c)(3) corporation that provide services to residents of the state in areas of high incidents of crime and deteriorating infrastructure, as defined in the act, for the purpose of deterring criminal behavior in such areas. If money appropriated to the fund exceeds $3 million dollars, excluding any money made available by gift or otherwise, such money shall revert to general revenue.
This provision shall sunset on August 28, 2024.
This provision is identical to SCS/SB 488 (2021) and substantially similar to SB 986 (2020).
MARY GRACE BRUNTRAGER