Minutes 03-21-2022 Virtual Legislative Breakfast

Browse Search

3 department. She said as state hospitals were closed, it triggered an increased inmate problem in jails. She said the county wants to focus on this area as it develops the behavioral health center. Chair Price said there are diversion courts and programs for children. She said that Caitlin Fenhagen has hired psychologists have been hired to work with children. Commissioner Bedford said that the proposed mental health facility was original focused on diversion from jail. She said that due to the pandemic, schools are struggling due to staff vacancies. She said that they can't find the people to do the work, but that the needs of children have been exacerbated by the pandemic. She said the behavioral health center is being restructured to serve children ages four and up. She said everything is coming together to create a very serious mental health crisis in the community. She said Orange County is number one in the state for supplementing the schools, but is below the national average. She said teachers need support as well. Commissioner Hamilton said that there is a shortage of mental health professionals. She said we have pay people more. She said social workers are the backbone of mental health. She said we have to pay human service workers more in order to have the work force to meet the needs of our community. Commissioner Bedford said that even Murdoch Center, a mental health facility in Butner, NC that takes people with an IDD diagnosis who are having a mental health breakdown, was closed due to lack of staff. She said providers lost staff who are not coming back. She said that state institutions and emergency departments are full and not taking more patients, and it is a crisis. Representative Meyer said that this problem is statewide and there is attention from Republican leadership in both chambers of the General Assembly. He said that he's spoken with legislative leaders to address the crisis statewide. He said the challenge is that our ability to respond is too slow when the crisis is in front of us. Representative Insko said she was interested in a goal under Justice and Public Safety regarding Racial Equity in Criminal Justice — "Support the implementation of the recommendations of the North Carolina Task Force for Racial Equity in Criminal Justice (TREC)." She said she was hoping to have made some progress on the issue, but there is a long way to go. Chair Price said she felt it was still a priority. Representative Insko said the state really needed to make abolishing the death penalty a high priority. Senator Foushee said she felt there had been some progress. She said that passing Senate Bill 300 which several Democrats worked was an accomplishment. She said some recommendations have been implemented. She said we can always do better, but getting people together to move towards talking about it was a big step. She listed some police reform practices that were agreed upon. She said that progress had been made through bipartisan effort, which was notable. Commissioner Greene said that was good news. Commissioner Bedford said that in Orange County, the superior and district courts worked on bail bond policies to improve the situation locally. Chair Price said she was part of that workgroup and they were trying to make improvements regarding the ability to pay and reducing cash bail amounts. Commissioner Richards said that Orange County was fortunate to have had a few initiatives regarding cash bail in addition to the work done by the towns. She said there is good work being done locally, but there is still work to be done regarding the fees incarcerated individuals must pay for necessities as well as health safety for inmates. She said one issue they were watching was handgun permitting. She said there are associations watching the