Administrative Resolution 2015-37 (Stepping Up Initiative)
YEAR
2025
AUTHOR / ORGANIZATION
BernCo Board of County Commissioners
GEOGRAPHIC SCOPE
Bernalillo County
What is this?
This is an administrative resolution passed by the Bernalillo County Board of County Commissioners on May 12, 2015. It formally adopts the National Association of Counties Stepping Up Initiative, which is a national collaborative effort between NACo, the Council of State Governments Justice Center, and the American Psychiatric Foundation. The resolution serves as both a policy commitment and an accountability framework, establishing specific action areas the county pledges to pursue while connecting to existing county investments in behavioral health infrastructure, housing, and Medicaid enrollment for incarcerated individuals.
Summary
This resolution establishes Bernalillo County’s formal commitment to reducing justice-involved populations with mental illness through the Stepping Up Initiative framework. The resolution acknowledges that jails have become de facto mental health facilities, with prevalence rates of serious mental illness three to six times higher than the general population, and that nearly three-quarters of these individuals have co-occurring substance use disorders. The county committed to six specific action areas: convening diverse leadership teams, collecting baseline prevalence data, examining treatment capacity and identifying barriers, developing measurable outcome plans, implementing research-based approaches, and tracking progress through data systems. Importantly, the resolution references concurrent county investments including $1 million for 70 supportive housing units targeting justice-involved individuals with behavioral health needs, a 1/8 cent gross receipts tax for behavioral health expansion, and engagement of a consultant to develop a behavioral health business plan with alternatives to incarceration. This resolution provides the foundational policy framework that continues to guide Bernalillo County’s justice-behavioral health integration efforts and establishes accountability mechanisms for systems change.
BH Systems Change Recommendations
The resolution contains explicit commitments that function as systems change directives: 1. Convene a diverse team of leaders and decision makers from multiple agencies committed to safely reducing jail populations with mental illness 2. Collect and review prevalence numbers and assess individuals' needs to establish baseline data for system, program, and case-level decision making 3. Examine treatment and service capacity to determine available programs and services, and identify state and local policy and funding barriers 4. Develop a plan with measurable outcomes drawing on jail assessment data, prevalence data, and treatment capacity examination 5. Implement research-based approaches that advance the plan 6. Create a process to track progress using data and information systems and report on successes
How to Use for Systems Planning
**This report IS useful for:** - Understanding the policy foundation for Bernalillo County's justice-behavioral health integration efforts - Identifying the county's formal commitments and accountability framework under Stepping Up - Tracking the evolution of county behavioral health investments (supportive housing, GRT, behavioral health business plan) - Establishing baseline expectations for cross-system collaboration and data collection - Connecting current initiatives to their policy authorization **This report DOES NOT provide:** - Specific implementation details or timelines - Outcome data or progress metrics since adoption - Detailed descriptions of programs or services - Funding amounts beyond the $1 million housing allocation - Current status of any initiatives mentioned
Key Facts & Data Points
- Estimated 2 million people with serious mental illnesses booked into jails nationally each year - Prevalence rates of serious mental illness in jails are 3-6 times higher than the general population - Almost 75% of adults with serious mental illness in jails have co-occurring substance use disorders - County jails spend 2-3 times more on adults with mental illness requiring interventions - Bernalillo County allocated $1 million for 70 supportive housing units for justice-involved individuals with behavioral health needs - County implemented 1/8 cent gross receipts tax for behavioral health services expansion - MDC population had dropped significantly in the 18 months prior to resolution - MDC began pilot program to enroll inmates in New Mexico Medicaid - Resolution adopted May 12, 2015
Priority Services & Findings
**Mental Health / Crisis Care** - Resolution targets individuals with serious mental illness cycling through the justice system - Commits to identifying adults entering jail with mental illness and assessing recidivism risk - Requires examination of treatment and service capacity for people with mental illness and co-occurring disorders - Mandates identification of policy and funding barriers to community-based treatment **SUD Organizations** - Explicitly addresses co-occurring substance use disorders alongside mental illness - Supportive housing allocation targets individuals with substance abuse or co-occurring disorders - Treatment capacity examination includes services for co-occurring disorders **Integrated Primary Care** - MDC Medicaid enrollment pilot program establishes healthcare coverage connection for incarcerated individuals - Supportive housing initiative designed to connect individuals with resources and services promoting stability
Immediate Actions for Systems Planners
-Assess current status of all six Stepping Up commitments to determine progress and gaps since 2015 adoption -Request updated prevalence data on individuals with mental illness and co-occurring disorders at MDC to establish current baseline -Inventory current treatment and service capacity against what existed in 2015 to measure expansion -Evaluate the outcomes of the 70-unit supportive housing allocation to inform future housing investments -Review Medicaid enrollment pilot outcomes and current enrollment rates for MDC population -Determine if the behavioral health business plan referenced was completed and assess implementation status -Identify which research-based approaches have been implemented since adoption and evaluate effectiveness
Key Contacts
**/ - American Psychiatric Foundation **/ BernCo Board of County Commissioners - Maggie Hart Stebbins, Chair = - Art De La Cruz, Vice Chair = - Debbie O'Malley = - Lonnie C. Talbert = - Wayne A. Johnson = - Randy M. Autio, County Attorney = - Maggie Toulouse Oliver, County Clerk **/ - Council of State Governments Justice Center **/ - National Association of Counties (NACo)