HB 299

     The Utah School Counseling Association has publicly announced their opposition to HB 299. We wanted to inform you of what the bill says and why we as an association took a stance against it. 
     HB 299 is a bill currently being talked about in the legislative session that would create a one-year pilot program to address mental health in schools. The bill itself would create a one-year pilot program meant to provide training and education on mental health to selected local education associations (LEAs). The State Board of Education would then be tasked with creating criteria for evaluating programs interested in implementing these pilot programs in our school district and choose up to 6 LEAs to participate in the pilot program. The funding for this program would be allocated just one time for the 1-year of the pilot program.
     This program initially sounds like a great opportunity to help support our counselors that are serving in more rural school districts, but as you get further into the details of the bill and the behind the scenes for the creation of this bill USCA has some major concerns, that we feel need to be dealt with prior to giving our support or changing our stance on this bill. Our concerns for the bill include:

• The requirements for the pilot programs wishing to make a bid for this funding are not clearly defined within in the bill.
• How does this bill work in tandem with the professional development and training that school counselors are provided and are expected of us by the state.
• If the intent for this bill is to support rural school counselors, there is no language written in the bill highlighting that fact. The only time the bill mentions rural schools counselors is in regard to how to provide the training opportunities to our rural school counselors.
• There is currently no data available or set program outlined from the business that has been requesting for this bill to go through. How do we as School Counselors know that their model is the best evidence-based practice for these students and schools.
• The funding for this program is limited to 1-year. What happens to students and families who utilize this service and are unable to continue utilizing this service if an LEA does not have the funds, coverage, or support to continue this program.

It is with this concerns in mind that we are asking you to reach out to your legislators in opposition to this bill to help us create a more beneficial initiative that is well-researched with clear guidelines and requirements that will better serve the mental health of all students in Utah and their families.