Correctional officers report that they are overwhelmed and unprepared to address the needs of people with serious mental illness. The human and fiscal costs of arresting and detaining hundreds of thousands of non-violent offenders with serious mental health needs have reached a breaking point.

MIOTCRA provides important grants for the diversion and treatment of non-violent, mentally ill offenders. Because of MIOTCRA, those with mental illness are diverted by law enforcement, prosecutors, or courts into supervised treatment programs. These diversion programs contribute to public safety by lowering the chances that people with mental illness will re-offend.

MIOTCRA funded Allegheny County, Pennsylvania to design a Crisis Intervention Team program, which they will pilot in Pittsburgh and then use as a model for police and sheriffs’ departments throughout the county. CIT is a model policing project developed in Memphis, Tennessee that has been adopted in communities around the country. CIT reduces injuries to officers and civilians during encounters with people with serious mental illness, reduces arrest rates of people with mental illness, and is more likely to connect them with treatment than a traditional policing program. Lancaster County, Nebraska is using MIOTCRA funds to expand its jail diversion program to include individuals with severe and persistent mental illnesses who are eligible for Community Corrections' Pre-Trial Services or Adult Drug Court Programs. This population has not historically been served by these programs due to a lack of adequate resources for persons with SPMI. The grantee plans to increase service capacity and serve approximately 65-80 offenders per year who have committed misdemeanor, as well as non-violent felony offenses.

Congress authorized the program at $50 million or “such sums” necessary to carry out the intent of the statute. MIOTCRA received $5 million in FY 2006 and FY 2007. The competition for these funds was so intense that only 11% of the 250 applications received funding for FY 2006. Many worthy programs were left unfunded. Of the 27 applications that received funding, National Council members are involved in 11 of the programs. Grants have not yet been awarded for FY 2007.

The National Council urges Congress to fully fund MIOTCRA at $50 million.