(110 ILCS 165/5)

Sec. 5. Behavioral Health Workforce Education Center Task Force.

(a) The Behavioral Health Education Center Task Force is created.

(b) The Task Force shall be composed of the following members:

(1) the Executive Director of the Board of Higher Education, or his or her designee;

(2) a representative of Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, appointed by the chancellor of Southern Illinois University at Carbondale;

(3) a representative of Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville, appointed by the chancellor of Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville;

(4) a representative of Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, appointed by the President of Southern Illinois University;

(5) a representative of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, appointed by the chancellor of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign;

(6) a representative of the University of Illinois at Chicago, appointed by the chancellor of the University of Illinois at Chicago;

(7) a representative of the University of Illinois at Springfield, appointed by the chancellor of the University of Illinois at Springfield;

(8) a representative of the University of Illinois School of Medicine, appointed by the President of the University of Illinois;

(9) a representative of the University of Illinois at Chicago Hospital & Health Sciences System (UI Health), appointed by the Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs of the University of Illinois at Chicago;

(10) a representative of the Division of Mental Health of the Department of Human Services, appointed by the Secretary of Human Services;

(11) 2 representatives of a statewide organization representing community behavioral healthcare, appointed by the President of Southern Illinois University from nominations made by the statewide organization; and

(12) one representative from a hospital located in a municipality with more than 1,000,000 inhabitants that principally provides services to children.

(c) The Task Force shall meet to organize and select a chairperson from the non-governmental members of the Task Force upon appointment of a majority of the members. The chairperson shall be elected by a majority vote of the members of the Task Force.

(d) The Task Force may consult with any persons or entities it deems necessary to carry out its purposes.

(e) The members of the Task Force shall receive no compensation for serving as members of the Task Force.

(f) The Task Force shall study the concepts presented in House Bill 5111, as introduced, of the 100th General Assembly. Additionally, the Task Force shall consider the fiscal means by which the General Assembly might most effectively fund implementation of the concepts presented in House Bill 5111, as introduced, of the 100th General Assembly. The Task Force must recognize that the behavioral health workforce is comprised of a broad range of professions providing prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation services for mental health conditions and substance use disorders. To address workforce capacity issues that impact access to care, the Task Force must engage in extensive planning and data collection. Because there is no central data repository that exists for Illinois' behavioral health workforce, the Task Force must identify a data set, which is a foundational step to analyzing and providing recommendations to the concepts presented in House Bill 5111, as introduced, of the 100th General Assembly.

(g) The Task Force shall submit its findings and recommendations to the General Assembly on or before December 31, 2019. The report to the General Assembly shall be filed with the Clerk of the House of Representatives and the Secretary of the Senate in electronic form only, in the manner that the Clerk and the Secretary shall direct.

(h) The Board of Higher Education shall provide technical support and administrative assistance and support to the Task Force and shall be responsible for administering its operations and ensuring that the requirements of this Act are met.

(Source: P.A. 100-767, eff. 8-10-18; 101-81, eff. 7-12-19; 101-202, eff. 8-2-19.)