Sponsors (66)
Introduced September 23, 2025 by Andrea Salinas · Last progress September 23, 2025
The bill expands and funds school‑based, evidence‑driven mental health services that could substantially improve student safety and care coordination, at the cost of new federal spending, added administrative requirements, and potential uneven access and privacy tradeoffs.
Students and children across participating schools gain access to comprehensive, school-based mental health services that address trauma, suicide risk, and violence.
States and local school districts receive dedicated federal grants (up to $2M per grant; $300M/year authorized) to build and evaluate evidence-based school mental health programs for up to five years.
Families and communities benefit from strengthened partnerships and technical assistance linking schools with mental health, child welfare, and healthcare providers, improving coordination of care for youth.
All taxpayers fund new federal spending—$300 million per year for the authorization period—with potential fiscal impact if the program is extended or expanded.
Sharing of student health and education information among multiple partners could increase real-world privacy risks for students and families despite HIPAA/FERPA requirements.
Reporting, evaluation, and outcome-measure requirements create administrative burden for grantees and may divert up to ~20% of grant funds toward evaluation instead of direct services.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Creates an HHS school-based mental health grant program to fund trauma-informed, culturally and developmentally appropriate mental health services for students.
Creates a new federal school-based mental health grant program administered by HHS (in consultation with the Department of Education) to fund comprehensive, trauma-informed mental health services and supports for children and adolescents (including Bureau of Indian Education schools). Grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements must fund developmentally, linguistically, and culturally appropriate services that address trauma, grief, bereavement, suicide risk, and violence and that incorporate positive behavioral interventions, family engagement, screening/training, and community partnerships.