Commissioners approve $7 million for mental health programs

Kitsap County mental health and chemical dependency programs got a shot in the arm with $7 million in funding over the next year.

The financial support will underwrite nearly three dozen projects in Kitsap County aimed at making life better for individuals dealing with mental health or chemical dependency issues, officials said. "This round not only provides funding for continuation but also targeted investment in new and emerging programs in our community," County Commissioner Rob Gelder said.

Members of an 11-member advisory committee were appointed by the commissioners to advise them on the funding. The committee recommended funding of 33 of 37 proposals. The commissioners voted to implement the committee's recommendations. "The process was extremely difficult due to the needs of the community being even greater this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Each proposal offered services that would greatly benefit our community," said Jeannie Screws, committee chair.

Twenty-one of the programs were approved for ongoing funding while a dozen new projects were given the green light for financial support.

The source for the $7 million funding is the 1/10th of 1% sales and use tax, which is designed for mental health, chemical dependency and therapeutic court courts in Kitsap County. The special tax was first approved by the commissioners in 2013.

One of the newly funded projects will allow Peninsula Community Health Services to provide additional school-based health center behavioral health services to youth — two licensed mental health counselors and a substance use disorder professional. CEO Jennifer Kreidler-Moss said the $294,500 will allow us to serve 125 students by providing them with an estimated 1,000 visits. The new staff will be placed in Central Kitsap and allow other staff to serve more students around the county.

The new personnel will provide students counseling on myriad issues, such as dealing with school bullying and helping students to reintegrate back to in-person learning, Kreidler-Moss said. Youths will also get additional professional advice on everything from vaping to experimenting with alcohol.

Kitsap Community Resources was awarded the largest slice of funding, netting $684,000. "There was a sense of relief when we learned that we have further funding to service Kitsap residents," said Stacy Doré, KCR's director of development.

KCR is a community action program that annually services 27,000 county residents, or 10% of the county's population, among its three divisions – housing and homeless services, employment and training, and early learning and family services, Doré said. The financial support will enable KCR to hire a behavioral therapist to work with homeless clients who frequently need extra attention, she said, adding that the funding fulfills a need that has existed for a decade.

The new funding also was approved for animal-assisted mental health counseling, intensive therapeutic wraparound services for non-Medicaid covered youth, onsite counseling services at Fishline Food Bank and comprehensive services at the YWCA, officials said.

Several court programs were provided with continuation funding, including behavioral health court, juvenile and adult drug court, and veterans' court. Law enforcement programs were awarded extended funding for crisis intervention training for police and a crisis intervention officer to coordinate responses for behavioral health calls and jail reentry services.

Also provided funding were several housing projects to assist individuals with behavioral health issues. These include Kitsap Rescue Mission, Kitsap Homes of Compassion, Pendleton Place, Eagles Wings and West Sound Treatment Center. Kitsap Community Resources and Scarlet Road were awarded funds for specialized rental assistance for people with behavioral health disorders.