Bill Text: HI SB3235 | 2022 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating To Safe Spaces For Youth Pilot Program.
Spectrum: Strong Partisan Bill (Democrat 13-1)
Status: (Passed) 2022-06-27 - Act 130, on 06/27/2022 (Gov. Msg. No. 1231). [SB3235 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2022-SB3235-Introduced.html
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THE SENATE |
S.B. NO. |
3235 |
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THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2022 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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A BILL FOR AN ACT
Relating to Safe SpaceS for youth Pilot Program.
BE IT
ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION 1. The legislature finds that one in ten young adults who are between the ages of eighteen and twenty-five years, and at least one in thirty adolescents within the ages of thirteen and seventeen experience some form of homelessness unaccompanied by a parent or guardian over the course of a year.
The legislature further finds that among the homeless youth, sixty-nine per cent report mental health problems; thirty-three per cent had once been part of the foster care system; and fifty per cent have been in the juvenile justice system, in jail or detention. Moreover, sixty-two per cent of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning (LGBTQ) youth report being physically harmed while experiencing homelessness, while forty-seven per cent of non-LGBTQ youth reported being physically harmed while homeless.
The legislature also finds that runaway and homeless youth are vulnerable to multiple threats, including not having their basic food and shelter needs met, untreated mental health disorders, substance use, significant disruption in their education, sexually transmitted diseases and human immunodeficiency virus infection, sexual exploitation, physical victimization, and suicide. As the consequences faced by homeless youth are vast, coordination among various agencies, including the State's child welfare, education, health, and human services systems, and juvenile justice system, is required to protect the State's youth and ensure their safety.
The purpose of this Act is to establish a safe spaces for youth pilot program which is an inter-agency initiative to provide safe spaces for youth experiencing homelessness in each county.
SECTION 2. (a) There is established within the department of human services for administrative purposes only, a safe spaces for youth pilot program, which is an inter-agency initiative to provide safe spaces for youth experiencing homelessness in each county.
(b) The program shall collaborate with all departments of the State and its political subdivisions that offer services for the purposes of ensuring the well-being of youth in Hawaii, including but not limited to the department of education, department of health, department of human services, department of public safety, and county police departments, to coordinate the identification of youth who are experiencing homeless and placement of homeless youth with a shelter for homeless youth.
(c) The department of human services shall enter into contracts with nonprofit organizations to provide a shelter for homeless youth. Any nonprofit organization contracted under this subsection shall have the knowledge, experience, and qualifications, including licenses, necessary to operate a shelter for homeless youth.
(d) Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, a shelter for homeless youth contracted under subsection (c) may admit a youth into the shelter's care for up to ninety days without the consent of the youth's parents or guardian.
(e) The department of human services shall submit a report of its findings and recommendations pertaining to the safe spaces for youth pilot program to the legislature no later than thirty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2025. The report shall include:
(1) A record of pilot program activities and accomplishments;
(2) A recommendation on whether to extend the program; and
(3) Any proposed legislation.
(f) The department of human services shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91, Hawaii Revised Statutes, necessary to carry out the purposes of this Act.
(g) For the purposes of this Act,
"Shelter for homeless youth" means a facility that operates to receive youth twenty-four hours, seven days a week, and provide them with services, which shall include but not be limited to:
(1) Overnight lodging and supervision;
(2) Hot meals and hot showers;
(3) Access to medical and behavioral health services; and
(4) Education and employment support.
"Youth" means an individual who is at least fourteen years of age but under twenty-five years of age.
SECTION 3. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $ or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2022-2023 to fund the safe space for youth pilot program.
The sum appropriated shall be expended by the department of human services for the purposes of this Act.
SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2022, and shall be repealed on June 30, 2025.
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INTRODUCED BY: |
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Report Title:
Safe Spaces for Youth Pilot Program; Homeless Youth; Shelter
Description:
Establishes the Safe Spaces for Youth Pilot Program within the Department of Human Services. Requires the program to collaborate with all state departments that offer services to ensure the well-being of youth in Hawaii to coordinate the identification of youth who are experiencing homeless and placement of homeless youth with a shelter for homeless youth. Allows the Department of Human Services to contract with a nonprofit organization to provide a shelter for homeless youth. Requires the Department of Human Services to report to Legislature before the Regular Session of 2025. Appropriates funds. Repeals 06/30/2025.
The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.
