The Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS), as directed by Chapter 619 of the 2022 Acts of Assembly, convened a work group with representatives of localities with populations of 40,000 people or less to determine what barriers smaller localities face when implementing Marcus Alert. DBHDS, in partnership with the Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS), developed and disseminated a survey to all 40 Community Services Boards (CSBs), 339 Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs), and 124 Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) to collect information to inform required reporting to the General Assembly on Marcus Alert implementation and barriers throughout the Commonwealth.

During the 2022 General Assembly Legislative Session, amendments were made to the original Marcus Alert System legislation, § 37.2-311.1 and § 9.1-193, to allow for localities that have populations of less than 40,000 to have optional participation in portions of the Marcus Alert System. These optional components are providing emergency backup services to mobile crisis teams and responding to behavioral health incidents with a specialized response according to minimum standards and best practices developed by the Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) and the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS).

G. of § 9.1-193 Localities with a population that is less than or equal to 40,000 may and localities with a population that is greater than 40,000 shall establish local protocols that meet the requirements set forth in the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services plan set forth in clauses (vii) and (viii) of subdivision B 2 of § 37.2-311.1. Localities with a population that is less than or equal to 40,000 may and localities with a population that is greater than 40,000 shall develop protocols for law-enforcement participation in the Marcus alert system, which shall be approved by the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services and the Department prior to such participation. For the purposes of this subsection, the population of a locality shall be the population of that locality as reported by the United States Census Bureau following the 2020 decennial census.

911 Dispatch Centers, commonly referred to as Public Safety Answering Points, were codified to divert behavioral health calls to the 988 crises call system.

H. of § 9.1-193. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection G, every locality, regardless of population, shall establish local protocols to divert calls from the 9-1-1 dispatch and response system to a crisis call center for risk assessment and engagement, including assessment for mobile crisis or community care team dispatch if available, in accordance with clause (iv) of subdivision B 2 of § 37.2-311.1.

The legislation added an additional report on barriers and recommendations from workgroups convened with representation from small localities.