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SD 3857

Community Behavioral Health Promotion and Prevention Commission 2025-2026 Annual Report

194th Legislature (2025-2026)

Establishes a 23-member, data-driven Commission to promote upstream behavioral health prevention, fund evidence-based programs, coordinate cross-agency efforts, and report annually

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Bill Summary · SD 3857

Summary: Bill SD 3857 – Community Behavioral Health Promotion and Prevention Commission 2025-2026 Annual Report

Purpose and intent

  • Establishes the Community Behavioral Health Promotion and Prevention Commission (CBHPP Commission) to promote positive mental, emotional, and behavioral health, support early intervention for mental illness, and prevent substance use disorders among Massachusetts residents.
  • The Commission resides within the Executive Office of Health and Human Services but operates independently of its control.

Key provisions and changes

  • Authority and structure (Section 219):

    • Creates a 23-member Commission:
    • Ex officio leaders and designees (e.g., Secretary of Health and Human Services as chair; secretaries of veterans’ services, mental health, and public health; Chief Justice of the Trial Court designee; CHIA director designee; and joint committee chairs).
    • Legislators: 2 House members (including the House Chair of the Joint Committee on Mental Health, Substance Use and Recovery and an additional appointment by the House Speaker) and 2 Senate members (including the Senate Chair and an appointment by the Senate President).
    • Appointed members: Multiple appointees representing state agencies, public health and behavioral health organizations, and 10 named organizations (e.g., MSPCC, NAMI Massachusetts, ABH, MAMH, MOAR, MACHW, MPHA, SEL4MA, etc.).
    • Terms: 4-year terms, non-compensated; potential for reappointment; governor can remove appointees for cause.
    • Advisory committees may be established to assist the Commission.

  • Roles and activities (Section 219, subsections d–e):

    • The Commission must promote prevention science, population health, risk/protective factors, social determinants of health, evidence-based policy making, health equity, and trauma-informed care.
    • May reference recommendations from the 2016 upstream prevention report as guidance.
    • Consult with the Administration on grants from the Community Behavioral Health Promotion and Prevention Trust Fund (chapter 10, section 35EEE).
    • Collaborate with other state commissions (e.g., Safe and Supportive Schools Commission, Ellen Story Commission on postpartum depression, autism commission).
    • Make legislative recommendations to advance prevention at universal, selective, and indicated levels; identify and fund evidence-based programs; reduce public costs through prevention.
    • Facilitate interagency initiatives addressing health equity and social determinants of health.
    • Develop and implement a comprehensive plan to strengthen promotion programming and infrastructure via training, technical assistance, and resource dissemination.
    • Identify and disseminate evidence-based practices to promote behavioral health, prevent violence through trauma-responsive care, and address substance use.
    • Collect and analyze population-based behavioral health data; track changes; provide policy/program recommendations.
    • Coordinate behavioral health promotion programs, campaigns, and initiatives.
    • Hold public hearings to solicit input from experts and the public.
    • Serve as an advisory board to the Office of Behavioral Health Promotion (section 16DD, chapter 6A).
    • Submit an annual report to the Legislature on substance use prevention and behavioral health, with ongoing monitoring of implementation and updates reflecting current science.

  • Annual reporting (Section 219, subsection e):

    • By March 1 each year, file a report with the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing and the Joint Committee on Mental Health, Substance Use and Recovery, detailing activities and recommendations; update recommendations as science evolves.

  • Membership specifics (as detailed in the bill):

    • Names and positions of the Commission Chair (as of Dec 2025, Amy Rosenthal, Undersecretary for Health, substituting for Kiame Mahaniah) and other members (legislative, ex officio, and appointed representatives) are listed, ensuring broad representation from health, behavioral health, education, social services, veterans groups, and community organizations.

Who would be affected

  • State agencies (HHS, DPH, Mental Health, Veterans Affairs, CHIA, Trial Court), state legislators, and chairs of relevant committees.
  • Organizations and professional associations representing behavioral health, mental health, child welfare, addiction recovery, public health, social work, and related advocacy groups.
  • Community-based organizations implementing prevention and promotion programs funded through state grants and the Behavioral Health Promotion and Prevention Trust Fund.

Procedural/timeline aspects

  • Commission formation and ongoing operations with annual reporting deadlines (no later than March 1 each year).
  • Initial organizational and planning updates occurred in 2025, with ongoing work on grant programs, landscape analyses, and a statewide prevention campaign.
  • Grants: OBHPP (Office of Behavioral Health Promotion and Prevention Program) pursuing multi-year grants (~$3 million annually) to fund statewide community-based prevention projects, with notices of intent and RFA/RFA review processes described in the 2025-2026 period.

Bottom line

SD 3857 codifies a standing, data-informed Commission to guide Massachusetts’ upstream prevention and promotion efforts for behavioral health and to reduce substance use disorders, with explicit governance, advisory capacity, grant collaboration, and annual reporting to the Legislature. It emphasizes evidence-based practice, health equity, trauma-informed care, and cross-agency collaboration.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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