The Bakersfield Police Department (BPD) and Kern Behavioral Health and Recovery Services (Kern BHRS) are using innovative strategies to partner on handling behavioral health (BH) matters in our community. 

Over the past two years BPD and Kern BHRS partnered to pilot the efficacy of placing a BH clinician within a law enforcement communications center alongside dispatchers.  For the first year of the pilot program, one clinician diverted approximately 70% of the 600 plus assigned calls, preventing a police officer response over 480 times to non-emergency calls. 

On August 31, 2022, the City and County of Kern, on the behalf of Kern BHRS, entered into a Master Memorandum of Understanding [assigned City Agreement No. 2022-181] to solidify the joint provision of services between BPD and Kern BHRS, allowing for the placement of up to three (3) BH clinicians in the communications center for a total annual amount of $405,000 ($135,000 per position), and a term date of June 30, 2023. The compensation is paid by the City to reimburse the salary cost of the clinicians assigned to the BPD communications center.  The Master MOU also establishes the Homeless Co-Response Program, a co-response model focusing on those suffering from mental health issues who are also experiencing homelessness. Homeless Co-Response units consist of a police officer and a BH Clinician working together in the field.  These teams can increase service capacity, decrease response times and increase efficiency while also increasing the likelihood of obtaining a positive resolution. After a 6-month pilot program, BPD and Kern BHRS recently increased to 4 of these teams spread out across the busiest shifts. There is no additional compensation paid by City for the Homeless Co-Response Program, as it is a joint provision of services based on staffing availability covered by each respective agency.

Increasing the number of clinicians to three provides for better shift coverage each week and further decreases officer response to non-emergency BH calls. The PSVS Citizens Oversight Committee unanimously recommended this project. The City Council approved this funding allocation through the Fiscal Year 2023-2024 budget. PSVS revenue ($405,000) has been appropriated to the Police Department’s operating budget within the Public Safety and Vital Services Fund to implement the clinician project.

With these strategies we will decrease law enforcement contact with subjects in crisis who are better served by BH staff intervention and as a result decrease response times to other priority calls.  Our goals are as follows:

• Decrease the amount of time dispatchers spend on the phone and officers spend in the field with non-emergency calls that are related to BH.
• Decrease the number of calls related to individuals who are currently open to Kern BHRS, or other community BH providers, at the time of the call.
• Decrease law enforcement contact with subjects who have non-emergency behavioral health challenges.
• Decrease the response time for a BH specialist to engage BH patients in the field.
• Decrease police response time to calls for service.
• Serve as a viable solution to the drains on law enforcement resources in the community.

The City and County now desire to continue these services and amend City Agreement No. 2022-181 to extend the Master MOU for two more years. All other provisions, including cost, will remain the same at this time. Extending the Master MOU requires appropriating $405,000 for FY23/24 and $405,000 for FFY24/25; for a revised total not to exceed amount of $1,215,000 under the MOU and a term date of June 30, 2025.

Funds are budgeted in the Public Safety Vital Services Measure for the contracted services. The Amendment will go to the County for signature following City Council approval.