Senate BillPassed both housesWelfare and Institutions
SB 989: Community Assistance, Recovery, and Empowerment (CARE) Court Program.
What SB 989 does, verified September 14, 2026
<blockquote> <p>This bill amends existing law to allow first responders to contact a county behavioral health agency to request filing a petition for a voluntary care agreement or court-ordered care plan under the Community Assistance, Recovery, and Empowerment (CARE) Act. The agency must review the request within 30 business days and notify the responder of its decision.</p> <p>The bill requires the department to create a referral form and issue guidance on requesting petition filing. It also mandates agencies to include specific data in their annual reports to the department. Since this increases service requirements for county agencies, it creates a state-mandated local program.</p> </blockquote>
Bill journey
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6ChapteredPending
Last action: Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 2 p.m. (2026-08-25)Alert me
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| Sep. 04, 2026 | Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 2 p.m. |
| Aug. 28, 2026 | Assembly amendments concurred in. (Ayes 40. Noes 0.) Ordered to engrossing and enrolling. |
| Aug. 25, 2026 | Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 73. Noes 0. Page 6529.) Ordered to the Senate. |
| Aug. 25, 2026 | In Senate. Concurrence in Assembly amendments pending. |
| Aug. 25, 2026 | Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. |
Latest bill textEnrolled version, August 31, 2026 · 794 words
| Enrolled August 31, 2026 |
| Passed IN Senate August 28, 2026 |
| Passed IN Assembly August 25, 2026 |
| Amended IN Assembly June 18, 2026 |
| Amended IN Senate May 14, 2026 |
| Amended IN Senate April 16, 2026 |
| Amended IN Senate March 19, 2026 |
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION
Senate Bill
No. 989
| Introduced by Senators Blakespear and Umberg (Coauthor: Senator Arreguín) (Coauthors: Assembly Members Patel and Dixon) |
February 05, 2026 |
An act to add Section 5974.5 to the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to courts.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 989, Blakespear. Community Assistance, Recovery, and Empowerment (CARE) Court Program.
Existing law, the Community Assistance, Recovery, and Empowerment (CARE) Act, authorizes specified persons, including a person with whom the respondent resides, family members, and first responders, among others, to petition a civil court to create a voluntary CARE agreement or a court-ordered CARE plan and implement services, to be provided by county behavioral health agencies, to provide behavioral health care, including stabilization medication, housing, and other enumerated services, to adults who are currently experiencing a severe mental illness and have a diagnosis identified in the disorder class schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders, and who meet other specified criteria.
This bill would authorize a first responder to contact the county behavioral health agency in the county in which the individual resides or is found to request the agency file a petition to commence the CARE process. The bill would require the agency to review the request and determine whether to file a petition within 30 business days. The bill would require the agency, upon completion of the review, to notify the first responder that made the referral of specified information, including whether or not a petition was filed. Because the bill would require a higher level of service from county agencies, this bill would create a state-mandated local program.
This bill would require the department to create a referral form to be used by the first responders and would require the department to issue guidance on the procedure to request that the agency file a petition to commence the CARE process. The bill would also require the agency to include specified data in their annual report to the department.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 5974.5 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read:5974.5.
(a) In addition to directly filing a petition to commence the CARE process, a first responder, as identified in subdivision (f) of Section 5974, may contact the county behavioral health agency of the county in which the individual resides, or is found, if they believe that the individual meets or is likely to meet criteria to qualify for the CARE process, as described in Section 5972, and request the county behavioral health agency file a petition to commence the CARE process.(b) The request pursuant to this subdivision shall include the name and contact information for the individual, including a telephone number and address, if available, and other information as specified by the department.
(c) Within 30 business days of the request, the county behavioral health agency shall complete a review of the request and shall determine whether to file a petition in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
(d) Upon completion of the review required under subdivision (c), the county behavioral health agency shall notify the first responder who made the referral of both of the following:
(1) The outcome of their review, including whether or not a petition to commence the CARE process was filed.
(2) Whether or not the individual met the criteria to qualify for the CARE process.
(e) In accordance with subdivision (b) of Section 5984, the department shall develop a referral form to be used by the first responder and shall issue guidance regarding the procedure to request that a county behavioral health agency file a petition to commence the CARE process for the individual.
(f) The department shall include data regarding requests made pursuant to this section as part of the annual CARE Act report required by Section 5985.
SEC. 2.
If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.Text of SB 989 as enrolled, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions