SENATE HEALTH, HUMAN SERVICES AND SENIOR CITIZENS COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

SENATE, No. 4413

with committee amendments

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:  JUNE 11, 2026

      The Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee reports favorably and with committee amendments Senate Bill No. 4413.

      The amended bill would require school districts, charter schools, and renaissance school projects, according to guidelines to be established by the Commissioner of Education in consultation with the Commissioner of Children and Families, to establish a comprehensive mental health support and partnership program for students.  The program would rapidly connect students, identified as requiring ongoing mental health care or having high-acuity behavioral health needs, with community-based behavioral health services via the School-Based Partnerships for Access and Resilience for Kids (SPARK) program.  These provisions would first apply to certain school districts, charter schools, and renaissance school projects selected by the Commissioner of Education in consultation with the Commissioner of Children and Families for a period of time specified by the bill.  Thereafter, these provisions would apply to all school districts, charter schools, and renaissance school projects in the State.

     The SPARK program, which would be established in the Department of Children and Families, would be operated and administered by the New Jersey Pediatric Psychiatry Collaborative (collaborative) under contract to the department.  The collaborative would serve as the SPARK program navigator, and would provide:

· same-day psychiatric consultation, assessment, and triage support for schools;

· referrals and linkages to outpatient psychiatry and community-based therapists;

· behavioral health care navigation, coordination, and family engagement;

· short-term medication management, stabilization, and bridging services;

· school re-entry planning, psychiatric clearance, and transition coordination following behavioral health crises, hospitalizations, or emergency department visits;

· educational support and consultation for school personnel; and

· consultation and guidance for State and local school leaders to implement evidence-based student mental health policies.

     All SPARK services would be available for students in kindergarten through grade 12, upon a referral by school personnel, and only with written authorization from the student’s parent or legal guardian.

     Each school district, charter school, and renaissance school project would be required to have either a designated staff member to provide school-based counseling services for students, or a formalized arrangement with a community-based mental health provider or with the New Jersey Statewide Student Support Services program.

     Within 90 days of the bill’s effective date, the Commissioner of Children and Families would issue a request for proposals for a mobile mental health application that delivers universal mental health information and resources for students in Kindergarten through Grade 12 and their families.

     To access SPARK services, schools would be required to report annually to the department and the Department of Education:  the number of students accessing SPARK services during the most recent school year; the number of students and families referred by the SPARK navigator to community-based providers; the number of school personnel receiving educational support, guidance, and consultation; and any other information required by the commissioners.  The commissioner would provide this information via a searchable, public-facing data platform on the department’s website, and would be required to report these data annually to the Governor and the Legislature.

     The bill appropriates $44 million to implement the provisions of the bill.

COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS:

      The committee amendments provide that certain provisions of the bill would first only apply to certain school districts, charter schools, and renaissance school projects selected by the Commissioner of Education in consultation with the Commissioner of Children and Families for a period of time specified by the bill.  Thereafter, those provisions would apply to all school districts, charter schools, and renaissance school projects in the State.

      The committee amendments revise the bill’s effective date to reflect these changes.

      The committee amendments make a technical change to the bill’s synopsis concerning usage.