SB 25-236

Senate Bill 25-236 consolidates Colorado’s existing crisis hotline services into a single system, routing all calls from the current telephone crisis service directly to the 988 crisis hotline. This change reduces funding for separate telephone hotlines by nearly $4 million and redirects that money to support the integrated 988 system. The bill has been signed into law, meaning these changes are now in effect and will impact how mental health crisis services operate in Colorado starting from fiscal year 2025-26.

Official Summary

Under current law, the 988 crisis hotline and the telephone crisis service that is part of the behavioral health crisis response system operate as 2 separate services. The act consolidates the telephone crisis service with the 988 crisis hotline and ensures that callers who call the telephone crisis service are routed to the 988 crisis hotline. The act decreases appropriations made in the long bill to the department of human services for use by the behavioral health administration as follows: The general fund appropriation for behavioral health crisis response system services is decreased by $200,000; and The appropriation for the behavioral health crisis response system telephone hotline is decreased by $3,863,938, which consists of $3,496, 622 from the general fund and $367,316 from the marijuana tax cash fund. For the state fiscal year, 2025-26, the act appropriates $3,863,938 from the 988 crisis hotline cash fund to the department of human services for use by the behavioral health administration to implement this act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

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