{"content":[{"text":"H.B. 370 \n Mar 23, 2021 \n HOUSE PRINCIPAL CLERK \n D","bbox":{"left":0.763873,"top":0.03849,"width":0.19282299999999997,"height":0.080035}},{"text":"GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA \n SESSION 2021","bbox":{"left":0.302386,"top":0.051303,"width":0.430313,"height":0.042197}},{"text":"H","bbox":{"left":0.141216,"top":0.09754,"width":0.01525499999999999,"height":0.020985000000000004}},{"text":"HOUSE BILL DRH30182-LGa-55A","bbox":{"left":0.366356,"top":0.114965,"width":0.302817,"height":0.02098499999999999}},{"text":"Short Title: \n Sponsors: \n Referred to:","bbox":{"left":0.140627,"top":0.184525,"width":0.094001,"height":0.075212}},{"text":"No Veteran Left Behind. (Public) \n Representatives Bell, Moore, Cleveland, and Miller (Primary Sponsors).","bbox":{"left":0.258268,"top":0.184525,"width":0.6384450000000002,"height":0.04960600000000001}},{"text":"1 \n 2 \n 3 \n 4 \n 5 \n 6 \n 7 \n 8 \n 9 \n 10 \n 11 \n 12 \n 13 \n 14 \n 15 \n 16 \n 17 \n 18 \n 19 \n 20 \n 21 \n 22 \n 23 \n 24 \n 25 \n 26 \n 27 \n 28 \n 29 \n 30 \n 31 \n 32 \n 33 \n 34 \n 35","bbox":{"left":0.092157,"top":0.286343,"width":0.019608,"height":0.612733}},{"text":"A BILL TO BE ENTITLED \n AN ACT ESTABLISHING A PILOT PROGRAM TO EXPAND THE VETERANS JUSTICE \n INTERVENTION PROGRAM AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS FOR THE PROGRAM. \n Whereas, veterans suffer from unique mental health and substance abuse issues which \n may exceed the capabilities of many local communities, especially law enforcement; and \n Whereas, the Veterans Justice Intervention (VJI) program works to avoid the \n unnecessary criminalization of mental illness and extended incarceration among veterans by \n ensuring that eligible, justice-involved veterans have timely access to Veterans Health \n Administration (VHA) services; and \n Whereas, \"justice-involved veterans\" are veterans who have crisis encounters with \n law enforcement in the community, are jailed for relatively brief periods of time for offenses that \n do not result in prison time, and/or are adjudicated or monitored by either local criminal courts \n or specialty treatment courts, such as drug and mental health courts, usually for extended periods \n of time; and \n Whereas, VJI Specialists provide direct outreach, assessment, and case management \n for justice-involved veterans in local courts and jails and liaison with local justice system \n partners. VJI Specialists also serve as a liaison to Veterans Treatment Courts, Crisis Intervention \n Teams in police departments, and probation and parole officers; and \n Whereas, the VJI program also helps to prevent homelessness among justice-involved \n veterans; and \n Whereas, a pilot program to evaluate the expansion of the VJI program in North \n Carolina would be beneficial to the State's veterans; Now, therefore, \n The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: \n SECTION 1. There is appropriated from the General Fund to The Independence \n Fund, Inc., a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of veterans and their \n families, the sum of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) in nonrecurring funds for the \n 2021-2022 fiscal year to establish and implement a pilot program to expand the Veterans Justice \n Intervention (VJI) program in Brunswick, Craven, Cumberland, Onslow, Union, and Wayne \n Counties. These funds may be used to hire or contract a subject matter expert for assessment, \n coordination, and VJI implementation in each of the designated counties. \n SECTION 2. In conducting the pilot program, The Independence Fund, Inc., shall: \n (1) Partner with other nonprofits, State and local governments, and federal \n agencies to develop and assess each county's initial response to veterans in \n crises and conclude with an updated data collection process map developed \n for each county.","bbox":{"left":0.141216,"top":0.286343,"width":0.753143,"height":0.612733}},{"text":"*DRH30182-LGa-55A*","bbox":{"left":0.36067,"top":0.927273,"width":0.314216,"height":0.05020999999999998}}],"images_bbox":[],"images_bbox_not_text_overlap":[]}