Present law requires an LEA to allocate funding in an amount equal to the per pupil state and local funds received by the LEA under the Tennessee Education Finance Act of 1977 to state licensed residential mental health facilities on a prorated daily basis for the student's length of stay, if:
(1) The facility operates as a Category I special purpose school pursuant to state board of education rules and regulations and provides a minimum of 16.5 hours per week of educational instructional services;
(2) The student admitted to the facility was enrolled in an LEA in the academic year immediately preceding admission to the facility and is a currently enrolled student in an LEA; and
(3) The student is admitted to the facility under a signed, written order of a qualified physician licensed to practice medicine in this state, such order being based upon medical necessity. Present law authorizes an LEA to require a physician attestation form including the patient's name, the dates of admission, and the signature of the physician to be submitted to the LEA prior to disbursement of funds to the facility.
This bill changes the requirement described in (2) to be that the student admitted to the residential mental health facility was enrolled in and attended a public school in this state for the one full school year immediately preceding the student's admission to the facility and is enrolled in a public school in this state at the time of admission to the facility.
This bill adds a requirement that an LEA allocate funding in an amount equal to the per pupil state and local funds received by the LEA to an out-of-state residential mental health facility on a prorated daily basis for the student's length of stay if:
(1) The residential mental health facility operates in a state that borders this state;
(2) The residential mental health facility serves at least 15 Tennessee students per school year;
(3) The department of education determines, prior to the medical placement decision, that the residential mental health facility's educational programs or instructional services meet the same requirements as a Category I special purpose school, as applicable, pursuant to the state board of education's rules;
(4) The residential mental health facility provides a minimum of 16.5 hours per week of educational instructional services to admitted students, unless the student's IEP provides otherwise;
(5) The residential mental health facility complies with all applicable health and safety laws, regulations, and codes of the state and locality in which it is located;
(6) All teachers at the residential mental health facility are licensed by the educator licensing authority of the state in which the facility is located;
(7) The residential mental health facility has at least one teacher with an endorsement in special education or a certification that the department of education determines to be equivalent to an endorsement in special education in this state, to provide special education and related services to admitted students;
(8) The residential mental health facility has a sufficient number of teachers with an endorsement in special education or a certification that the department of education determines to be equivalent to an endorsement in special education in this state, to comply with each student's IEP;
(9) The residential mental health facility reports the attendance of each admitted student to the public school in which the student is enrolled;
(10) The residential mental health facility follows the admitted student's IEP as written at the time of the medical placement decision, and as subsequently amended by the student's IEP team during the student's stay at the facility;
(11) The student admitted to the residential mental health facility was enrolled in and attended a public school in this state for the one full school year immediately preceding the student's admission to the facility, is enrolled in a public school in this state at the time of admission to the facility, and has an active IEP from an LEA in this state at the time of the medical placement decision; and
(12) The student is admitted to the residential mental health facility under a signed, written order of a qualified physician licensed to practice medicine, the order being based upon both medical necessity and the most appropriate medical services for the child. An LEA may require a physician attestation form including the patient's name, the dates of admission, and the signature of the physician to be submitted to the LEA prior to disbursement of funds to the facility.
If an LEA allocates funds to an out-of-state residential mental health facility pursuant to this bill, then the LEA and the department of education may monitor the out-of-state residential mental health facility for compliance with this bill, an individual student's IEP, and all other applicable state and federal laws. If the out-of-state residential mental health facility fails to comply with the requirements (1)-(12) above, then the LEA will cease the allocation of funding as provided in this bill.
ON MAY 4, 2021, THE SENATE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED SENATE BILL 449, AS AMENDED.
AMENDMENT #1 creates an exception to the requirement that, in order to be eligible for a funding allocation from the LEA, a state-licensed residential mental health facility operate as a Category I special purpose school pursuant to the state board of education's rules and provides a minimum of 16.5 hours per week of educational instructional services to the students. Under this amendment, such requirement will not apply if the student's IEP provides otherwise.
This amendment adds as a requirement for allocations from an LEA to an out-of-state residential mental health facility that there are no facilities in this state with the capacity to deliver the appropriate mental health treatment to the student at the time the student is admitted to the out-of-state residential mental health facility.

Statutes affected:
Current Version: 49-3-370
Amended with SA0094 -- 05/04/2021: 49-3-370