HR 5725 — Mental Health Crisis Response Act of 2025

Summary

This bill would direct the Attorney General to establish a grant program to award competitive grants to states, tribes, and local jurisdictions for implementing or expanding health-centered crisis response strategies for behavioral health emergencies. Grant funds could be used to embed mental health professionals in 911 systems, develop alternative routing to mental health hotlines, and create partnerships between emergency services and 911 dispatch. The bill authorizes $25 million per year for fiscal years 2027 through 2031 and requires grantees to report on response times, use of force, and diversion rates.

AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill text — neutral, and may be imperfect. See the full text below for the exact wording.

Sponsor (1)

Rep. Watson Coleman, Bonnie [D-NJ-12] (D-NJ)

13 cosponsors

Del. Norton, Eleanor Holmes [D-DC-At Large] (D-DC)
Rep. Ansari, Yassamin [D-AZ-3] (D-AZ)
Rep. Budzinski, Nikki [D-IL-13] (D-IL)
Rep. Carter, Troy A. [D-LA-2] (D-LA)
Rep. Clarke, Yvette D. [D-NY-9] (D-NY)
Rep. Garcia, Sylvia R. [D-TX-29] (D-TX)
Rep. Goldman, Daniel S. [D-NY-10] (D-NY)
Rep. Moulton, Seth [D-MA-6] (D-MA)
Rep. Quigley, Mike [D-IL-5] (D-IL)
Rep. Salinas, Andrea [D-OR-6] (D-OR)
Rep. Thanedar, Shri [D-MI-13] (D-MI)
Rep. Thompson, Bennie G. [D-MS-2] (D-MS)
Rep. Tlaib, Rashida [D-MI-12] (D-MI)

Money behind the sponsor

Top reported contributors to Bonnie Watson Coleman’s campaign committee (2024 cycle) — who funds the bill’s sponsor, not a claim about this bill. Data from FEC.

BEIGENE $13,400
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY $11,150
WINNING STRATEGIES WASHINGTON $8,600
NEW JERSEY DEPT. OF HEALTH $7,600
GHO VENTURES, LLC $7,600

Organizations whose employees gave the most — itemized individual contributions grouped by the donor’s reported employer (FEC Schedule A). Full finance for Bonnie Watson Coleman → · Outside spending →

Actions (2)

Oct 8, 2025 Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned. · house
Oct 8, 2025 Introduced in House

Similar bills (6)

Bills with similar text or summary — includes reintroductions across Congresses. Ranked by semantic similarity of the bill text (computed locally); a neutral discovery aid, not a claim the bills are duplicates.

Text versions (1)

Introduced in House · Oct 8, 2025

Only one text version is on file, so there’s no earlier version to compare against yet.

Full text

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

October 8, 2025

Mrs. Watson Coleman (for herself, Ms. Ansari, Ms. Clarke of New York, Mr. Goldman of New York, Ms. Norton, Ms. Salinas, Mr. Thanedar, Mr. Thompson of Mississippi, Ms. Tlaib, Mr. Quigley, and Ms. Garcia of Texas) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

A BILL

To direct the Attorney General to establish a grant to support communities transitioning to health-centered responses for mental health-related emergencies.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the “Mental Health Crisis Response Act of 2025”.

SEC. 2. GRANT PROGRAM FOR CRISIS RESPONSE ALTERNATIVES.

(a) Establishment.—Not later than 270 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General, in partnership with the Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use, shall establish a grant program, to award, on a competitive basis, grants to eligible jurisdictions for the purposes of implementing or expanding health-centered crisis response strategies for individuals experiencing behavioral health emergencies.

(b) Eligible Jurisdictions.—A jurisdiction shall be eligible for a grant under subsection (a) if the State, Tribal, or local government manages emergency services in response to any incident, including law enforcement and emergency medical services.

(c) Application.—An eligible jurisdiction seeking a grant under this section shall submit an application to the Attorney General at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Attorney General may reasonably require.

(d) Use of Funds.—A grant awarded under subsection (a) may be used by an eligible jurisdiction to:

(1) Embed mental health professionals into 911 dispatch and call triage systems.

(2) Develop alternative 911 call routing to 988 or other mental health or substance abuse crisis hotline service.

(3) Form partnerships between State or local emergency services and State or local 911 dispatch centers to ensure a streamlined handoff without requiring the caller to hangup and dial 988 or other mental health or substance abuse crisis hotline service.

(e) Rule of Construction.—Nothing in this Act shall be construed to—

(1) require a State, Tribe, or local government to remove law enforcement from an emergency response model; or

(2) preempt a State law regarding involuntary psychiatric holds, involuntary treatment, or any emergency authority that would hinder public safety.

(f) Reporting Requirement.—An eligible jurisdiction awarded a grant under this section shall submit an annual report on—

(1) the amount of time it takes for a response to an incident;

(2) use of force by law enforcement or any other individual responding to an incident where an individual requires assistance;

(3) diversion rates; and

(4) any other information requested by the Attorney General or Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use.

(g) Authorization of Appropriations.—There are authorized to be appropriated $25,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2027 through 2031 to carry out this section. <all>

Comments

Loading comments…