The conference committee spent significant time on behavioral-health items where the House and Senate positions diverged. Senator Devers and others questioned reductions and recommended further discussion in conference committee; staff circulated line-item changes and rationales for each difference.

Keith, legislative council staff, summarized the most notable changes in the behavioral-health section. The Senate reduced funding for mental-health and substance-use disorder treatment for incarcerated individuals by $2,500,000. "The line item for mental health and substance use disorder treatment for incarcerated individuals was reduced by the 2 and a half million," Keith said. Committee members discussed that the reduced funding would require careful conference negotiation and urged clarification on whether this would change services available in county jails and for state inmates.

The committee added $3,000,000 for a youth crisis stabilization pilot, split evenly between the Community Health Trust Fund and federal dollars — $1.5 million from each source — to fund one pilot project rather than the two projects the governor initially recommended. Keith explained that the governor had proposed $6,000,000 for two pilot projects at two certified community behavioral health clinics (CCBHCs), but the committee arrived at funding for one pilot and said it would circulate a descriptive memo for members.

Members also debated an adjustment to additional substance-use disorder funding tied to an institution for mental disease voucher; the Senate reduced that line by $250,000, leaving $250,000 in place. Senators and representatives discussed whether to prioritize expanding existing programs where there is known capacity rather than launching new initiatives.

Other behavioral-health items discussed included reductions for nursing-home and basic-care behavioral-health training, adjustments to provider inflation assumptions and revenue projections for clinics that shift $2,000,000 from general fund to special funds based on expected third-party payers at CCBHCs. The committee requested further implementation details and administrative rules for pilot projects and voucher administration before concluding the discussion.

There were no formal votes recorded on these items in the transcript; members asked staff to circulate more detailed worksheets, program descriptions and proposed administration rules for use in conference negotiations.