East SFV Today

LOS ANGELES, CA — On Monday, May 1, Congressman Tony Cárdenas announced $800,000 in Community Project Funding to the City of San Fernando to hire mental health clinicians that will support the police department with critical incidents, outreach services for mental health services and support 988 cases.

“For too long, we have not had adequate resources to respond to emergency calls when someone is dealing with a mental health crisis,” said Congressman Cárdenas. “We often ask too much of our officers, leading to them going beyond their call of duty and responding to mental health emergencies. We can do better. Experts across the country agree that trained crisis professionals and mental health practitioners are the best equipped to respond to these calls. They have the knowledge and experience to respond to people in need and can de-escalate urgent situations … I am proud to announce that $800,000 in Community Project Funding will go to San Fernando for mental health crisis response services. This will be a game-changer here in San Fernando. I want to thank you for taking this initiative, envisioning a better future for your residents, and joining me in the fight to make sure that there will always be someone to call, someone to come if they need help, and somewhere to go for compassionate care.”

"The City Council and I are focused on enhancing quality of life in San Fernando, and that includes addressing the mental health needs of our community. Mental health can impact anyone- our neighbors, family members, children, first responders and those experiencing homelessness,” said Mayor Rodriguez. “The funding secured by Congressman Cárdenas will be used to support our community in their times of need by providing our officers with additional training, resources and partnerships to create a framework for ongoing mental health support. The funding will also add a mental health clinician to the city’s new homeless outreach team to help ensure those experiencing homelessness are provided a path to permanent housing and stability. Through partnerships and support such as this, the City hopes to be an example of the valuable impact federal funding allocations can have in local cities."

For the second time since 2009, Congress passed Community Project Funding, the money requested by Members of Congress to meet the needs of their district. Congressman Cárdenas submitted 15 requests to the Appropriations Committee, all of which were passed in the Fiscal Year 2023 appropriations federal funding package. The over $26 million going to the Northeast San Fernando Valley will support job creation, youth programs, mental health care, community empowerment, improvements to healthcare and more.

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Original source can be found here.