D.C. Code § 34-1812: 988 Lifeline and Crisis Services Fund.

(a)

Effective October 1, 2026, there is established as a special fund the 988 Lifeline and Crisis Services Fund, which shall be administered by the Department of Behavioral Health, in accordance with subsection (c) of this section.

(b)

Revenue from the following sources shall be deposited into the 988 Fund:

(1)

The 988 fee authorized by 34-1813; and

(2)

The prepaid wireless 988 charge authorized under 34-1814.

(c)

(1)

Money in the 988 Fund shall be used to pay personnel and non-personnel costs incurred by the District to implement, operate, sustain, expand, and improve the District's 988 Lifeline and behavioral health crisis response continuum services provided in response to the 988 Lifeline; provided, that such costs are not otherwise reimbursable through Medicaid, Medicare, federal or state-regulated health insurance plans, or disability insurers.

(2)

Notwithstanding paragraph (1) of this subsection, in Fiscal Year 2027, $2.4 million from the 988 Fund shall be used for the following purposes; provided, that the funds are for services directly related to the 988 Lifeline:

(A)

$600,000 for community-based crisis stabilization beds that provide a voluntary, trauma-informed, and non-coercive alternative to emergency psychiatric care established by 7-1141.06d;

(B)

$1.3 million for the Children and Adolescent Mobile Psychiatric Services program established by section 5117e of the Department of Behavioral Health Establishment Act of 2013, passed on emergency basis on July 7, 2026 (Enrolled version of Bill 26-724); and

(C)

$500,000 for the 988 Lifeline's operational costs, including staffing, training, technology infrastructure, coordination with crisis response services, and other costs necessary to support the District's behavioral health crisis response continuum.

(d)

(1)

The money deposited into the 988 Fund shall not revert to the unrestricted fund balance of the General Fund of the District of Columbia at the end of a fiscal year, or at any other time.

(2)

Subject to authorization in an approved budget and financial plan, any funds appropriated in the 988 Fund shall be continually available without regard to fiscal year limitation.

(e)

The Mayor shall submit to the Council, as part of the annual budget and financial plan, a request for an appropriation for expenditures from the 988 Fund.

(f)

(1)

All revenue and expenditures of the 988 Fund shall be audited annually by the Chief Financial Officer, who shall transmit the results of the annual audit to the Mayor and the Council.

(2)

The audit shall include an itemized list of how funds were spent in the prior fiscal year, an assessment of whether expenditures from the 988 Fund comply with federal law, whether there exists adequate internal controls to prevent misuse, and a list of local exchange carriers required to collect and remit the 988 fee established under 34-1813.