SPRINGFIELD – A measure sponsored by State Senator Meg Loughran Cappel (D-Shorewood) to create a Children’s Mental Health Council passed the Senate Behavioral & Mental Health Committee Tuesday.

The proposal – Senate Bill 3889 – would create a council that would provide recommendations to the General Assembly each year regarding children with mental health conditions and behavioral disabilities.

“As a state, we need to raise our level of ambition to support children’s mental health,” Loughran Cappel said. “The goal of this legislation is to give our children living with mental health conditions a voice to be heard by their state officials.”

The council would be tasked with collaborating to gain a better understanding of residential and emergency placements children experience and how the state can provide better support for children with mental health issues. 

Loughran Cappel’s proposal passed the committee 9-0.