340.02 Organization of board of alcohol, drug addiction, and mental health services.
340.02 Organization of board of alcohol, drug addiction, and mental health services.
As used in this section, “mental health professional” means a person who is qualified to work with mentally ill persons, pursuant to standards established by the director of mental health under section 5119.611 of the Revised Code.
For each alcohol, drug addiction, and mental health service district, there shall be appointed a board of alcohol, drug addiction, and mental health services of eighteen members. Nine members shall be interested in mental health programs and facilities and nine other members shall be interested in alcohol or drug addiction programs. All members shall be residents of the service district. The membership shall, as nearly as possible, reflect the composition of the population of the service district as to race and sex.
The director of mental health shall appoint four members of the board, the director of alcohol and drug addiction services shall appoint four members, and the board of county commissioners shall appoint ten members. In a joint-county district, the county commissioners of each participating county shall appoint members in as nearly as possible the same proportion as that county’s population bears to the total population of the district, except that at least one member shall be appointed from each participating county.
The director of mental health shall ensure that at least one member of the board is a psychiatrist and one member of the board is a mental health professional. If the appointment of a psychiatrist is not possible, as determined under rules adopted by the director, a licensed physician may be appointed in place of the psychiatrist. If the appointment of a licensed physician is not possible, the director of mental health may waive the requirement that the psychiatrist or licensed physician be a resident of the service district and appoint a psychiatrist or licensed physician from a contiguous county. The director of mental health shall ensure that at least one member of the board is a person who has received or is receiving mental health services paid for by public funds and at least one member is a parent or other relative of such a person.
The director of alcohol and drug addiction services shall ensure that at least one member of the board is a professional in the field of alcohol or drug addiction services and one member of the board is an advocate for persons receiving treatment for alcohol or drug addiction. Of the members appointed by the director of alcohol and drug addiction services, at least one shall be a person who has received or is receiving services for alcohol or drug addiction, and at least one shall be a parent or other relative of such a person.
No member or employee of a board of alcohol, drug addiction, and mental health services shall serve as a member of the board of any agency with which the board of alcohol, drug addiction, and mental health services has entered into a contract for the provision of services or facilities. No member of a board of alcohol, drug addiction, and mental health services shall be an employee of any agency with which the board has entered into a contract for the provision of services or facilities. No person shall be an employee of a board and such an agency unless the board and agency both agree in writing.
No person shall serve as a member of the board of alcohol, drug addiction, and mental health services whose spouse, child, parent, brother, sister, grandchild, stepparent, stepchild, stepbrother, stepsister, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, or sister-in-law serves as a member of the board of any agency with which the board of alcohol, drug addiction, and mental health services has entered into a contract for the provision of services or facilities. No person shall serve as a member or employee of the board whose spouse, child, parent, brother, sister, stepparent, stepchild, stepbrother, stepsister, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, or sister-in-law serves as a county commissioner of a county or counties in the alcohol, drug addiction, and mental health service district.
Each year each board member shall attend at least one inservice training session provided or approved by the department of mental health or the department of alcohol and drug addiction services. Such training sessions shall not be considered to be regularly scheduled meetings of the board.
Each member shall be appointed for a term of four years, commencing the first day of July, except that one-third of initial appointments to a newly established board, and to the extent possible to expanded boards, shall be for terms of two years, one-third of initial appointments shall be for terms of three years, and one-third of initial appointments shall be for terms of four years. No member shall serve more than two consecutive four-year terms. A member may serve for three consecutive terms only if one of the terms is for less than two years. A member who has served two consecutive four-year terms or three consecutive terms totaling less than ten years is eligible for reappointment one year following the end of the second or third term, respectively.
When a vacancy occurs, appointment for the expired or unexpired term shall be made in the same manner as an original appointment. The appointing authority shall be notified by certified mail of any vacancy and shall fill the vacancy within sixty days following that notice.
Any member of the board may be removed from office by the appointing authority for neglect of duty, misconduct, or malfeasance in office, and shall be removed by the appointing authority if the member’s spouse, child, parent, brother, sister, stepparent, stepchild, stepbrother, stepsister, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, or sister-in-law serves as a county commissioner of a county or counties in the service district or serves as a member or employee of the board of an agency with which the board of alcohol, drug addiction, and mental health services has entered a contract for the provision of services or facilities. The member shall be informed in writing of the charges and afforded an opportunity for a hearing. Upon the absence of a member within one year from either four board meetings or from two board meetings without prior notice, the board shall notify the appointing authority, which may vacate the appointment and appoint another person to complete the member’s term.
Members of the board shall serve without compensation, but shall be reimbursed for actual and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their official duties, as defined by rules of the departments of mental health and alcohol and drug addiction services.
Effective Date: 09-05-2001; 12-30-2004; 06-27-2005; 2008 HB562 09-22-2008