This bill creates a competitive grant program to increase the number of school-based mental health services providers in high-need school districts and to expand student access to those services. Grants may go to high-need local educational agencies, State educational agencies, or educational service agencies acting for high-need districts. The Secretary of Education would award grants after reserving small amounts for program administration (up to 2 percent), Bureau of Indian Education schools (1 percent), and outlying areas (1 percent). Grants would run up to 5 years and may be renewed for up to 2 more years. The bill requires that at least half of available grant funds (after reservations) go to high-quality applications from the highest-need local educational agencies. Eligible uses include hiring school-based mental health providers, using evidence-based practices to improve school climate, offering recruitment incentives (for example, stipends, relocation benefits, or student loan repayment), and retention supports such as professional development and mentorship. Grant recipients must provide annual reports with counts and demographics of providers, student-to-provider ratios, and changes in provider attrition. The bill requires a non-Federal match of at least 25 percent of the project budget and says grant funds must supplement, not supplant, non-Federal funds. Data disaggregation is not required when numbers would be statistically unreliable or would reveal personally identifiable information. The bill authorizes appropriations of "such sums as may be necessary" for fiscal years 2026 through 2030.
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