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Integrated Plans

Your Community. Your Voice. Your Plan.

The County Integrated Plan is a three-year plan required by the Behavioral Health Services Act that outlines how counties will utilize various behEvery three years, each California county develops an Integrated Plan that guides how behavioral health funding will be used to support mental health and substance use disorder (SUD) services. Behavioral health planning happens locally, and community participation is an essential part of the process.

People who receive services, family members, caregivers, providers, advocates, community organizations, and other local residents can help counties understand:

What is working well
Where services are difficult to access
Which communities experience the greatest barriers
What services or supports are missing
Where behavioral health funding should be invested
How services can become more accessible, effective, and equitable

Your experience provides valuable information that cannot be learned from reports or data alone. When you share your voice locally, you help shape the behavioral health services available in your community.

What Is an Integrated Plan?

An Integrated Plan is a three-year county roadmap for behavioral health services, programs, and investments. The Behavioral Health Services Act (BHSA) requires counties to explain how they will use available behavioral health funding to:

Address local mental health and substance use disorder needs
Improve access to care
Reduce behavioral health disparities
Serve people with significant behavioral health needs
Strengthen services across the Behavioral Health Care Continuum
Meet state and local outcome goals
Coordinate behavioral health programs and funding sources

Integrated Plans may include funding from the BHSA, 1991 and 2011 Realignment, Medi-Cal, federal grants, opioid settlement funds, local resources, and other behavioral health funding sources.

Each county must develop its plan through a transparent Community Planning Process. The plan is reviewed locally, approved by the county board of supervisors, and submitted to the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) in accordance with Welfare and Institutions Code §5963.02.

Why Your Voice Matters

You know your community best. Your participation can help your county identify service gaps, establish priorities, and make better-informed funding decisions.

Community input can influence decisions involving:

Mental health services
Substance use disorder treatment
Crisis services
Housing interventions and supports
Services for children and youth
Services for adults and older adults
Workforce investments
Outreach and engagement
Prevention and early intervention
Culturally and linguistically responsive services
Services for people experiencing homelessness
Services for people involved in the criminal justice system

You do not need to be a policy expert to participate. Your personal experience, professional knowledge, or understanding of your community is valuable.

Why Your Ongoing Participation Matters

Community engagement does not end once a county submits its Integrated Plan by the June 30, 2026, deadline. Counties are required to submit a new draft Integrated Plan every three years, and they must engage with community members and stakeholders throughout the entire process.

Your ongoing participation is important because:

Community needs can change quickly, and counties rely on community input to keep services responsive and effective.
Counties must provide annual updates to DHCS, and your feedback helps shape what gets updated or improved.
Staying engaged between planning cycles strengthens your county’s behavioral health system and ensures the Integrated Plan continues to reflect the realities of your community.

How Your Input Helps Shape the Plan

1. Community Members Share Their Experiences

Community members participate in meetings, listening sessions, surveys, workgroups, public hearings, and written comment opportunities.

2. Counties Review Community Feedback

Counties review the feedback they receive and identify common concerns, service gaps, disparities, and community priorities.

3. Local Priorities Are Developed

Community feedback helps inform proposed programs, investments, strategies, and outcome goals.

4. The Draft Integrated Plan Is Released

The public has an opportunity to review the draft plan and provide additional comments before it is finalized.

5. The Final Plan Is Reviewed and Approved

The local Behavioral Health Board reviews the plan and may recommend revisions. The county board of supervisors approves the final plan before it is submitted to the state.

6. Services and Investments Are Implemented

Once approved, the Integrated Plan guides behavioral health programs and investments in the county.

Ways to Participate in Your County

Counties may offer several ways for community members to participate in their local planning process. You can:

Attend a community planning meeting
Participate in a listening session
Complete a community survey
Submit written comments
Review the county’s draft Integrated Plan
Attend a Behavioral Health Board meeting or public hearing
Join a workgroup, advisory committee, or planning group
Share your experience as a person receiving services, family member, provider, advocate, or community partner

Contact your Local County BHSA Coordinator to learn which opportunities are currently available.

Your County BHSA Coordinator can help you:

Find out if your county has started the Community Planning Process.
Learn where to find information about local planning activities.
Get details about upcoming meetings and how you can participate.

The How to Participate in Your Local Community Planning Process guide provides more details on how and why to get involved.

Integrated Plan Development and Submission Process

Before submitting the Integrated Plan to the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) and the Commission for Behavioral Health, counties must complete the following activities:

Conduct stakeholder engagement.
Use community input and local data to identify needs and priorities.
Prepare and submit a draft Integrated Plan with the required county administrative approval, including any exemption or funding-transfer requests.
Release the draft plan for a 30-day public comment period.
Conduct a public hearing through the local Behavioral Health Board.
Provide the Behavioral Health Board an opportunity to review the plan and recommend revisions
Revise the draft plan, if requested by DHCS.
Obtain approval from the county board of supervisors

Source: Chapter 3, Sections E.3 and E.4 of the BHSA Policy Manual

Counties must also include certain required items with their submission. For a full list of these items, see Table E.4.1 Submission Requirements for Draft and Final Integrated Plan.

For information about what happens after a plan is submitted, see E.4.2 DHCS Review Standards of the BHSA Policy Manual.

Submission Deadlines

All counties must meet the statewide deadlines established by the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS).

Draft Integrated Plan: March 31, 2026
Final Integrated Plan: June 30, 2026

What Happens After a Plan is Submitted?

DHCS reviews county submissions for compliance with applicable requirements.

A county submission may be identified for additional review by a DHCS monitoring division. Additional review is not intended to be punitive.

It may provide an opportunity for DHCS to:

Offer technical assistance
Clarify policy requirements
Request additional information
Recommend revisions
Help align proposed activities with state requirements

Counties remain responsible for communicating with their communities about how the plan will be implemented and how progress will be evaluated.

Understanding Behavioral Health Funding

Behavioral health funding can be complex. Understanding how funding works can help community members ask informed questions and advocate for services that reflect local needs.

DHCS has developed the following resources:

Behavioral Health Public County Profile

The Behavioral Health Public County Profile is a new tool that helps the public see and understand how each California county plans to use state funds to deliver behavioral health services. The tool shows county‑level information such as demographics, homelessness and housing‑related services, and draft Integrated Plan materials.

More data and performance measures will be added as they become available.

Resources for Community Participation

The following resources can help community members, providers, advocates, and local officials understand the Integrated Plan process and participate effectively.

For All Stakeholders – Overview of Integrated Plan Requirements and Submission Process
For Counties – Community Planning Process — Creating the Integrated Plan (CA Mental Health Services Authority)
For Providers- California Behavioral Health Association (CBHA) Best Practices for Provider Engagement
For Local Behavioral Health Boards and Commissions – BHSA Stakeholder Involvement Requirements (CA Association of Local Behavioral Health Boards and Commissions)
For Older Adult Advocates – California Department of Aging County Toolkits
For Children and Youth Advocates – California Alliance Proposition 1 Toolkit