,,ii  #aaith ,,congress  #ast ,session  
,s4 #ijf  ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the
 ,,united ,,states  ,march #f1 #bjbe,mr4
 ,hickenlooper 7for himself and ,ms4    
,murkowski7 introduced the following    
bill2 which was read twice and referred 
to the ,committee on ,health1           
,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions  ,a   
,,bill  ,to require the ,secretary of   
,health and ,human ,services to carry   
out a pilot program to support          
evidence-based mental health peer       
support activities for students4  #a4   
,short title ,this ,act may be cited as 
the ,peer to ,peer ,mental ,health      
,support ,act4  #b4 ,peer-to-peer mental
 health support  7a7 ,in general ,the   
,assistant ,secretary for ,mental       
,health and ,substance ,use 7referred to
 in this section as the ,assistant      
,secretary71 in consultation with the   
,secretary of ,education1 may1 as       
appropriate and within a relevant       
existing program1 carry out a pilot     
program and make awards1 on a           

competitive basis1 to eligible entities 
to support evidence-based mental health 
peer support activities for students    
enrolled in secondary schools 7as such  
term is defined in section #haja of the 
,elementary and ,secondary ,education   
,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #ghja774   
7b7 ,eligibility ,to be eligible to     
receive an award under this section1 an 
entity shall-- 7#a7 be a ,state1        
political subdivision of a ,state1      
territory1 or ,indian ,tribe or ,tribal 
organization 7as such terms are defined 
in section #d of the ,indian            
,self-,determination and ,education     
,assistance ,act 7#be ,u4,s4,c4 #ecjd772
 and  7#b7 submit to the ,assistant     
,secretary an application at such time1 
in such manner1 and containing such     
information as the ,assistant ,secretary
 may require1 including a description of
 how the entity will measure and        
evaluate progress of the program in     
improving student mental health         
outcomes4  7c7 ,use of amounts  7#a7 ,in

 general ,subject to paragraph 7#b71 an 
eligible entity may use amounts provided
 under this section to implement or     
operate evidence-based mental health    
peer support activities in #a or more   
secondary schools 7as such term is      
defined in section #haja of the         
,elementary and ,secondary ,education   
,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #ghja77    
within the jurisdiction of such eligible
 entity1 which may include providing    
training1 as appropriate1 to students1  
adult supervisors1 and other appropriate
 individuals to improve the early       
identification of1 response to1 and     
recovery supports for mental health and 
substance use challenges1 reduce        
associated risks1 and promote           
resiliency4  7#b7 ,program oversight ,an
 eligible entity shall ensure that      
mental health peer support activities   
under paragraph 7#a7 are overseen by a  
school-based mental health professional4
  7#c7 ,,ferpa ,any education records of
 the student collected or maintained    

under this section shall have the       
protections provided in section #ddd of 
the ,general ,education ,provisions ,act
 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #abcb;g74  7d7          
,evaluation2 report  7#a7 ,evaluation   
,the ,assistant ,secretary shall carry  
out an evaluation to measure the        
efficacy of the program under this      
section4 ,the evaluation shall-- 7,a7   
measure participation rates in mental   
health peer support activities1         
including any associated trends2  7,b7  
describe the specific trainings         
provided1 or other activities carried   
out under the pilot program2  7,c7      
assess whether such mental health peer  
support activities impacted mental      
health outcomes of participating        
students2 and  7,d7 measure the         
effectiveness of the pilot program in   
connecting students to professional     
mental health services compared to other
 evidence-based strategies4  7#b7       
,report ,the ,assistant ,secretary shall
 prepare and submit to the ,committee on

 ,health1 ,education1 ,labor1 and       
,pensions of the ,senate and the        
,committees on ,energy and ,commerce and
 ,education and ,workforce of the ,house
 of ,representatives a report containing
 the results of the evaluation conducted
 under paragraph 7#a74  7e7 ,technical  
assistance ,the ,assistant ,secretary1  
in coordination with the ,secretary of  
,education1 shall provide technical     
assistance to eligible entities applying
 for and receiving an award under this  
section1 including the identification   
and dissemination of best practices for 
mental health peer support programs for 
students4  7f7 ,rule of construction    
,section #djja of the ,elementary and   
,secondary ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj
 ,u4,s4,c4 #gaja7 shall apply to an     
entity receiving a grant1 contract1 or  
cooperative agreement under this section
 in the same manner as such section     
applies to an entity receiving funding  
under title ,,iv of such ,act1 except   
that section #djja7;a77#b77;,b77i7 of   

such ,act shall not apply4  7g7 ,sunset 
,this section shall terminate on        
,september #cj1 #bjbi4