BRPC Receives Grant for Alternative Mental Health Response Initiative
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The FY27 state budget includes $250,000 to establish a task force for an alternative mental health response in the hilltowns, such as Hinsdale, and beyond.
State Sen. Paul Mark delivered this news to the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission last week.
"I'm sure people are aware of what happened with the shooting under a mental health distress call in Hinsdale, and obviously there's been a lot of concern about what happened and how we should proceed," he said at the BRPC's July 16 meeting, as a guest speaker.
"And so I'm glad to kind of announce tonight unofficially that Berkshire Regional Planning has actually volunteered to be the recipient of $250,000 to establish a task force that is going to work alongside the Brien Center and the Sheriff's Office to try to figure out how we come up with some kind of an alternative mental health response in the hilltowns like Hinsdale."
In January, 27-year-old Biagio Kauvil was fatally shot by police while suffering a mental health crisis.
District Attorney Timothy Shugrue cleared Hinsdale Officer Jeffrey Spratt of criminal charges; however, while non-criminal, Shugrue said the investigation revealed concerns surrounding the Hinsdale Police Department and urged a formal review of its internal policies and applications to the Jan. 7 call.
Last month, Hinsdale residents aired policing concerns during an information session at Town Hall. Some attendees emphasized that people do not feel safe calling 911 if they are experiencing a mental health crisis.
A consultant is in the beginning stages of an administrative review of the department, which the town authorized $25,000 to fund.
Mark reported that there will be at least one listening session for feedback on the state's initiative, and then hopefully over the coming fiscal year, something can be put into place that will benefit the whole county.
Earlier this month, Gov. Maura Healey signed a $63.4 billion Fiscal Year 2027 state budget that she said would lower costs for families, strengthen schools and transportation, support cities and towns, invest in housing and health care, and enhance public safety without raising new taxes or fees.
Mark said the state's fiscal situation was "in pretty good shape."
[The budget] reflected pretty much the normal rate of inflation and growth. We're being cautious still because obviously there's a lot of uncertainty from the federal level, but we ended up in a better position than I think we thought. I think last year we were much more cautious," Mark explained about the budget, which was completed on time.
"… We feel a little bit better, but certainly not like everything's fine, and we can just proceed as though we're in the middle of some kind of a boom time."
Massachusetts has more than $8 billion saved, but $15 billion of the budget is reliant on the federal government, and the state is still trying to decipher impacts from the federal "One Big Beautiful Bill" passed last year.
Mark highlighted increases to education and transportation funding in the state budget, as well as energy and healthcare initiatives, and more.
He is chair of the Special Commission on the 250th Anniversary of the American Revolution and the nation, which planned statewide events for the Massachusetts 250.
Tags: mental health, task force,
