FIND
Find the primary sources
VerisGov pulls the program's governing records straight from the agencies that run it: the statute, the funding notices, the guidance, and every update as it posts.
Program / Block grants
SAMHSA Behavioral Health Block Grants
The two formula block grants that route federal behavioral health dollars to every state and territory for mental health and substance use services. VerisGov maps the structure and keeps the moving parts current.
At a glance
- Program
- Community Mental Health Services Block Grant and Substance Use Prevention, Treatment, and Recovery Services Block Grant.
- Administering agency
- Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), within HHS.
- Statutory authority
- Public Health Service Act, Title XIX, Part B (the mental health block grant under Subparts I and III; the substance use block grant under Subpart II).
- Funding mechanism
- Noncompetitive formula block grants funded through annual appropriations; allocations set by statutory formula and drawn down via an annual state plan and report.
- Money flow
- Federal formula allocation to each state, the District of Columbia, the territories, and the Pacific jurisdictions, received by the state mental health authority and the single state agency for substance use, which subcontract to county systems and community providers.
- Who has a stake
- State mental health and substance use agencies, county and local behavioral health systems, community mental health centers, prevention and treatment providers, recovery support organizations, and the people they serve.
What it is
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) operates two standing formula block grants. The Community Mental Health Services Block Grant supports community mental health services for adults with serious mental illness and children with serious emotional disturbance. The Substance Use Prevention, Treatment, and Recovery Services Block Grant supports the prevention and treatment of substance use.
Both grants are noncompetitive. Money is distributed to states and territories by statutory formula rather than by competitive award, so a state's allocation is a function of population and other formula factors written into the Public Health Service Act, not the strength of an application. To draw down the funds, the designated state agency submits an annual plan and report demonstrating statutory and regulatory compliance.
These two grants are the durable backbone of the federal-to-state behavioral health system. They are distinct from time-limited, need-based programs such as the State Opioid Response grant. The block grants flow to a state's mental health authority and its single state agency for substance use, which then contract with county systems, community providers, and treatment organizations to deliver services.
Key facts
- Program Community Mental Health Services Block Grant and Substance Use Prevention, Treatment, and Recovery Services Block Grant.
- Administering agency Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), within HHS.
- Statutory authority Public Health Service Act, Title XIX, Part B (the mental health block grant under Subparts I and III; the substance use block grant under Subpart II).
- Funding mechanism Noncompetitive formula block grants funded through annual appropriations; allocations set by statutory formula and drawn down via an annual state plan and report.
- Money flow Federal formula allocation to each state, the District of Columbia, the territories, and the Pacific jurisdictions, received by the state mental health authority and the single state agency for substance use, which subcontract to county systems and community providers.
- Who has a stake State mental health and substance use agencies, county and local behavioral health systems, community mental health centers, prevention and treatment providers, recovery support organizations, and the people they serve.
What it funds
- Community-based mental health services for adults with serious mental illness and children with serious emotional disturbance
- Substance use prevention activities and primary prevention set-aside programming
- Substance use treatment and recovery support services across the continuum of care
- State behavioral health system planning, data collection, and the maintenance of a comprehensive community-based service system
Always current
What VerisGov keeps current
The facts above hold for years. These move, and they are where most of the work is. The engine tracks each one against its government source, so what you see is the live state, not a snapshot that quietly went out of date.
- Annual appropriated funding level for each block grant and the resulting per-state allotments
- Any proposal to consolidate, merge, or restructure the behavioral health block grants
- Changes to the statutory allocation formula, set-aside requirements, or maintenance-of-effort rules
- Updates to the combined annual block grant application, reporting requirements, or allowable-use guidance
How VerisGov covers it
The same engine runs on this program that runs on every domain: find the primary sources, verify and source-pin each fact, and productize it into something your team can use.
VERIFY
Verify and source-pin each fact
Every figure, rule, and deadline is checked against its government source and pinned to it, so a claim on the page traces back to the document it came from. When a detail is uncertain, it stays qualitative.
PRODUCTIZE
Productize it for your team
The verified corpus becomes a navigator, dashboard, report, dataset, or custom build, shaped to how your team works and refreshed as the program moves.
Pinned to records published by
- Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)
- State behavioral health agencies
Answers
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between the two SAMHSA block grants?
The mental health block grant funds community mental health services for adults with serious mental illness and children with serious emotional disturbance. The substance use block grant funds substance use prevention, treatment, and recovery. They have separate statutory authorities and separate designated state recipient agencies, though states submit a single combined annual application.
Are these competitive grants?
No. Both are noncompetitive formula block grants. Each state and territory receives an allocation determined by statutory formula and draws it down by submitting a compliant annual plan and report, rather than by competing against other applicants.
Who receives the money?
Funds flow to designated state agencies: the state mental health authority for the mental health grant and the single state agency for substance use for the substance use grant. Those agencies then contract with county systems, community mental health centers, and prevention, treatment, and recovery providers.
How does VerisGov help with the SAMHSA block grants?
VerisGov maps the durable structure, the Public Health Service Act basis, the noncompetitive formula mechanism, and the recipient agencies, and keeps the volatile details current: funding levels and allotments, any restructuring proposals, formula and set-aside changes, and application updates. Every fact is pinned to its source.
Point the engine at this program.
Tell us what you need built and from which sources. You get a working product, every fact traceable.