reglab/housing_qa huggingface dataset:
MA Gen L ch 18c § 11 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title II - Executive and Administrative Officers of the Commonwealth|Chapter 18c - Office of the Child Advocate|Section 11 - Examination of Systemwide Responses to Child Abuse and Neglect

Section 11. The child advocate, in consultation with the advisory council, may from time to time, examine systemwide responses to child abuse and neglect, including related mental health, substance use and domestic violence issues, and shall file a report on any such examination with the governor, the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the senate and house committees on ways and means and the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities. The child advocate's examination may include, without limitation, racial disproportionality and disparity, truancy and runaways, mandated reporting, screening of child abuse and neglect reports, social worker qualifications and caseloads, law enforcement involvement, health service needs, including behavioral health needs, of children at risk, criminal offender record information reviews, administrative and cost requirements, federal funding for child welfare purposes and the effectiveness of child abuse laws. The child advocate may seek advice broadly from individuals with expertise in child welfare in preparing a report under this section.
MA Gen L ch 18c § 12 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title II - Executive and Administrative Officers of the Commonwealth|Chapter 18c - Office of the Child Advocate|Section 12 - Information and Records; Confidentiality; Subpoena and Discovery; Public Disclosure; Investigation of Critical Incidents

Section 12. The following provisions apply to information and records obtained, reviewed or maintained by the child advocate:  (a) Notwithstanding chapter 66A, section 70 of chapter 111, section 11 of chapter 111B, section 18 of chapter 111E, sections 51E and 51F of chapter 119, chapter 112, chapter 123, or sections 20B, 20J, or 20K of chapter 233 to the contrary, the disclosure of information to the office of the child advocate pursuant to this chapter shall not be prohibited. Any information considered to be confidential under the aforementioned sections shall be submitted for the child advocate's review upon the determination of the child advocate that the review of said information is necessary. The child advocate shall ensure that no information submitted for his review is disseminated to parties outside the office, except when disclosure may be necessary to enable the child advocate to perform the child advocate's duties. Under no circumstances shall the child advocate or any employee of the office violate the confidentiality provisions set forth in the aforementioned statutes, except as authorized under subsection (e).  (b) Any and all information and records acquired by the child advocate in the exercise of the office's purpose and duties under this chapter shall be confidential and exempt from disclosure under chapter 66 and clause Twenty-sixth of section 7 of chapter 4.  (c) Information, documents and records of the child advocate and his office shall not be subject to subpoena, discovery or introduction into evidence in any civil or criminal proceeding; provided, however, that information, documents and records otherwise available from any other source shall not be immune from subpoena, discovery or introduction into evidence through these sources solely because they were presented during the child advocate's investigation or maintained by the office of the child advocate.  (d) Statistical compilations of data which do not contain any information that would permit the identification of any person may be disclosed to the public.  (e) The restrictions of this section shall not preclude the child advocate from sharing with the governor, the attorney general, a district attorney, a secretary, an agency commissioner or other agency personnel, or the chairs of the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities, the report of, or the results of, a critical incident investigation involving that agency. Any executive or legislative branch employees who receive or read such a document shall be bound by the confidentiality requirements of this section.
MA Gen L ch 18c § 13 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title II - Executive and Administrative Officers of the Commonwealth|Chapter 18c - Office of the Child Advocate|Section 13 - Personal Liability for Civil Damages

Section 13. No person employed by or contracted by or volunteering for the office shall be subject to suit directly, derivatively or by way of contribution or indemnification for any civil damages under the laws of the commonwealth resulting from any act or omission performed during or in connection with the discharge of his duties within the scope of his employment or appointment, unless such act or failure to act was committed with gross negligence, maliciously, or in bad faith.
MA Gen L ch 18c § 14 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title II - Executive and Administrative Officers of the Commonwealth|Chapter 18c - Office of the Child Advocate|Section 14 - Childhood Trauma Task Force

Section 14. The office shall convene a childhood trauma task force made up of members of the juvenile justice policy and data board established pursuant to section 89 of chapter 119 to study, report and make recommendations on gender responsive and trauma-informed approaches to treatment services for juveniles and youthful offenders in the juvenile justice system. Said task force shall review the current means of (i) identifying school-aged children who have experienced trauma, particularly undiagnosed trauma, and (ii) providing services to help children recover from the psychological damage caused by such exposure to violence, crime or maltreatment. The task force shall consider the feasibility of providing school-based trainings on early, trauma-focused interventions, trauma-informed screenings and assessments, and the recognition of reactions to victimization, as well as the necessity for diagnostic tools. A priority shall be placed on juvenile or youthful offender's pathways into the juvenile justice system with the goal of reducing the likelihood of recidivism by addressing the unique issues associated with juvenile or youthful offenders including emotional abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional neglect, physical neglect, family violence, household substance abuse, household mental illness, parental absence, and household member incarceration.  The childhood trauma task force shall annually report its findings and recommendations by December 31 to the governor, the house and senate chairs of the joint committee on the judiciary, the house and senate chairs of the joint committee on public safety and homeland security and the chief justice of the trial court.
MA Gen L ch 19 § 2 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title II - Executive and Administrative Officers of the Commonwealth|Chapter 19 - Department of Mental Health|Section 2 - Commissioner; Appointment; Qualifications; Appointments by Commissioner; Report; Salary

Section 2. The secretary of health and human services shall appoint, with the approval of the governor, a commissioner of mental health who shall serve at the pleasure of the secretary and may be removed by the secretary at any time, subject to the approval of the governor.  Such commissioner shall have such educational qualifications and such administrative and other experience, including education or experience in a field related to human services, as the secretary of health and human services determines are necessary for the performance of the duties of the commissioner.  The commissioner shall appoint and may remove such agents and subordinate officers as the commissioner may deem necessary, and may establish such divisions or regional management systems in the department as the commissioner deems appropriate from time to time. Except as otherwise provided by law all offices and positions shall be subject to the provisions of chapter thirty-one; provided, however, the provisions of chapter thirty-one shall not apply to physicians and psychiatrists with full medical-psychiatric responsibility as opposed to administrative responsibility, to community mental health area directors appointed under the provisions of section thirteen, to nurses employed as such by the department, or to attorneys acting as legal counsel; and provided further, however, and notwithstanding the preceding provision or any other provision of law, all offices and positions which as a condition of receiving federal grants for programs and activities to which the federal standards for a merit system of personnel administration relate and make necessary the application of the provisions of the civil service law, shall be subject to the provisions of chapter thirty-one if such federal standards are uniform in all states.  At the end of each fiscal year, the commissioner shall make an annual report of the activities of the department, and of each facility, clinic, or unit under its control, the cost of operating the same, the initiation of new programs, and the progress made in providing services and facilities for mental health in the commonwealth.  The position of commissioner shall be classified in accordance with section forty-five of chapter thirty and the salary shall be determined in accordance with section forty-six C of said chapter thirty.  Prior to undertaking any activity or implementing any policy which would affect expenditures for medical assistance under chapter one hundred and eighteen E, involving the delivery of services reimbursable under said chapter, certification and licensure of providers of services under said chapter, or identifying individuals eligible for such assistance under said chapter, the commissioner shall assure that such activity or policy is reviewed by the commissioner of medical assistance.
MA Gen L ch 19 § 3 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title II - Executive and Administrative Officers of the Commonwealth|Chapter 19 - Department of Mental Health|Section 3 - Deputy Commissioner; Appointment; Duties; Qualifications

Section 3. The commissioner shall appoint, with the approval of the secretary of health and human services, a person qualified to serve as deputy commissioner of mental health. Said deputy commissioner shall perform such duties as the commissioner may determine and shall, in the case of a vacancy in the office of the commissioner, and during said commissioner's absence or disability, exercise the powers and perform the duties of the office of the commissioner. Said deputy commissioner may be allowed such professional affiliations as the commissioner approves, subject to the provisions of chapter two hundred and sixty-eight A.  The deputy commissioner shall have such educational qualifications and such administrative and other experience, including education or experience in a field related to human services, as the commissioner determines are necessary for the performance of the duties of the deputy commissioner. The commissioner or a deputy commissioner shall be a diplomate in psychiatry of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, Inc.
MA Gen L ch 19 § 4 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title II - Executive and Administrative Officers of the Commonwealth|Chapter 19 - Department of Mental Health|Section 4 - Assistant, Deputy or Associate Commissioners; Appointment; Duties; Qualifications

Section 4. The commissioner shall appoint, subject to appropriation, such other assistant, deputy or associate commissioners as the commissioner may determine to be necessary or desirable to carry out the work of the department. Assistant, deputy and associate commissioners shall be assigned areas of responsibility to be specified by the commissioner. At the time of appointment, they shall possess such qualifications as the commissioner shall determine. Persons appointed to such positions shall serve at the pleasure of the commissioner. Chapter thirty-one and section nine A of chapter thirty shall not apply to said positions.
MA Gen L ch 19 § 5 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title II - Executive and Administrative Officers of the Commonwealth|Chapter 19 - Department of Mental Health|Section 5 - Legal Counsel

Section 5. The commissioner shall appoint a member of the Massachusetts bar to serve as legal counsel to the commissioner. Such legal counsel shall devote full time to his duties. Such legal counsel shall have been a member of the bar for not less than six years and shall have been actively engaged in the practice of law.
MA Gen L ch 19 § 6 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title II - Executive and Administrative Officers of the Commonwealth|Chapter 19 - Department of Mental Health|Section 6 - Program for Training of Residents in Psychiatry and Other Professional Disciplines

Section 6. The commissioner may establish a program for the training of residents in psychiatry and any other professional disciplines as required by departmental programs. Such residents shall be eligible for training grants from the commonwealth. Recipients of said grants shall be exempt from the provisions of chapter thirty-one and shall not be deemed employees of the commonwealth; provided, however, that such recipients shall be deemed public employees under chapter two hundred and fifty-eight. Such grants shall not be deemed income under chapter sixty-two. Approval of such training programs by the personnel administrator shall be required in accordance with the provisions of section twenty-eight of chapter seven.
MA Gen L ch 19 § 7 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title II - Executive and Administrative Officers of the Commonwealth|Chapter 19 - Department of Mental Health|Section 7 - State Facilities Under Department Control; Admission

Section 7. The state facilities under the control of the department shall be such state hospitals, mental health centers and other mental health facilities as the commissioner from time to time shall designate in the regulations of the department, including any facilities or portions thereof which the department may, subject to appropriation, construct or develop for use as homes or facilities for aging persons who are not mentally ill. Admissions of patients to said facilities or homes for aging persons shall be voluntary and not by commitment and said facilities or homes, although under the supervision and control of said department, shall be deemed to be public medical institutions within the meaning of section two of chapter one hundred and eighteen E.
MA Gen L ch 19 § 8 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title II - Executive and Administrative Officers of the Commonwealth|Chapter 19 - Department of Mental Health|Section 8 - Superintendents or Directors; Vacancies; Appointments; Qualifications; Officers

Section 8. When a vacancy occurs in the positions of superintendent of a state hospital of the department or director of any other mental health facility of the department, the commissioner shall appoint to such a vacancy a person who has such educational qualifications and such administrative and other experience, including education or experience in the care, treatment or education of the mentally ill, as the commissioner determines are necessary for the performance of the duties of superintendent or director.  The superintendent with the approval of the commissioner shall appoint and may remove a treasurer and assistant treasurer in each state hospital, each of whom shall give bond for the faithful performance of this duties. The provisions of section forty-nine of chapter thirty-one shall apply to the appointment of such treasurers and assistant treasurers. The superintendent with the approval of the commissioner shall appoint and may remove assistant physicians and necessary subordinate officers and other persons. The superintendent may require that a physician who is to be so appointed be certified as to his qualifications by one of the physicians' specialty boards approved by the Council on Medical Education and Hospitals of the American Medical Association.
MA Gen L ch 19 § 8a (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title II - Executive and Administrative Officers of the Commonwealth|Chapter 19 - Department of Mental Health|Section 8a - Boards of Trustees for Taunton State Hospital and Worcester Recovery Center and Hospital

Section 8A. The governor shall appoint a board of trustees for the Taunton state hospital and for the Worcester recovery center and hospital. A majority of the members of each such board of trustees shall be consumers and their guardians or family members. Said board shall visit and familiarize itself with its state hospital, and may from time to time make suggestions to the department as to improvements therein, especially such as will make the administration thereof more effective, economical and humane. Said board shall serve without compensation, but each member shall be reimbursed by the commonwealth for all expenses incurred in the performance of his duties.
MA Gen L ch 19 § 10 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title II - Executive and Administrative Officers of the Commonwealth|Chapter 19 - Department of Mental Health|Section 10 - Crimes Committed by or Upon Persons on Facility Premises or Persons in Care of Facility

Section 10. The superintendent of any state hospital or the director of any mental health facility of the department, who has reason to believe that a crime which is punishable by imprisonment in the state prison has been committed by or upon any person on the premises of the particular facility or by or upon any person in the care of the particular facility but not on the premises thereof, shall, no later than one week from the date of the commission of such crime, report the same to the district attorney of the district within which the crime was committed.
MA Gen L ch 19 § 11 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title II - Executive and Administrative Officers of the Commonwealth|Chapter 19 - Department of Mental Health|Section 11 - Mental Health Advisory Council

Section 11. There shall be a mental health advisory council consisting of fifteen persons to be appointed by the secretary of health and human services, with the approval of the governor, eight of whom shall be members of community mental health area boards, and of the remaining seven, one shall be a professional in the field of children's mental health and at least four shall be appointed to represent one of the following professions and groups: state level medical, psychological, nursing, educational, social work, occupational therapy, or bar associations, associations for mental health, industrial and labor groups and the clergy. Upon the expiration of the term of office of any member, his successor shall be appointed for a term of three years. No member shall be appointed to serve more than two consecutive three-year terms. The councils shall elect a chairman annually. The council shall serve without compensation, but each member shall be reimbursed by the commonwealth for all expenses incurred in the performance of his official duties.  Said advisory council shall have the following duties:  (a) It shall advise the commissioner on policy, program development, and priorities of need in the commonwealth for comprehensive programs in mental health;  (b) It shall participate with the department in holding a regular series of public hearings throughout the commonwealth to obtain the views of the area boards and other citizens concerning the programs of the department and the needs of the people for mental health services;  (c) It shall review the annual plans and the proposed annual budget of the department, and shall make recommendations to the commissioner in regard thereto;  (d) It shall hold at least three meetings per year and shall convene special meetings at the call of the chairman of the council, a majority of the council, or the commissioner.
MA Gen L ch 19 § 11a (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title II - Executive and Administrative Officers of the Commonwealth|Chapter 19 - Department of Mental Health|Section 11a - Disclosure of Financial Interest in Department Contracts by Human Rights Advisory Committee Members

Section 11A. Nothing in section 7 of chapter 268A shall prevent a person who has a financial interest, directly or indirectly, in a contract made by the department of mental health from serving as a member of the department's human rights advisory committee. Members of such committee shall disclose their financial interest, if any, in a department contract by notifying in writing the commissioner and the state ethics commission.
MA Gen L ch 19 § 12 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title II - Executive and Administrative Officers of the Commonwealth|Chapter 19 - Department of Mental Health|Section 12 - Community Mental Health Services

Section 12. The department shall establish a comprehensive program of community mental health services which shall include state hospitals, clinics, comprehensive centers and other facilities of the department, and to promote such programs the department shall divide the commonwealth into service areas for the conduct of said mental health services, and shall establish standards for the development of said community programs.  Each area shall be drawn so as to include and to allow for the development of mental health services and facilities, as needed, which shall be readily accessible to the people in the area, taking into consideration such factors as geographic boundaries, roads and other means of transportation, population concentration, city, town and county lines, other relevant community services, and community economic and social relationships.
MA Gen L ch 19 § 13 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title II - Executive and Administrative Officers of the Commonwealth|Chapter 19 - Department of Mental Health|Section 13 - Community Mental Health Area Directors

Section 13. The commissioner shall, after consultation with the area board, appoint in each community mental health area an area director. Such area director shall have such educational qualifications and such administrative and other experience, including education or experience in a field related to human services, as the commissioner determines are necessary for the performance of the duties of area director.  The area director shall perform such duties as are described in this chapter and any other law and such other duties as are assigned by the department.  Where there is established within the area a comprehensive center operated by the department and designated as a comprehensive center by the commissioner, the area director may also serve by appointment of the commissioner as head of such center. The area board shall also serve as the citizen board for such center and no other board shall be formed or designated for such center. The area director, subject to departmental regulations, shall supervise all employees within such center.  Salaries for area directors shall be fixed under and in accordance with sections forty-five to fifty, inclusive, of chapter thirty, taking into account those individual cases where an area director is also superintendent of a state hospital or a comprehensive center.