(1) A county or group of counties may apply to the department for a grant under this subchapter.

(2) In developing grant applications, counties should consider the following goals:

(a) to reduce reliance on Montana State Hospital (MSH) for emergency and court ordered detention and evaluation;

(b) to support the treatment of mental illness closer to home by increasing local treatment capacity and creating better treatment outcomes;

(c) to increase the number of intervention and jail diversion options that may provide judges, county attorneys, and law enforcement with alternatives to incarceration; and

(d) to establish and support collaboration among community stakeholders to address community needs.

(3) The department expects grant applications to address the following outcomes:

(a) disruption of the consumer's life will be minimized and the effectiveness of treatment will be maximized, resulting in better treatment outcomes;

(b) financial and other resources will be retained in the community for jail diversion and crisis intervention; and

(c) inpatient capacity at MSH will be appropriately utilized.