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The following opinion is presented on-line for informational use only and does not replace the official version. (Mich Dept of Attorney General Web Site - www.ag.state.mi.us) STATE OF MICHIGAN FRANK J. KELLEY, ATTORNEY GENERAL Opinion No. 6598 August 30, 1989 APPROPRIATIONS: Department of Mental Health--conditions upon appropriations for regional psychiatric hospital/community alternatives CONSTITUTIONAL LAW: Const 1963, art 4, Sec. 24--second object and lack of notice in appropriations bill MENTAL HEALTH, DEPARTMENT OF: Validity of conditions upon appropriations for regional psychiatric hospital/community alternatives 1989 PA 192, Sec. 101 (line item appropriations for the Traverse City regional psychiatric hospital/community alternatives) and Sec. 502, are unconstitutional as enacted in violation of Const 1963, art 4, Sec. 24. Thomas D. Watkins, Jr. Director Department of Mental Health Lewis Cass Building Lansing, Michigan 48913 You have requested my opinion as to whether 1989 PA 192, Sec. 502, is constitutional. 1989 PA 192 makes appropriations for capital outlay purposes for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1990. In 1989 PA 192, Sec. 101, the Legislature has made appropriations for certain land acquisition, construction, remodeling, and maintenance projects. In addition, Sec. 101 contains the following pertinent appropriations for the Department of Mental Health: "Traverse City regional psychiatric hospital/community alternatives "Salaries and wages (account 110-39-5601) ....... 1,000 "Contractual services, supplies, and materials (account 110-39-5603).... 1,000" Section 502 purports to impose conditions upon these appropriations as well as appropriations made for the same purposes in 1989 PA 172, Sec. 101, in the following terms: "(1) Money appropriated in section 101 and in section 101 of the 1989-90 fiscal year department of mental health appropriations act [1989 PA 172, Sec. 101] for the Traverse City regional psychiatric hospital/community alternatives--salaries and wages and contractual services, services, supplies, and materials--shall be used for community-based hospital alternatives providing clinically appropriate inpatient care within the 29-county Traverse City regional psychiatric hospital catchment area only if the hospital has signed a long-term contract with a community mental health board, and the physical facilities are complete and adequately staffed. Admissions to the Traverse City regional psychiatric hospital shall be allowed until such time as community-based hospital alternatives are in place as described in this section. "(2) The department of mental health shall continue to staff Traverse City regional psychiatric hospital for patients at the hospital at the state policy of 94% SNAP at a minimum, and 130% at a maximum, and shall assure an appropriate clinical mix of professional, paraprofessional, and indirect staff to maintain high quality patient care standards. "(3) The department of mental Health shall not expend money appropriated in section 101 or in section 101 of the 1989-90 fiscal year department of mental health appropriations act [1989 PA 172, Sec. 101] for the Traverse City regional psychiatric hospital community alternatives--salaries and wages and contractual services, supplies, and materials--for patients who would be admitted to or discharged from Traverse City regional psychiatric hospital unless the following conditions are met: "(a) The patient is receiving alternative or aftercare services consistent with chapter 4 of the mental health code, Act No. 258 of the Public Acts of 1974, being sections 330.1400 to 330.1498t of the Michigan Compiled Laws, at an approved, completed, and appropriately staffed facility having a signed long-term contract with the community mental health services board within the 29-county Traverse City regional psychiatric hospital catchment area. "(b) A discharge is clinically appropriate. "(4) The department of mental health shall not expend money appropriated in section 101 or in section 101 of the 1989-90 fiscal year department of mental health appropriations act [1989 PA 172, Sec. 101] for the Traverse City regional psychiatric hospital community alternatives--salaries and wages and contractual services, supplies, and materials--to arrange, plan to transfer, or transfer a patient to another state facility solely for the purpose of reducing the patient census at the Traverse City regional psychiatric hospital. The department of mental health may spend that money to transfer a patient to another state facility if the patient or his or her guardian requests the transfer in writing." These restrictions require the Department of Mental Health to continue to staff the Traverse City regional psychiatric hospital, to admit patients, and to transfer patients to another state facility only upon written request of the patient or his or her guardian. The 1989-1990 fiscal year appropriations act referred to in Sec. 502(1) is 1989 PA 172, which makes appropriations for the Department of Mental Health for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1990. Section 101 of 1989 PA 172 contains the following appropriations from the general fund for Traverse City regional psychiatric hospital/community alternatives: "Salaries and wages--255.0 FTE positions ............. 8,191,200 "Contractual services, supplies and materials ............ 618,600" The Legislature has conditioned these appropriations upon restrictions set forth in 1989 PA 172, Sec. 505. These restrictions basically require the Department to allocate funds for inpatient care and alternative programs to community mental health boards under formal contract, but contain no command that the Department shall continue to operate a specific regional psychiatric facility. It is my understanding that the Department of Mental Health intends to close the Traverse City Regional Psychiatric Hospital and the last patient left the facility on August 4, 1989. 1989 PA 192, Sec. 101, contains additional, albeit small, appropriations for the operation of the Traverse City regional psychiatric hospital/community alternatives and in Sec. 502, the Legislature has imposed express conditions upon the expenditure of appropriations made in Sec. 101 and upon the appropriations made in 1989 PA 172, Sec. 101, for the same program. The question arises whether the Legislature complied with the requirements of Const 1963, art 4, Sec. 24, in the enactment of 1989 PA 192, Sec. 502. Const 1963, art 4, Sec. 24, provides: "No law shall embrace more than one object, which shall be expressed in its title. No bill shall be altered or amended on its passage through either house so as to change its original purpose as determined by its total content and not alone by its title." This provision contains two separate concepts. The first is that the Legislature may not in one act pass legislation containing more than one object, and the second requires that the object of the legislation be expressed in its title. Advisory Opinion on Constitutionality of 1975 PA 227 (Question 1), 396 Mich 123, 128; 240 NW2d 193 (1976). The object of a law "is its general purpose or aim." City of Livonia v. Dep't of Social Services, 423 Mich 466, 497; 378 NW2d 402 (1985). The law may contain all provisions fairly and reasonably connected and necessary to carry out the general object of the law. City of Grand Rapids v Judge of Superior Court, 93 Mich 469, 472; 53 NW 620 (1892). The second concept is that the object be expressed in the title of the enactment. The test is whether the title embraces the object of the act and that the body of the act is not inconsistent with the title so that members of the Legislature and of the public are fairly informed of its purposes as a whole. Vernor v Secretary of State, 179 Mich 157, 160; 146 NW 338 (1914). The title assures the members of the Legislature and the public that only germane matters will be enacted into law. Continental Motors Corp v Twp of Muskegon, 376 Mich 170, 179; 135 NW2d 908 (1965). The title to 1989 PA 192 states: "AN ACT to make appropriations for a capital outlay program; to set forth the provisions for its implementation within the budgetary process; to make appropriations for planning and construction at state agencies, community colleges, and universities; to make appropriations for state building authority rent and insurance; to make a grant for state building authority rent; to provide for the acquisition of land and buildings; to provide for the elimination of fire hazards; to provide for special maintenance, remodeling and addition, alteration, renovation, and demolition projects; to provide for elimination of occupational safety and health hazards; to provide for the award and implementation of contracts; to provide for the purchase of fixtures and equipment relative to occupancy of a project; to prescribe powers and duties of certain state officers and agencies; to require certain reports, plans, and agreements; to provide for the conveyance of certain state owned lands; to prescribe standards and conditions relating to the appropriations; and to provide for the expenditure of the appropriations." A fair reading of the title to 1989 PA 192 reveals that its general object is to make appropriations for capital outlay purposes. From an examination of the appropriations made in the Act, it is readily apparent that capital outlay is used in the sense of acquisition, construction, remodeling, improvement, maintenance, and repair of facilities, except for the modest line item appropriations in 1989 PA 192, Sec. 101, for operation of the Traverse City regional psychiatric hospital/community alternatives. The express reference in 1989 PA 192, Sec. 502(1), to the appropriations in the 1989-1990 Department of Mental Health appropriations act, 1989 PA 172, Sec. 101, for the same program, and the imposition of restrictions upon the expenditures of appropriations for such a program made in 1989 PA 172, Sec. 101, and in 1989 PA 192, Sec. 101, make it abundantly clear that the line item appropriations in 1989 PA 192, Sec. 101, are not made for capital outlay purposes, but rather, for the purpose of imposing restrictions upon the appropriations made for such program in 1989 PA 172, Sec. 101. 1989 PA 192, Sec. 502, amends 1989 PA 172 to impose the enumerated restrictions upon the appropriations made in 1989 PA 172, Sec. 101, for the regional psychiatric hospital/community alternatives. This adds an additional object to 1989 PA 192. No notice of such an amendment of 1989 PA 172 is given in the title to 1989 PA 192. Because the general object of 1989 PA 192 is to make appropriations for the acquisition, construction, remodeling, improvement, maintenance, and repair of facilities, the object of making additional appropriations for the operation of the program by the Department of Mental Health is also an additional object not germane to the capital outlay appropriations of 1989 PA 192, contrary to Const 1963, art 4, Sec. 24. Further, the title to the enrolled bill gives no notice to the members of the Legislature or the public of the additional appropriations made for the regional psychiatric hospital/community alternatives. Thus, it must be concluded that 1989 PA 192, Sec. 101 (line item appropriations to the Department of Mental Health for the Traverse City regional psychiatric hospital/community alternatives) and Sec. 502 are unconstitutional as enacted in violation of Const 1963, art 4, Sec. 24. In light of this answer, it is unnecessary to consider whether 1989 PA 192, Sec. 502, was also enacted in violation of Const 1963, art 5, Sec. 25, which requires re-enactment and publication of a section or sections of an act altered or amended. MCL 8.5; MSA 2.216, provides the rule of statutory construction that statutes are severable unless inconsistent with the manifest legislative intent that they be nonseverable. 1989 PA 192 appropriates $467,472,500 for capital outlay purposes. The two line item appropriations for the regional psychiatric hospital/community alternatives total only $2,000. It is impossible to discern any intent on the part of the Legislature that 1989 PA 192 be nonseverable because of the possible invalidity of Sec. 101 (line item appropriations to the Department of Mental Health for the Traverse City regional psychiatric hospital/community alternatives) and Sec. 502. The other appropriations contained in 1989 PA 192 are independent and are capable of being carried out without reference to the invalid portions of the Act. See OAG, 1967-1968, No 4602, p 186 (February 20, 1968). It is noted that the Legislature may, should it so desire, accomplish its purpose by directly amending 1989 PA 172 in conformity with Const 1963. It is my opinion, therefore, that 1989 PA 192, Sec. 101 (line item appropriations to the Department of Mental Health for the Traverse City regional psychiatric hospital/community alternatives) and Sec. 502, are unconstitutional as enacted in violation of Const 1963, art 4, Sec. 24. Frank J. Kelley Attorney General
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