The team — whose name stands for Holistic Outreach Promoting Engagement — pairs mental health professionals with a registered nurse and a case manager. It responds to 911 calls and referrals from first responders and hospitals, aiming to support people in crisis and connect them with ongoing behavioral health care. City budget documents say it has handled more than 2,600 calls since it began.

The program is budgeted to cost $4 million over the next two years and relies entirely on the city’s general fund, City Manager Hyun Kim said. At a City Council presentation Oct. 6, Kim praised the team’s work but said maintaining it would require trade-offs the city may not be able to make.

HOPE has never been fully staffed. COVID-era grant funding that helped launch the program has ended, and only five of its nine full-time positions are currently filled.

Its ability to respond without police or firefighters has also been limited. Until this summer, the team had to accompany those first responders. It can now respond independently to certain calls if they meet specific criteria and do not raise safety concerns, program manager Aleesia Morales said.

Kim has also pointed to the lack of local options for people who need intensive care. Pierce County has no mental health crisis centers, though two are in development, and limited inpatient capacity can make it difficult to find a safe place for someone experiencing an acute crisis. Morales said people needing more intensive treatment are generally taken to inpatient psychiatric hospitals.

Morales said eliminating the team would leave traditional first responders with fewer options when dealing with people experiencing mental health or substance-use concerns. She argued that even a small team has made a difference for people it serves.

Community advocates say the program has not had the staffing or operating conditions needed to demonstrate its full value. They also argue that call counts do not capture work such as case management and proactive outreach.

Councilmember Latasha Palmer said the community sought the service and that closing it would leave a significant gap. She acknowledged the city’s budget constraints and said she wants officials to examine how alternative-response programs could work together more efficiently.

Kim’s proposed budget would also eliminate the Police Department’s Community Service Officers Program, a five-person civilian team that responds to some nonemergency calls.

The City Council is scheduled to discuss public safety and alternative-response funding at a study session Tuesday, Oct. 27, followed by a meeting at 5 p.m. The council expects to adopt a final budget Nov. 17.