The LHC/kingman/bullhead TRI-cities regional veterans treatment court (TRI-cities rvtc) builds upon a decade of successful collaboration and service delivery to justice-involved veterans in mohave…

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration awarded Lake Havasu City $295,429 on September 30, 2026, under the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment Projects of Regional and National Significance program (CFDA 93.490) to expand the Tri-Cities Regional Veterans Treatment Court into Bullhead City, Arizona.

The award funds expansion of an existing regional veterans treatment court model that has operated for a decade across Lake Havasu City and Kingman. The Tri-Cities RVTC will extend evidence-based services including judicial supervision, intensive case management, substance use and mental health treatment, and veteran peer mentorship to justice-involved veterans in Bullhead City, addressing service gaps for veterans ineligible for Veterans Administration services. The program projects serving 200 veterans by September 29, 2031. By expanding regionally, the court will increase access to comprehensive behavioral health treatment, strengthen coordination of services across Mohave County jurisdictions, enhance accountability, and improve community reintegration outcomes for justice-involved veterans.

Performance occurs in Lake Havasu City, Arizona. The period of performance runs through September 29, 2031.

The LHC/kingman/bullhead TRI-cities regional veterans treatment court (TRI-cities rvtc) builds upon a decade of successful collaboration and service delivery to justice-involved veterans in mohave county. Following the establishment of the lake havasu city veterans treatment court and the city of kingman veterans treatment court, the two jurisdictions combined resources in 2016 to form the lake havasu city/kingman regional veterans treatment court. The program has demonstrated success in reducing recidivism and improving participant outcomes through the use of evidence-based practices, including judicial supervision, intensive case management, substance use and mental health treatment, and veteran peer mentorship. The proposed TRI-cities rvtc will expand these proven services to bullhead city, addressing critical gaps in treatment and support for justice-involved veterans throughout mohave county. While the current regional model has improved access to behavioral health services, many veterans who are non-combat or otherwise ineligible for veterans administration services continue to face significant barriers to treatment. Additionally, bullhead city currently lacks a structured veterans treatment court program. The practical and gainful experience the lake havasu program has cultivated as IT has grown and expanded is invaluable as courts in other communities seek to develop their own programs and best practices, congressman paul a. Gosar, D.D.S., ninth district, arizona. By expanding into bullhead city, the TRI-cities rvtc will increase access to comprehensive treatment, strengthen regional coordination of services, enhance accountability, support long-term recovery, and improve community reintegration outcomes for veterans involved in the justice system across mohave county. By the 29TH of september 2031, the TRI-cities rvtc is projected to serve a total of 200 veterans; at least 50 veterans annually ranging in age from 19 to 90 years old. As the number of veterans to be served by the TRI-cities rvtc continues to grow, so does the GAP in service for substance abuse treatment for the participants in this program who are ineligible to receive local VA treatment services, as well as the need to provide more peer support services to all participants. The TRI-cities rvtc is requesting $1,429,145 over a five-year period to support this expansion and enhance access to community-based substance use treatment and peer support services. These funds will directly support program capacity to serve veterans ineligible for VA services, who would otherwise remain underserved in mohave county. This initiative will strengthen the program's ability to deliver a coordinated, evidence-based response to all justice-involved veterans, advancing priorities of the substance abuse and mental health services administration (samhsa) by reducing substance use, improving quality of life, and increase participant retention and graduation rates, while also lowering recidivism by expanding access to services for justice-involved veterans who are ineligible for VA services, as well as by providing state-mandated treatments-such as domestic violence counseling and driving under the influence (DUI) programs-to VA eligible veterans who lack local access to these services.