OLYMPIA – State Sen. Jim Hargrove, D-Hoquiam, who is retiring at the end of the year, has been honored with a Distinguished Lifetime Public Service Award for his work to improve mental health care.

Hargrove, who has more than 30 years in the Legislature, received the award from the National Alliance on Mental Illness at the state chapter’s annual conference in Port Angeles over the weekend.

The alliance honored Hargrove for championing “legislation to improve behavioral health services and systems throughout his career” and highlighted his leadership in 2005, when he brought Democrats and Republicans together in support of important reforms and investments to the state’s mental health care system.

The legislation created the 1/10th of 1 percent county mental health sales tax and helped sustain mental health and chemical dependency centers throughout the state during the Great Recession.

“I’ve always believed in treatment and prevention and access to care is crucial, especially for the most needy in our society,” Hargrove said. “It’s an honor to receive recognition from the advocates who are doing important work supporting quality mental health treatment in our communities.”