Brian Stettin

Senior Advisor on Severe Mental Illness, Office of the NYC Mayor

Brian Stettin is senior advisor on severe mental illness for the Office of the New York City Mayor. He works in collaboration with city agencies and the city’s public hospital system to develop and implement policies prioritizing psychiatric care and support for New Yorkers in greatest need.

From 2009 to 2022, Stettin was the policy director for the Treatment Advocacy Center (TAC), a national organization devoted to removing barriers to the treatment of severe mental illness. In this role, he drafted and advocated for legislation enacted federally and in numerous states to improve civil commitment laws and expand access to mental health treatment. Stettin also led TAC’s efforts to support communities across the U.S. in the establishment and operation of “assisted outpatient treatment” (AOT) programs.

Prior to joining TAC, Stettin spent a decade in state government. From 1999 to 2007, he was an assistant New York state attorney general, serving in the program development unit. In this role, he drafted the original proposal of “Kendra's Law” (New York’s AOT law) in 1999, as well as significant amendments enacted in 2006. Subsequently he served as counsel to the health committee of the New York Assembly and as special counsel to the New York state commissioner of criminal justice services, focusing on civil-law strategies to address neighborhood crime.

Stettin is a graduate of the City College of New York and the University of Texas School of Law.