(1) The department shall designate an approved 211 service provider to provide information to Utah citizens about health and human services available in the citizen's community.

(2) Only a service provider approved by the department may provide 211 telephone services in this state.

(3) The department shall approve a 211 service provider after considering the following: (a) the ability of the proposed 211 service provider to meet the national 211 standards recommended by the Alliance of Information and Referral Systems; (b) the financial stability of the proposed 211 service provider; (c) the community support for the proposed 211 service provider; (d) the relationship between the proposed 211 service provider and other information and referral services; and (e) other criteria as the department considers appropriate.

(a) the ability of the proposed 211 service provider to meet the national 211 standards recommended by the Alliance of Information and Referral Systems;

(b) the financial stability of the proposed 211 service provider;

(c) the community support for the proposed 211 service provider;

(d) the relationship between the proposed 211 service provider and other information and referral services; and

(e) other criteria as the department considers appropriate.

(4) The department shall coordinate with the approved 211 service provider and other state and local agencies to ensure the joint development and maintenance of a statewide information database for use by the approved 211 service provider.