Proponents of a citizen-backed referendum to establish a mental health board in Palatine Township and a tax to support it are making their push in the month before the election.
Several spoke at Monday’s Palatine village board meeting.
A town hall is also scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 12, at the Buehler YMCA, 1400 W. Northwest Hwy., Palatine.
If the binding referendum passes, the township supervisor would appoint a seven-member volunteer board, including a liaison from the township board.
The proposed tax is 0.04% of equalized assessed value and estimated to raise $1.7 million annually. It would be used to help meet the needs of people in Palatine Township living with mental illness, substance use disorder and developmental disabilities.
A supporter of the referendum, Palatine resident Patti Hand, said for the average homeowner it would equal the cost of a large pizza.
“I think that’s a great investment for mental health,” she said.
The board would conduct a needs assessment and submit a budget to the township to fund grants to local providers, Hugh Brady, a lead organizer of the initiative, said at Monday’s village board meeting.
Brady said there are about 110 mental health boards in the state already.
They include Wheeling Township, which has appointed the board but refused to levy the tax, citing legal difficulties with the citizen-backed referendum language, despite legislation aimed at clearing those hurdles.
Brady, however, said the referendum language has been reviewed and endorsed by two attorneys and several state legislators.
Keli Swierczek, an area administrator in charge of school social workers, said there is a need for more community mental health support. That’s even greater now with the closing of the inpatient unit at Northwest Community Healthcare.
Chelsea Laliberte Barnes, a licensed clinical social worker and co-founder of Live4Lali, which seeks to reduce stigma and raise awareness of substance use disorders, told the village board one in five adults experience mental health issues each year.
