A look at Moraine Township’s pitch for a mental health board

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Residents of Moraine Township won’t just be voting for federal and local government officials during the Nov. 5 election. They’ll also be voting on whether to create a community mental health board at taxpayer expense.

A community mental health board would provide services and resources to Moraine Township residents who are struggling with mental health services, intellectual or developmental disabilities, and substance use disorders.

If approved, the implementation of the board within Moraine Township would increase the property taxes in the township, which includes Highwood, much of Highland Park, as well as parts of Deerfield and Lake Forest, by .03%, or $10 per year for the owner of a single-family home worth $100,000.

The property tax would generate between $800,000 and $900,000 in funding for the mental health board. If approved, the board would develop a budget and allocate funds to provide resources for Moraine Township residents.

“There really is a need,” said Dan Jenks, a co-chair of Yes for Mental Health, a political action committee. “It’s only for three things: mental health services, substance use disorder and support for residents with intellectual disabilities. That’s it.”

Jenks serves as a co-chair of Yes for Mental Health alongside Cindy Wolfson.

The board would comprise volunteers from the community who are appointed by Moraine Township Supervisor Anne Bassi. The referendum was Bassi’s idea, according to Wolfson, who said that Bassi was inspired to have the referendum after seeing other nearby communities successfully implement their own community mental health boards. Wolfson said that there are currently more than 90 community mental health boards within the state of Illinois.

After Bassi presented the idea to the Moraine Township Board earlier this year, a resolution was passed and it was placed on the ballot for the Nov. 5 election.

“Shall Moraine Township levy an annual tax not to exceed 0.03% for the purpose of providing community mental health facilities and services, including facilities and services for persons with an intellectual or developmental disability (I/DD), or a substance use disorder?” the question on the ballot will ask.

Bassi contacted both Jenks and Wolfson to help spread the word about the referendum. But both Jenks, the Vice President of the North Shore School District 112 Board of Education, and Wolfson, a former board member on the Moraine Township Board, said that they felt a personal desire to see the referendum pass.

“Some of the issues really appealed to me in terms of things that should be addressed,” Jenks said. “Like a lot of people, I have family and friends that have struggled with some of these issues.”

Because the board has not been established — and only will be if the vote passes — there are no set plans for how it will operate or what its plans would be.

“Unlike a school referendum, where you can tell people, ‘OK, if it passes we’re going to do this and that,’ this is more, you’re going to have to wait and see where the process goes,” Jenks said. “It’s more of a trust thing.”

Wolfson said that, if approved, the board will have a needs assessment conducted every three years, to assess how the board can best help Moraine Township residents and will review the needs assessment annually.

“It’s constantly in flux as the needs change, and that allows the board to make changes, and address new needs as they come up,” Wolfson said. “It’s not stuck. This is a much more flexible arrangement.”

While Moraine Township has had its own set of circumstances that could have impacted the mental health of its residents, including the mass shooting at Highland Park’s Fourth of July Parade in 2022, Wolfson said that the community mental health board is something that could benefit any community that approves the implementation of one. 

“The whole country is experiencing mental health crises, and we are not immune,” Wolfson said. “We have our own special set of circumstances, like the shooting on July 4. All of the communities have been hit by the pandemic, and other things that have increased the need [for mental health resources].”

If the community mental health board is not approved, Wolfson said that she believes that the township would put it on another future ballot to try and pass it again.

Moraine Township Mental Health Board Referendum

Referendum Ask: ~61% increase to limiting tax rate (to 0.03%), resulting in between $800,000-$900,000 in additional tax revenue
Additional Cost to Taxpayer (estimated, annual): $10 per $100,000 in home value
Referendum Purpose: To fund a community mental health board that supports mental health services, and residents with intellectual or developmental disabilities, and substance use disorders.

Ballot Question

“Shall Moraine Township levy an annual tax not to exceed 0.03% for the purpose of providing community mental health facilities and services, including facilities and services for persons with an intellectual or developmental disability (I/DD), or a substance use disorder?
(1) The total approximate amount of taxes extendable at the most recently extended limiting rate is currently $1,320,000. /If this proposition is approved, the total approximate amount of taxes extendable will be $2,125,000.
(2) For the 2024 levy year, the approximate amount of the additional tax extendable against a property containing a single-family residence, and having a fair market value at the time of the referendum of $100,000, is estimated to be $10.00 per year.”