The Elgin Township 708 Mental Health Board’s request to levy taxes for mental health, developmental disability and substance abuse services has been blocked by the Kane County Clerk’s Office for second time in four years.
Officials will not levy the $1.4 million requested because it is higher than what was levied last year, violating the state Property Tax Extension Law Limit, Elgin Township Supervisor Ken Bruderle said.
Township officials believed the state law allowing for the creation of 708 Mental Health Boards superseded the PTELL rules, but the clerk’s office was told by the Kane County State’s Attorney’s office that it did not, Bruderle said.
“The county would rather err on the side of caution,” he said.
A bill currently pending in the General Assembly would correct the problem but is not expected to pass in time it to affect this year’s levy, Bruderle said. As a result, the maximum the government can collect is $80,000, he said.
“There is frustration for local (708) boards, but we are creating a trail for all mental health boards in the state (with the new legislation),” Bruderle said. “It will be next year that things will be OK.”
In the interim, the township is applying for American Rescue Plan Allocation funds through Kane County in the hope it can secure additional money for the 708 board programs that won’t get funded this year, he said.
If the county does approve the funding, it would help more than just Elgin Township’s efforts because many of the agencies do work throughout the county, Bruderle said. “It would be a good investment (for the county),” he said.
The county’s American Rescue Plan Committee meets Wednesday at which time Bruderle wll make his funding pitch, he said.
“If we can get federal grant (money), it will come back to our community and taxpayers won’t have a tax bump this year,” Bruderle said.
Township voters approved referendums in 2020 that established the mental health board and created a new tax to fund it. However, the initiative hit a snag when the clerk’s office refused to collect the tax levy because of the way the referendum question was worded.
Legislation passed in 2022 validated the referendum, clearing the way for the board to be created. Late last year, however, there was debate over how much the mental health board should levy, with some officials wanting to levy less than what voters approved. That issue also was resolved by legislation that mandated that townships levy for the maximum amount allowed through the referendum.
“There’s one obstacle after another. There’s no easy route,” Bruderle said.
Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
