Sales tax referendum for McHenry County Mental Health Board is subject of Thursday election forum

The League of Women Voters of McHenry County will host a forum in Crystal Lake Thursday evening on a referendum on funding the mental health board through a sales tax.

The event will be held in person at 7 p.m. in the Luecht Auditorium at McHenry County College and will be livestreamed on Facebook.

Voters countywide will be asked on the March 19 primary ballot if they want to raise the sales tax by 0.25% to fund the McHenry County Mental Health Board. If approved, the county would no longer issue a property tax levy that currently funds the mental health board. It, in turn, provides financial support to many mental health care and service organizations.

Early voting is already underway at the county clerk’s office in Woodstock and expands to other sites next month.

Speakers at the forum will include county board members Carolyn Campbell and Michael Skala, as well as Suzanne Hoban, executive director of Family Health Partnership, and John Buckley, executive director of Independence Health & Therapy.

“Our Mental Health Board is one of the jewels of McHenry County, providing vitally needed funding for an array of services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, substance abuse disorders, and mental health issues,” Paula Ekstrom, president of the League, said in a news release. “These services often help people, and their families, who are uninsured or under-insured. This forum will provide full details on the pros and cons of this referendum, so that the voters can make an informed choice. That’s our organization’s mission, and we’re proud to help out.”

The Luecht Auditorium is in Building B at McHenry County College, at 8900 Northwest Highway.

More information about the referendum is available at For further information on the referendum, please see the FAQ on the website of the McHenry County Clerk, at tinyurl.com/4jdmpczz. To watch the forum livestream on Facebook, go to tinyurl.com/mrye59m2.

For more information on the Mental Health Board of McHenry County go to mc708.org.