On Nov. 7, Portage County voters will vote on Issue 30, a replacement tax levy allocated towards funding mental health and recovery facilities across the county. 

With Issue 30, residents in Portage County would be paying less than $3 a month, said John Garrity, executive director of the Mental Health and Recovery Board of Portage County. 

For every $100,000 of the county auditor’s property evaluation, a resident will pay $35. This replacement levy will start in 2024 and span 10 years and raise the budget by approximately $930,000, he said. 

Garrity said this issue is worth putting money towards.

“It’s essential, actually, this year we’re promoting strong communities, safer communities, strong families, you know, not just for people who face mental illness or addiction problems,” he said. 

In addition, across the county last year, there were 32,000 cases where someone received crisis services and throughout this year, numbers are still increasing, Garrity said. 

“There is a high need for mental health services and recovery services in Portage County,” he said. 

Theo Thomas, a junior early childhood education major and Portage County resident, said he believes Issue 30 would generate a positive impact across the county.

“Personally, as someone who’s both lived in Kent my entire life and as a student here, I think it’s a positive change,” he said. “I think that people need better support and access to mental health resources.”

Thomas said he hopes to see wages rise for psychologists, as previously he struggled to see the same one frequently. 

“I know that I have lost the majority of psychologists I have had because they left my provider to a better paying provider, and I’ve been waitlisted since May, and I’m still waiting on a psychologist,” Thomas said.

Tamera Hunter, Townhall II CEO, said the levy dollars assist in paying for services that Townhall II, an addiction and mental health agency in Kent, provides. 

“So, the levy dollars help pay for services that we deliver to clients that are growing in numbers” Hunter said. “It goes to facilities, it goes to staffing, any way that we can help the community, that’s where those dollars go to.” 

If Issue 30 is passed, it could reduce the demand for mental health professionals across the county, as more can be hired, Hunter said. 

“So, I really think in a lot of the similar ways that it would benefit the other organizations where it can help us hire people to be able to meet the demand in the system right now,” Hunter said. 

She said Townhall II is currently seeing an increase in clients, and if Issue 30 is passed, those dollars could help take the edge off of that demand. 

“We have pretty high caseloads right now, and we cannot hire people fast enough that are qualified,” Hunter said. “So, the levy dollars would help us be able to hire enough people to be able to serve the clients that are accessing our system since the (COVID-19) pandemic.” 

Early voting is currently underway for registered voters, and those looking to vote in-person, go to your designated polling station on Nov. 7. 

Those seeking mental health resources can find more information at the Mental Health and Recovery Board of Portage County’s website, or call the 988 crisis hotline.

MinJee Yoo is a reporter. Contact her at [email protected].