Mayor Brandon Johnson’s 2027 budget proposes using city funds to reopen a community mental health clinic and create permanent funding for the Crisis Assistance Response and Engagement program.
Johnson plans to announce the city’s investments in mental health services Wednesday during the unveiling of his 2027 budget. The investment will include $5 million to make CARE, which dispatches a mental health team to certain 911 calls, a permanent city program, Johnson said.
“I’ve made a commitment to ensure that people can receive treatment that they need, and this is a direct investment to bolster our work around community safety,” Johnson said in an interview with the Chicago Sun-Times/WBEZ this week.
He said the investment to reopen another mental health clinic is part of his promise to reverse the city’s past actions of shuttering community clinics. Between 1989 and 2012, the city closed 14 mental health clinics, leaving only five in place by 2016, according to a 2025 audit of the city’s mental health equity initiative. Johnson did not provide specifics about where the mental health clinic would open in 2027 or how much it could cost.
He plans to lean on funds allocated to the groundbreaking and controversial social media tax, which collects 50 cents per Chicago user after the first 100,000 users.
The city has collected more funds than anticipated from social media companies, and it’s on pace to collect $49.2 million by the end of the year. But those funds are being held in escrow pending litigation on the tax. Still, Johnson said he’s confident the city will prevail in court, especially since the state has since enacted a similar tax.
“We’re pretty confident about our ability to move through the litigation process and have the permanent revenue stream to make sure that we’re protecting our public institutions, and especially mental and behavioral healthcare,” Johnson said.
In recent years, Johnson’s administration reopened city-run mental health clinics in Pilsen and Roseland. In 2025, the city’s budget allocated about $12.2 million for mental health clinics. The city’s larger budget for mental health programming in recent years has leaned heavily on federal funds from the American Rescue Plan Act, according to the 2025 audit.
Johnson’s 2027 budget proposal calls for $5 million for CARE, which is similar to the federal funds allocated for it. About $5.2 million in funds from the American Rescue Plan was allocated for the program, but those federal funds end this year.
“The motivation for me has always been based upon just lived experiences, and the fact that, you know, you had previous administrations that actually shut down mental and behavioral healthcare, right?” Johnson said. “And previous administrations that refused to make these investments. So my motivation is certainly very much connected to the need that is substantial.”
The federal funds were used to staff citywide operations. The teams respond to requests for mental health services via 911 calls or when a dispatcher initiates a CARE response. The program recently expanded its hours from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., the city previously announced.
Johnson said the city continues to work on building trust for these new services, pointing to an increase in calls for CARE teams.
“The more we make this readily available, I believe that that confidence will continue to grow,” Johnson said.
Mayor Johnson budget seeks to reopen city mental health clinic next year 2026
IUSTITIA.BG – Investigations 2009-2026 2026-10-20 23:47:42
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