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ROCKFORD — The Winnebago County Community Mental Health Board received 34 applications totaling $18.3 million in requests for its latest grant cycle.

The board has a total $15 million available to distribute for the 2022-23 program year, which covers June 1 through May 30, 2023.

“I’m once again impressed with the response from our community organizations to address the mental health needs of our community,” said Mary Ann Abate, president of the mental health board, in a news release. “We are seeing more collaborations than ever before, and it is a testament to the power of having a local mental health fund.”

Related: Park District seeks $1.5M in mental health funds for indoor equestrian center

Over the next several weeks, the board will review and score applications with assistance from the Region 1 Planning Council, led by Jason Holcomb, director of community impact for Region 1.

“We feel very strongly about our review process based on best-practices in funding and look forward to reading what we anticipate to be collaborative innovative proposals,” Holcomb said in a news release.

The board expects to make funding decisions for renewal applications on April 6 and new program funding decisions on May 4.

The Winnebago County Community Mental Health Board is responsible for distributing proceeds of a half-cent sales tax voters overwhelmingly approved in March 2020. The overarching goal is to plan, implement and monitor mental health and addiction services for Winnebago County residents.