On October 5, 2023, City Council passed Ord. 2023-0004179 and established a working group to develop recommendations on the provision of mental health services, also known as the Treatment Not Trauma (TNT) Ordinance, on motion of Ald. Rodriguez-Sanchez who chairs the Committee on Health and Human Relations.1 The TNT Ordinance states that no later than 30 days after the effective date of the ordinance (November 3, 2023), the Mayor’s Office, in consultation from the Chair of the Committee on Health and Human Relations, must establish a working group including representatives from the Chicago Departments of Public Health; Fire; Assets, Information, and Services; Human Resources; the Mayor’s Office; the Office of Budget and Management; and the Office of Emergency Management and Communications. The working group's responsibilities include meeting at least three times before May 1, 2024, consulting with at least ten community members, and detailing their recommendations in a written report to the Mayor, the Committee on Health and Human Relations, and the Departments by May 31, 2024.

As outlined in the Ordinance, the working group is tasked with developing a suggested framework and roadmap for the City to expand mental health clinical services, non-police response for behavioral and mental health crises, and community awareness of available mental health resources. The working group must outline this framework and roadmap in a written report to the Mayor, the Committee on Health and Human Relations, and the Departments by May 31, 2024. The report will include considerations of budget expansion, capital and facility needs, staffing strategies, community input, compliance with state and federal legal and regulatory parameters, including the IL Community Emergency Services and Supports Act, and metrics for implementation and success evaluation.

The Treatment Not Trauma initiative is structured into a main working group, as specified in the Ordinance, and is further supported by two subgroups and community consultants. The subgroups are focused on creating detailed roadmaps for the expansion of mental health clinical services and the development of non-police responses for behavioral and mental health crises. Additionally, a Steering Committee, comprising the Deputy Mayor of Community Safety, Deputy Mayor of Education, Youth, and Human Services, Deputy Budget Director from OBM, and Chief of Policy, oversees the priorities of the working group and subgroups. This committee also conducts mid-point and end-point reviews of the deliverables to ensure alignment with the values and needs of Mayor Brandon Johnson’s vision and mission.