02 City Council Min 07-27-04 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Special City Council Meetrng July 27, 2004 Page 12 pressure but has had to cut out his medication. He said he is working here for the benefits and he is also a citizen and his taxes have gone up. He had planned to retire at age forty-three (43) but now he will have to work eight (8) or nine (90 more years. He said we have to feed our families and wanted the Council to do the right thing. Mark Shew from Public Works, Water and Sewer Department, came forward and asked if a person who was thirty-eight (38) years old and had fifteen (15) years of service with the City, when will they be able to retire with the Rule of 80. He said he knew a lady who worked for the City with just that and under the current plan she could retire in five more years. He asked if she would have to work twenty (20) more years before she could retire. Councilman Bell said the retirement and the Rule of 80 was just about the City paying medical benefits, so that would mean that she could still retire at twenty (20) years but wouldn't get her medical benefits paid by the City. Mr. Bell said that if 10% of the employees retired per year for five (5) years that would be thirty-five (35) annually, that would add $200,000.00 for the cost of insurance per year, which would add up to $1 million dollars. He said even if the cost didn't go through the roof, there would be another $1 million added to that and that is what the City is facing. He said if the Council does nothing, the system for the insurance will go bankrupt and that is because of retiring employees. He felt the Rule of 80 plan needed to be studied. He said this Council is challenged with coming up with more income or making additional cuts. Bill Wilhite, who works for Sanitation, came forward and said he had his own business but sold it to move back here with his family. He said all he hears is cut, cut, cut. He said when they cut people in the shop, they are going to have to wait to get things fixed, when they cut people, they are cutting services. He asked the Council to look at what could be saved in the budget instead of cutting people. He felt that if they would look at saving money instead of cutting that would be better. Councilman Wilson said the Council is faced with a$1,500,000.00 shortfall.