Council Health Benefits Richer than Employees' Health Benefits in Albany

Policy for employee health care benefits for Council is on Council’s agenda Monday December 2.  Councilmembers’ current policy gives themselves a richer package than they allow permanent City staff.  On Dec 2, Council needs to change policy, effective Dec 2013, to parity in City health benefits. 

Several years ago, Council capped City health premium payments for permanent staff’s health benefit at Kaiser coverage.  Albany’s employee health benefits are from two providers, Kaiser and Blue Cross.  Kaiser costs less.  Permanent employees who chose Blue Cross pay the premium difference between Blue Cross and Kaiser.  That premium difference in 2014 will be up to $2929/year, or $244/month.

But when Council capped permanent staff’s benefits, it did not cap its own benefits.  Council policy continued to entitle Councilmembers to 100% premium-paid coverage for any health insurance option.  The reason stated was that Council’s salary of $5 a Council meeting (typically two Council meetings per month) did not allow payroll withholding of the premium difference for any who chose Blue Cross.  Despite the policy, Councilmember Thomsen felt it appropriate to pay the City the difference, and she did so via check. 

Councilmembers’ salary increased in December 2010 to $300 a month, per a 2008 Charter amendment.  September 2010 the question of Council health care benefits was on the Council agenda again.  The issue had been researched by the City’s Social and Economic Justice Committee, which thought there should be parity between Council’s and employees’ health benefits.   Councilmember Thomsen moved parity, seconded by Councilmember Javandel.  Immediately Councilmember Lieber moved no change, seconded by Councilmember Atkinson.  Because rules of procedure say vote first on the second motion, Mayor Wile called for a vote on the Lieber motion.  Wile voted with Lieber and Atkinson, rendering a vote on Thomsen’s motion moot. 
  
Also in 2010 Council voted itself another employee benefit, the “in-lieu contribution”, which is also offered to permanent City staff.   The “in-lieu” benefit is a payment by the City into an employee’s deferred-compensation account, in the amount of Kaiser Single coverage (now about $8500 a year), for those with health benefit coverage elsewhere.  This saves the City the greater expense of “double-covering” those who already have health benefits. 

Inequity is the big problem with Council’s current policy.  At some point within the last several years Council cutback an employee benefit for permanent staff, for cost reasons and/or to make all benefits consistent.   Council’s $5 per meeting pay ended December 2010 so there is no reason why the inequity should continue.  Likely excuses are that other cities’ Councilmembers make more money, or it’s not Open Season.  Council’s salary is known in advance of running for office, and nothing prevents an employee from paying a portion of the premium outside of Open Season. 

The projected total City cost of health care benefits for Councilmembers in 2013 is $63,908.  Costs to the City because of Councilmembers’ extra benefit are unclear in the staff report, which notes two Councilmembers voluntarily pay the City the difference.  The staff report says if all five Councilmembers selected Blue Cross Family and none paid the City the difference, as allowed under the current policy, that difference would be $14,640 a year. 

The staff report and other attachments for this item can be found at http://albanyca.granicus.com/GeneratedAgendaViewer.php?event_id=39368718-3702-4609-b418-9a3d2be6064a, item 9.1.  For any Councilmembers who do not support a policy change of parity effective Dec 2013, I ask that each say Dec 2 how much they have “saved” since Dec 2010 by letting the City pay for their benefits what Council policy requires permanent employees to pay out of their own pockets.