Politics & Government

Farmington Community Library Board Opts Out of State Benefit Limit

In a contentious vote, officials say they want to keep their options open with new benefit plans.

The board of trustees voted Thursday to opt out of new state limits on the amount paid for public employee benefits, but the vote was not unanimous.

Trustee David Judge opposed the motion, which the majority of board members felt would keep their options open in light of proposed changes to the library's current benefits plan. A new Michigan law requires that public employers either place a "hard cap" on benefit expenditures, or pay no more than 80 percent of benefit costs. 

While cities and school districts stand to lose state funding if they don't comply, library boards don't have that hammer hanging over their heads. Opting out required a two-thirds majority vote of the board. 

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"We're not in the same position as the cities of Farmington and Farmington Hills," trustee Bruce Lazar said. "They don't have the flexibility ... We have the ability to make an intelligent choice." 

But Judge said while he likes all of the library's employees, they are no more special than city employees who will be paying more for their benefits. He said making the change would also save the library money, and he serves on the board as a trustee of the taxpayers. 

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Judge, who was appointed in August of 2010, was also highly critical of the way the board has handled employee and retiree benefit programs. In a recent review, trustees were told by an insurance agent that their current premiums, which average $1,100 per employee each month, are nearly double what an organization their size should be paying. 

Earlier in the meeting, trustees approved an agreement to appoint an insurance agent who will look first at adjustments to retiree benefits that should save around $169,000 per year, while providing stronger benefits. A new employee benefits plan could bring the total savings to nearly $400,000, Judge said. 

What's more, he said, that money could have been saved for at least the last fiscal year. 

"I think we've been ripped off," Judge charged during the meeting. "I think we've ignored this way too long." He said that if the board had a consultant come in every year to examine the insurance program, trustees would have known how much they were over-spending. 

Trustee Gerald Bosler said it was "irresponsible" to say the library board had wasted money, given the hard work that had gone into balancing the library's budget over the past several years. 

Bosler pointed out the board had difficulty getting information from Michigan Employee Benefits Service (MEBS), the library's current insurer. "We've been working on this for more than a year," he said. 

The board meets again on Feb. 10, 7 p.m., at the Main Library. More information, meetings minutes and agendas can be found at farmlib.org.


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