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February 8, 2008

Mayor to eliminate health insurance for councilors

Kasprzak wants to eliminate health insurance for council

By JOE LoTEMPLIO

PLATTSBURGH -- City of Plattsburgh Mayor Donald Kasprzak wants to eliminate health-insurance coverage for city councilors.

"I have been researching health-care issues since I've been elected, and it is quite obvious to me that with the continued increase in the cost of health care for everyone that we all need to contribute more across the board," Kasprzak said.

Under the mayor's proposed resolution, health-care coverage would be eliminated for existing council members and all future councilors.

A family health-care plan costs between $16,000 and $18,000 per employee.

None of the existing councilors take the coverage. If they did, they would pay 50 percent of the cost, under an agreement established in the early 1990s.

The city offers an incentive of $2,300 to those who do not take health insurance.

Health care costs the city about $6 million a year for its employees and retirees.

"Employees only contribute about $250,000 a year towards that, and this issue is not going away," Kasprzak said.

He met with several other regional mayors at a conference recently and learned that it is rare for elected officials to receive taxpayer-funded health insurance.

He also noted that when negotiations begin later this year he intends to ask the city's unions to pay more for health insurance.

"If we are going to ask the entire workforce to contribute more, then it is only fair that the part-time councilors not be offered health care paid by taxpayers," Kasprzak said.

While many municipalities may not offer health insurance to elected officials, Clinton County does.

Six of the 10 legislators take the health insurance offered by the county. They pay a portion of the cost based on the number of years they have in office.

The most co-payment any legislator has to shell out is 20 percent.

City councilors will mull the mayor's proposal before voting on it at next Thursday's meeting.

jlotemplio@pressrepublican.com

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