Citing Tax Increase, 4-1 Supervisor Majority Selects Health Care Coverage Option Putting Increased Costs on Employees

As promised, Royal Examiner is following up on our lead story on the May 7th Warren County Board of Supervisors meeting on other actions and discussions. One topic added to the agenda at the meeting’s outset under “Additional New Business” was how the county government will absorb increases in its Employee Health Care coverage through United Health Care. Board Chairman Cheryl Cullers presented the agenda addition, which was approved unanimously.

And while the addition was made near the outset of the 7 p.m. meeting, the “Additional New Business” was the meeting’s final agenda item. So, it was two hours later (2:02:45 linked County video mark) when Assistant County Administrator Jane Meadows took the lead in presenting the options facing the supervisors to them. Meadows opened noting that for the coming Fiscal Year-2024/25 the County had received a 7.7% increased cost for Group Health, Dental, and Visual coverage, “along with a $40,000 premium holiday for the July bill.”

Meadows noted the board had been presented with two options in covering those increases. “Option A reflects the County absorbing the increase in the rates, and the employee contribution to the premium is remaining the same as premium year 2024.

“Option B reflects the portion of the increase being absorbed by the employees in the higher deductible $1,000-dollar plan and the preventive dental plan, and the County contributions being mirrored from the $1,000-dollar plan to the $250-dollar plan, as well for Comprehensive Dental,” Meadows said, noting that, “We are currently staying with the $1,000 and $250 deductible plans. And then the Comprehensive and Preventive Dental Plans are remaining the same. The Vision Plan did not change, the Vision Plan, the pricing for that was locked in for this year during our renewal previously.”

Deputy County Administrator Jane Meadows summarizes employee health care coverage cost-increase options brought forward by staff. Royal Examiner Photos

Meadows continued to point out that, “From the proposed FY-24/25 budget approximately $3.3 to .4 or .5 million dollars have been allocated for insurance premiums for our full-time employees. The estimated increase in the full costs for FY-25 versus FY-24 is $269,000. And that cost will vary depending on the number of participants in each plan.” Completing her summary, Meadows fielded board questions beginning at the 2:04:52 video mark.

Fork District Supervisor Vicky Cook began by verifying that the amount the County would absorb under Plan A was $69,000. Meadow confirmed that number. Cook then sighted the savings to the County from going with Plan B was about $45,000 of that $69,000 Option A cost to the county government to absorb its employees health care coverage cost hikes. Meadows again confirmed Cook’s reading of the material circulated to the board prior to the meeting.

The long story, made short is that a board majority found that $45,000 cost too high a price to place on county citizens as a whole in a year the board was raising taxes to cover its FY-2025 budget. That consensus was reached despite Meadows appearing to point out that the last several years of Cost of Living raises county employees received had not matched the inflation rate for across-the-board living expenses.

Asked by Vice-Chairman “Jay” Butler which option she recommended, Meadows replied, “Option A” further stating, “I feel that since we are still, with cost of living shifts, we are still below it. I feel personally, I was director of HR (Human Resources), I’m a little employee biased … I feel Option A would be greatly appreciated by our team. Option B of course, saves $45,000. Those are the options we are presenting to you, and  that is the challenge for each of you,” Meadows observed.

Cook elicited an admission that over the past three years in the new health insurance carrier plan, the County had absorbed any increases because overall the coverage plan was saving the County money over other options.

The board ponders the saving of $45,000 in the FY-2025 county budget by having employees shoulder health care coverage cost increases.

There was extensive discussion and estimations of the number of employees affected by Option B (65 in high deductible group was cited) and their monthly and annual costs ranging in the neighborhood of $228 to $288 per year and $19 to $24 monthly. As the board approached a vote, North River Supervisor Richard Jamieson noted the pending tax increase to cover the Fiscal Year-2025 budget on the table (2:17:30 video mark). “Especially in a year where we’re raising taxes everybody takes a little bit on their shoulders,” Jamieson observed.

“I’m just not really comfortable with the idea of completely shielding — county employees are sort of like a different class from these realities. I’ll harken back to other people out in the economy that are struggling with, well, they’re going to get a tax increase, as are the employees. Who else is going to get their health insurance premiums going up?” Jamieson asked rhetorically.

He complemented Meadows on her background work; however, added that he thought it was “a relatively small slice” that employees were being asked to shoulder under Option B.

Finally the chairman sought a motion. Vice-Chairman Butler responded first, seeking approval of Option A with the County covering the increased health insurance costs. His motion died without a second. Cook then made the motion in support of Option B, which was seconded by Jamieson. That motion was approved by a 4-1 vote with only Butler dissenting. However, Chairman Cullers preceded her vote with a lengthy preface that it pained her to have to make the choice for the County not to absorb the Health Insurance increases, but with the financial variables before the board, including if we recall correctly its first tax increase in about 4 years, she would reluctantly support Option B. Before casting the final vote, John Stanmeyer also bemoaned the choice before the board, but also acquiesced to support of the $45,000 savings to the county budget that Option B would provide.

Other ‘New Business’

In other business the board approved the six public hearing requests following the opening one on the private school relocation to Rockland. Unlike that approval of the CUP for the John Paul the Great Montessori Academy to a portion of the former Bowling Green South Golf Course which had 14 speakers in support, all of the subsequent public hearings were approved without a dissenting vote and no public comment pro or con. Those final six public hearing topics will be listed at the end of this story.

A 12-item Consent Agenda was approved with two items removed for discussion. Those two items were a contract with TACS for the collection of delinquent county tax accounts, and the Awarding of contract with BFI Waste Services. Both were also approved after discussion.

Also under New Business, the Authorization to Advertise for Public Hearings of two items brought forward by planning and zoning staff were approved. Those items were:

1. Authorization to Advertise for Public Hearing: Z2024-04-01 – Campground – Michaun Pierre – A request to amend Chapter 180 of the Warren County Code to amend §180-8C to add definitions for Camping Unit and Tent, to modify the existing definitions of Commercial Campground and Commercial Camping, and to repeal the existing definitions of Unit Space, Vacation Camp, Day, and Vacation Camp, Overnight, to amend §180-21D to modify the listed Commercial Campground use and to repeal the listed Vacation Camp, Day/Overnight use in the Agricultural District Regulations, to amend §180-27D to modify the listed Commercial Campground use in the Commercial District Regulations, to amend §180-41 to modify the existing supplementary regulations for Commercial Campgrounds, and to amend §180-57 to repeal the existing supplementary regulations for Vacation Camp, Day or Overnight. – Summarized by Chase Lenz, Zoning Administrator; and:
2. Authorization to Advertise for Public Hearing: Z2024-04-02 – Zoning District Regulations – Warren County Planning Staff – A request to amend Chapter 180 of the Warren County Code to amend §180-21 to make Public Schools permissible only by Conditional Use Permit in the Agricultural (A) District, to amend §180-25 to make Store/Dwelling Combination and Library permissible only by Conditional Use Permit in the Village Residential (VR) District, to amend §180-26 to add Church as a use permissible only by Conditional Use Permit in the Suburban Residential (SR) District, and to amend §180-28 to add Church as a use permitted by right in the Industrial (I) District. – Chase Lenz, Zoning Administrator.

The county supervisors May 7 meeting began at 6:30 p.m. with a Closed Session, the motion into reading: “I move the Board enter into a closed meeting under the provisions of Sections 2.2-3711(A)(8) for consultation with legal counsel pertaining to the process for the providing of funds for Business development”.

Approved Public Hearing items I through N

21. Public Hearing: CUP2024-03-01 Joel Didriksen – A request for a conditional use permit for a Short-Term Tourist Rental. The property is located at 3017 Blue Mountain Road and identified on tax map 16A, section 1, block 1, lot 21. The property is zoned Residential-One (R-1) and located in the Blue Mountain subdivision and in the Shenandoah Magisterial District.
22. Public Hearing: CUP2024-03-02 Jennifer Wynn – A request for a conditional use permit for a ShortTerm Tourist Rental. The property is located at 703 Sunset Village Rd. and identified on tax map 27D, section 1, lot 9A. The property is zoned Residential-One (R-1) and located in the Junewood Estates subdivision and the Fork Magisterial District.
23. Public Hearing: CUP2024-03-04 Jack Donohue – A request for a conditional use permit for a Contactor Storage Yard. The property is located at (0) Winners Ct. and identified on tax map 5, lot 11B. The property is zoned Industrial (I) and located in the Walker-Brugh subdivision and the North River Magisterial District.
24. Public Hearing – Lease Agreement of Hangar B17 to Andrew Gass at $350 per month.
25. Public Hearing – Lease Agreement of Hangar A14 to Otis Blake Bacon at $350 per month.
26. Public Hearing – Lease Agreement of 179 Stokes Airport Rd. at $350 per month.

Click here to watch the May 7th Warren County Board of Supervisors Meeting.