08-20-02 CCM - Laserfiche WebLink

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The Finance Director asked if the council wanted any adjustments in their salary. Administrator Kueffner added that this was the opportunity for the council to increase their salary and it needs to be done before the election. Motion by DeLapp, second by Dunn, to keep the council salary levels the same. Motion passed 5-0. Council member Siedow inquired of the medical benefits. He stated that other businesses do not pay all of these costs. Council member DeLapp said he does not know whether or not the City's benefits are comparable and requested the Finance Director gather more information. Mayor Hunt mentioned that the City uses the Stanton report for salaries and we should do benefits against Stanton to see if that is what we should be doing. Costs are clearly going up and we should be sure we are being fair to our employees compared to other cities. The Finance Director mentioned she looked at actual premiums for each employee and their dependents and allocated it out to the different funds. She also mentioned that errors were found in the 2002 budget allocation for benefits. Health insurance went up 14.3% which was good because we participate in a pool. The estimate for dental insurance was 5% because those rate increases were not provided yet. The Finance Director will complete compensation/benefit analysis compared with other cities, Washington and Ramsey counties, and the State and provide this information back to the council as well as other options with cost sharing and "buy up" options at the employee cost. We need to renew our current insurance and can change our policy without penalty during the year. The Finance Director mentioned we need to look at fiscal impact to the computer system to accommodate options. Mayor Hunt stated we need to look at overall compensation and benefits and make sure we are not out of line on our package and that all employees are treated fairly. Mayor Hunt mentioned the reintroduction of the Finance Committee to try and take some of the burden off of the staff and to help with policy issues. Council member DeLapp incurred about newsletter and postage costs. Administrator Kueffner responded that she has looked at 6 month costs and the cost for postage has gone up with volume and rates. Council member Siedow inquired about the increase in the Finance Department budget. The Finance Director responded that this figure included the proposed part time position and that insurance benefits are changed based on who is allocated to the department's budget. Mayor Hunt and Council member Siedow would like to see a several year spread. Comparisons between years can be difficult because of change in accounting practices and the way salaries have been allocated in the past. The Finance Director will look at Page 3 of 5