Non-Binding Question Asks Lanesborough to Hike Retiree Health-Care Premiums
LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — John Goerlach worked 20 years in the town's Highway Department so when he retired, part of his health insurance will come from the town's budget.
Goerlach will be paying 15 percent of the premium with the town picking up the rest. Goerlach is now a selectman, a decade after leaving the town's employment, and he's tasked with managing the town's finances. Because of conflict of interest laws, he cannot vote to increase the percentage retirees pay for benefits.
Selectman Henry "Hank" Sayers has a relative working for the town so he can't vote on changes to the percentages either.
That means two-thirds of the Board of Selectmen can't vote on a request from Finance Committee member Ray Jones to change the percentage retirees pay for health care from 15 to 30 percent. Jones has asked that a ballot question is placed during the election calling for the Selectmen to make such a change.
"This is just going to be a waste of time because even if they vote for it, we can't vote on it," Sayers said.
Town Counsel Jeff Blake said the Selectmen are the administrative body tasked with making such decisions, so a town meeting vote can't change the percentages. But, neither Sayers nor Goerlach can vote so there aren't enough votes to make it happen.
"You could vote to put this on a non-binding ballot question," Blake said, but, "this will change nothing."
Jones will take the non-binding ballot question and the Selectmen agreed to put it on the ballot. Jones says this is the first step toward making a change, which he says is more in line with benefits offered in the private sector and in other communities.
"All I want to do is have the people know about this process and have a vote," Jones said. "This is just getting a feeler from the general public."
The lack of ability to vote on it isn't deterring Jones, who previously said he'd find a way to change the law to allow for it. He says the ballot question is the first step in his plan to change those percentages.
Blake said the law is pretty clear about such changes being in the Board of Selectmen's purview and court opinions support that.
The second challenge is the timing.
In 2011, laws were passed allowing cities and towns to change the premiums for retirees without going through collective bargaining. But the Legislature placed a moratorium on that in 2015. Last year, Gov. Charlie Baker vetoed the moratorium but the Legislature overrode the veto. The moratorium doesn't expire until July 2018.
"There is a significant amount of support for keeping that section in there," Blake said.
Blake says it isn't known if the Legislature plans to extend those protections even further. Blake says it takes a lot of support to override vetoes so he doesn't expect the state to quickly change its mind.
"All I want to do is start the process because I have a plan. This is the first step in that plan," Jones responded.
Selectman Robert Ericson said while the Selectmen can't make the changes nor can the changes be implemented until 2018, a town meeting vote would send a message to the Legislature. If enough towns vote in favor of allowing for changes in those percentages, lawmakers will have to lift the moratorium, he said.
Sayers, however, said if town meeting vote doesn't go in favor of the reduction "it is going to tie our hands even more." The split is written into the contracts with unions, such as the teachers' union, and a town meeting vote against such changes could hurt the town's ability to negotiate that.
Nonetheless, the Selectmen opted to put the non-binding question on the ballot. It simply asks whether or not voters want to change the split to 70-30 or not but it won't make any difference unless there are changes made on the state level.
Tags: ballot measure, health insurance, LES, retirees,
