Pay set for county officials

BY STACI WILSON

Elected officials in the county will be footing more of their health insurance premiums in the next few years while salaries for most of the officials will increase slightly during that same time frame.

At a Sept. 29 special meeting, the county commissioners established a salary increase of two percent each year for 2012 and 2013 for the three Commissioners, Treasurer, Coroner, Recorder of Deeds/Register of Wills; and the three Auditors.

Those officials will also be required, as they currently are, to pay 10 percent of their health insurance premiums for those years.

In 2014-15, the commissioners will not receive a salary increase. But the three in office at that time will be required to pay 15 percent of their insurance in 2014; and 25 percent of the premium in 2015.

Although the Treasurer, Coroner, Recorder of Deeds/Register of Wills and Auditors will receive a two percent salary bump in 2014 and 2015; the office holders will, like the commissioners, pay 15 percent of the health insurance premium in 2014 and 25 percent of it in 2015.

Commissioner Michael Giangrieco said the commissioners contemplated not giving any elected official a raise but the three commissioners determined it would not be fair to not have a pay increase when the cost of their health insurance premium was increasing.

At the Oct. 13 salary board meeting, a three percent salary increase was approved for all non-union employees for 2011. Those employees must also contribute 10 percent of their personal health insurance premium beginning Jan. 1, 2011.

The board also approved all negotiated and arbitrated changes in 2011 pay rates and benefits for union employees, per the union contracts.