Addressing the town board on Resolution 13 Monday night, I asked Supervisor Johanna Coleman to provide details of the Collective Negotiation Settlement Memorandum between the Town of Lancaster and the Cayuga Police Benevolent Association with a slated term of January 1, 2014 through and including December 31, 2017 – as no details were in the language of the written resolution.

Supervisor Coleman: You are aware that the police went to arbitration in 2015 for the years 2012 and 2013. The portion of the contract that was unsettled for 2014, 2015, 2016, the current year of 2017 and for the upcoming year of 2018 was settled – it covers five years.

The parts I am sure you and others are interested in are the following:

For the years of 2014, 2015 and 2016, the Cayuga Association had agreed on having a zero percent wage increase.

In the current year of 2017 and for 2018 they will be receiving 2% wage increases.

The contract contains for the most part are operational and procedural practices that were important to the membership.

The other item that would be of interest to most people, and is a monetary item, is health insurance. For this year, 2017, the town will be paying 94.5% of the health insurance costs for the officers. The officers will be paying the remaining 5.5% cost of the health plan. In 2018, the amount the town will be paying for police health insurance coverage will be 91.5%. The police will be contributing 8.5%.

The other item of interest would be the health insurance coverage for retirees who were hired prior to January 1, 2000. They had a contract that expired in 2011. In that contract, officers had health insurance for themselves and their families for the rest of the officer’s life. That has now been modified. Those officers hired prior to January 1, 2000 will be receiving health insurance in a limited dollar amount for a limited term. It would be for 15 years from the day they retire; unless they reach the age of 65. If they retired at 50 they would receive 15 years of health insurance up to a certain limit. If they retire older than 50 years of age, they will only be covered until they hit 65. Then we have officers that were hired after January 1, 2000. Those officers will be entitled to a guarantee of 12 years of insurance or until they hit 65.

Then we come to the insurance dollar amount. $19,200 is the number the Town would contribute to one of the aforementioned retirees for family coverage - broken down by month $1,600 maximum and anything over that the retirees would have to pick up the added expense. If it is single coverage the town will contribute $7,032 – and where the town will cover $1,086 per month and where the retirees will have to pay over that.

Currently the cost of our insurance is not that great because we are self funded and have our insurance costs under control.

Does that answer your question?

Chowaniec: Somewhat. As an example, let’s say police officer retirees after 20 years and he or she is 50 years of age. From the day he retirees does he collect his earned ˝ pay immediately?

Coleman: Yes.

Chowaniec: With the health benefits you spoke of, for the next 15 years he will be covered under a family plan …

Coleman: Up to $1,600 per month.

Chowaniec: I believe the town’s self insured plan costs $19,300 and that covers dental and vision as well. Is that correct?

Coleman: We are only talking about medical insurance. $17,020 is what our medical plan costs.

Chowaniec: From what I understood from the prior 2012 and 2013 contract settlement, when you are in arbitration only one side (town or Cayuga Club) has to agree with a proposal the arbiter puts out. As long as two parties come to an agreement it becomes binding arbitration.

Coleman: I was not involved, so I don’t know.

Chowaniec: So, we don’t know whether it was a three or two party reached agreement?

Coleman: This was a direct negotiation between the town and the Cayuga Club – not through arbitration settlement.

Chowaniec: May I get a copy of the agreement? Where would I FOIL for it? Clerk’s Office?

Coleman: You could go there but if you come to my office I can provide you one.

Chowaniec: Thank you. One last comment. I asked for the contract details because many low income residents, and especially those retired and not seeing SS increases in the past several years, are paying $300 to $500 per month for Medicare and supplemental health insurance premiums that have no dental or vision plans, but do have extremely high deductibles and co-pays and are obligated to pay for health plans more generous than theirs.

So hearing that you have health care costs under control, but also hearing of the generous health plans the working police and retirees, I hope that the police understand that they are fortunate to have such plans in place.

Coleman: We have an obligation to negotiate in good faith. We have an obligation to the taxpayers and we are taxpayers also. It is a contract that I feel is fair.

Chowaniec: It is a fair contract. I hope the police realize that as well.