This became a hot issue when former Salisbury Mayor Barrie P. Tilghman did not place it in the FY10 budget. Three City Council members have selected to use the Health Insurance and one member has decided to opt out when open enrollment comes up September 1, 2009. Historically this has been offered to City Council Members however it is not included in the City Charter as a part of the compensation package for Council Members and the Mayor.
This issue needs to be properly addressed by codifying the compensation for Elected Officials to include health insurance, life insurance, and retirement in the City Charter. Once it is set, then a decision needs to be looked into whether or not to grandfather in Council Members who currently receive these benefits. My answer would be yes, to grandfather them in. No matter what their position was when running for public office on the issue.
My personal view is I do not feel health insurance should be offered to City Council members in it's current form. I believe it should be offered as it is to City Employees. They are offered several stages, the basic which is covered by the city and then higher levels where the employee is required to pay for a portion of the premium.
That is where I stand on the issue and hopefully the Council and Mayor with proper advice can come to a solution that is both ethical and legal. We certainly do not need to have this to deal with in the future.
UPDATE: This has become an issue that has sky rocketed into the stratosphere. By Monday morning this is going to be national news. Jonathan Taylor, owner of Views of a Salisbury Grinch, has filed an ethics complaint against City Councilwomen Terry Cohen and Debbie Campbell.
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