Cedar Falls City Council approves transfer to cover health insurance fund loss [Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Iowa]

Sep. 7—CEDAR FALLS — The City Council did not immediately demand a change Tuesday in how it delivers health insurance to municipal employees after another fiscal year brought a loss to the fund it uses to self-insure.

The council had little discussion and voted 6-0 to transfer $1.2 million from its general fund savings of $2.2 million from fiscal year 2023 to cancel out the year's deficit and replenish the reserves. Councilmember Dustin Ganfield was absent.

The savings resulted when certain revenues come in higher or certain expenses come in lower than had been allotted back when the budget for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2023, was approved in the spring of 2022.

This time a year ago, the loss was $1.3 million. The council approved a $900,000 transfer to offset it.

"We're not paying a company to provide it. It's the most affordable way to provide health insurance in the long term," said Councilmember Simon Harding afterwards.

That being said, Finance and Business Operations Director Jennifer Rodenbeck attributed this past year's loss to "several large claims and consistent premium rates," and expressed in a memo that a "major concern continues to be the (insurance) fund balance."

"We (the city) don't have a profit margin built in," she previously told the council. "When you're buying insurance, you're also having to pay for that company to make money, so we've always thought that it's more cost effective to be self-insured."

She noted prior to the meeting that staff will likely give a briefing and facilitate a discussion on the concern during the council's goal setting discussions at the end of the year. Officials could consider plan changes, whether that be to out of pocket maximums, co-insurance or deductibles.

The finance department previously expressed concerns, as well, about drastic changes to benefits, wanting to keep them attractive as a recruitment tool. Any talks about changes would involve negotiations with the public safety and public works unions.

"I'm not concerned right now. We've got to do it," said Councilmember Daryl Kruse in a telephone interview after attending the meeting remotely. "We'll have to reevaluate at some point and maybe push back a little bit."

The general fund savings transfer included $1 million in remaining excess funds to help pay for the expansion of the pickleball courts, recreational improvements along the Cedar River, and Cedar Falls Community Schools' new swimming facility with $100,000, $300,000, and $600,000 payments, respectively. These expenses were already budgeted and are not an additional city contribution to these projects.

The council approved several other items:

* An ordinance, in a 5-1 vote on the second of three readings, allowing for churches, schools, and other civic and institutional organizations to have parking — an accessory use — across the street from their property's principal use in the downtown. The proposed change came about after St. Patrick's Church proposed building a parking lot at 123 W. Seventh St. and requires five votes in the affirmative because of denial by the Planning and Zoning Commission. Councilmember Kelly Dunn dissented.

* A resolution, in a 4-2 vote, amending the agreement with the Cedar Falls Rotary Club relative to its new community plaza being constructed in the 200 block of West First Street between the Little Red School House and the Behrens Rapp Station. The club is planning to install lighting as part of the project and would like the city to cover the expense. The Community Development Department had recommended that the city not do so. Two councilmembers, Kruse and Susan deBuhr, also opposed.

* A contract with Spahn & Rose, in a 6-0 vote, to build a new shelter in Orchard Hill Park at a base price of $28,672 as part of the expansion of the pickleball courts.

* An agreement with Cedar Falls Partners LLC, in a 6-0 vote, conveying 11.79 acres and offering a five-year property tax exemption for an 87,000-square-foot industrial warehouse building along Development Drive, Innovation Drive and Technology Parkway. The developer is a joint venture between Crosland Barnes Group and B&D Holdings.

* An agreement, in a 6-0 vote, with Grow Cedar Valley for $30,000 in base funding this fiscal year with another $32,000 possible based on its performance as it pertains to economic development.

* An ordinance, in a 5-1 vote on the third and final reading, establishing temporary long-term daily permits for municipal parking lots. DeBuhr opposed.

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