Lower insurance rates recommended for Dougherty employees

Oct. 09--ALBANY -- At a time when skyrocketing insurance costs are a typical part of the news cycle, Dougherty County employees got some news Monday that bucks that trend.

If the Dougherty Commission follows through with the recommendation of the county's Insurance Review Committee, county employees not only won't be stuck with higher premiums during the 2018 calendar year, they will get premium reductions that will amount to up to $1,100 in savings over the course of the year.

Assistant County Administrator Mike McCoy made the recommendation on behalf of the Insurance Review Committee at Monday's commission work meeting.

"Last year at this time, we came to you and asked for a 9 percent increase in employee premiums based on projected costs of our plan," McCoy said. "Our plan performed well over the year, and the projected costs for 2018 are $3.7 million. That compares to $4.5 million this year.

"With the projected cost savings, the Insurance Review Committee is recommending that the savings go to our employees. We are asking for a decrease in premiums that will average around $635. While we've frozen employee salaries (due to financial constraints), they're actually going to be taking home more money because insurance premiums will go down. People under the family plan will save as much as $1,100."

County Administrator Richard Crowdis noted that while county employees will be the direct beneficiaries of the premium savings, the county's cost of the self-administered plan will remain the same as well.

"Coming in a year when we've had so many challenges, I fully support these savings being passed on to our employees," Commission chairman Chris Cohilas said.

The board will vote on the measure at its meeting next week.

Also at Monday's meeting, the board:

-- Got information on a $79,130 bid by Pittman Waller Roofing Co. of Macon to repair the roof at the Northwest Library branch;

-- Heard a proposal by Human Resources Director Dominique Hall to simplify the county's Health and Wellness Center no-show policy;

-- Was asked to consider creating a timber harvesting ordinance that will help officials track the harvesting of timber in the unincorporated portion of the county;

-- Received information on plans to make state-mandated changes to the county's soil erosion, sedimentation and pollution control ordinance.

Hall told commissioners the proposed no-show ordinance would penalize employees who do not appear for scheduled appointments at the county's Health and Wellness Center, those who show up five minutes or more late for appointments, and those who cancel appointments less than 5 minutes before those appointments are scheduled to begin.

The commission also got a quarterly report from County Extension Coordinator James Morgan, who said the local 4-H program has begun conducting meetings at 16 schools in the county.

In a special called meeting after the work session, the board voted to approve a rezoning request that will allow Excel Pecan Co. to legally utilize 168.801 acres of land as part of its pecan-growing process, under specific restrictions.

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