Normal to save $100K on insurance, technology

Aug. 20--NORMAL -- In a tough fiscal year, Normal officials will deliver some rare good budget news Monday.

The town, which raised fees and cut employees and services to address a $4 million deficit for fiscal year 2019, will save $100,000 due to lower-than-expected price increases on health insurance and a new software hosting system, pending city council approval.

Town staff projected an 8 percent increase in health, dental and life insurance premiums for employee plans, but they're expected to increase only 2 percent as of Jan. 1 under Normal's agreement with broker The Horton Group. That's a $55,000 annual savings.

"By taking a proactive approach to the management of the health program, and with insights and guidance from Horton, the renewal of the health program is favorable despite some very large claims which tended to be related to specialty drug spending," according to a memo from Human Resources Director Jenny Keigher.

No plan changes are expected this year, said City Manager Pam Reece. She noted town staff works with an employee committee to consider changes.

The town would save $44,000 per year by moving some services from its own computer server to one owned and operated by Superion, LLC, through the cloud. Normal currently spends about $154,000 on software maintenance and server replacement that will be replaced by a $110,000 lease agreement.

"There are additional indirect costs such as backup tapes, electricity and personnel-related expenses that are difficult to quantify but will be saved by moving the servers to the cloud," according to a memo from Interim Information Technology Director Mindy Dance.

The shift would also offer the town browser-based access to data from a variety of internet-enabled devices; support, monitoring, backup and regulatory compliance from Superion; and "operational efficiencies during times of crisis should that become necessary, allowing town staff to focus on the recovery of other on-premise services."

Reece said the town will retain some on-site servers, but specific services like financial management will be moved off site.

"We will be reducing our reliance on our internal servers," she said.

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The town cut 24 employees and a subsidy for trash disposal fees as of April 1. That means more work for the remaining employees and significantly higher trash bills for residents, whose $18 per month rose to $24 on April 1 and will rise again each April until it's $32 per month in 2021.

Sewer fees also are set to spike, from about $10 per month for the average household last fall to about $22 by April 2023. Water fees will go up another 2 percent this year as well, and residents are now billed monthly for water.

Service cuts included the Orlando Avenue police substation, a housing rehabilitation program and the Bone grant for historic homes. Other initiatives were reduced, including Harmon Arts Grants, Normal Newsline and training.

The council meets 7 p.m. Monday on the fourth floor at Uptown Station.

Contact Derek Beigh at (309) 820-3234. Follow him on Twitter: @pg_beigh

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