Thursday, September 19, 2013

Times Reports Lake County Budget Passes without Solid Waste District Pension Bump

From the Northwest Indiana Times:

The Lake County Council gave its tentative approval to a 2014 budget that doesn't include a new pension plan for the county solid waste management district.

Lake County Treasurer John Petalas said Wednesday the solid waste district's administrators have withdrawn a proposal to use $249,000 in property tax revenues to create a new pension plan criticized by some on the waste management's board of directors as excessive.

It would have given employees with at least 15 years of service a pension in their first 10 years of retirement ranging from 10 percent up to 65 percent of salary for employees with 30 or more years of service.

Council members did approve a $5.2 million operational budget for the solid waste management district budget, but they rejected any pay raises for its staff. There are no across-the-board raises for other county employees either.
The overall budget also requires the collection of $159 million in property taxes, and nearly $17 million in income tax in addition to millions more in user fees.

Several township trustees petitioned the council for a slice of the new 1.5 percent income tax to be collected from all county residents and workers beginning next month.

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http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/lake/lake-budget-passes-without-solid-waste-district-pension-bump/article_f81e0449-6bce-5977-b383-d0588247d769.html