Politics & Government

Morris Plains Saving $16K Under Benefits Reform

School district administrator: Changing rules on long-time employees is unfair

Morris Plains can expect to save $16,358 over the course of Fiscal Year 2012, as a result of .

The bill requires police, fire fighters, teachers and other public employees to pay a greater percentage of their health care and pension costs.

A total of $4,952 in savings is forecast for the Morris Plains School District, which will pay $95,075 toward pensions and benefits instead of $100,027, according to information released by the Christie administration last week. Savings for the Morris Plains municipal government are expected to be $11,406, with $219,027 paid toward pensions and benefits instead of $230,433.

Find out what's happening in Morris Township-Morris Plainswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Greater savings are anticipated in coming years, as the bill steps up public employees' obligations over time.

"I think it's a good thing," said Morris Plains Mayor Frank Druetzler. "The cost of pensions is decreasing a little bit and that's better than increasing. Anything that goes down [in cost] is better—we're just trying to hang on here."

Find out what's happening in Morris Township-Morris Plainswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

David E. Banks, CFO for the Borough of Morris Plains, said he didn't think the new legislation would cause public employees to retire sooner than they had planned in hopes of preserving more of their benefits. 

"I don't think there will be a move to the door," Banks said. I suspect it won't be as bad as people think. The changes in health benefits happen over several years."

Gov. Chris Christie signed the law late last month after lawmakers  from both major political parties brokered the deal that upset unions throughout the state.

The reform bill requires state and local government workers who belong to the Public Employees Retirement System, as well as teachers and other education workers under their own retirement system, to pay an additional 1 percent of their salaries toward their pensions as of July 1—bringing them up to a 6.5 percent contribution. Another 1 percent would be phased in over seven years, for a total of 7.5 percent.

State and local police, as well as firefighters, must contribute an additional 1.5 percent of their salaries to their own pension funds. Local police and firefighters will be contributing 10 percent; state police will be contributing 9 percent.

The bill also moves the retirement age for new teachers and non-uniformed employees from 60 years old to 65. To be eligible for early retirement, the employees now have to work 30 years instead of 25.

The bill will have a more significant impact on the cost of health benefits, as it requires all public employees and certain public retirees to contribute toward the cost of health care benefits coverage based upon a percentage of the cost of coverage. Public employees could see current health costs at least doubled, or tripled in some cases, with increases phasing in over four years.

The Morris Plains School District's business admiistrator, Alice Bresett, said, "If you're just signing up for a job, then you know what the [new] rules are ... I understand where everyone is coming from, but when you've based your career on an expectation and then, a few years before you retire, the rules change, that doesn't seem fair."

Laurie Schorno, the teacher whose name was provided by the school district as a union representative, did not return calls. Thomas Keane, a union representative for police officers, intends to meet with Patch for an interview next week.


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