About Flagpole. (Athens, Ga.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (May 31, 2000)
Y FREE INSURANCE IS LIKELY TO END Health insurance costs for Athens*Clarke County employees will soon increase If the ACC Commission follows the advice of a committee appointed to evaluate the county's health plan. The county currently pays all health insurance premiums for employee coverage. According to ACC Personnel Director James Mord, employees contribute $89.40 per month to cover one additional person, and $J3L63 per month for family coverage. The commission's Health Trust Committee has recommended employees contribute $21.6? per month for themselves, $115.15 for two, and $153.30 for family coverage. Alford says there would be no change in benefits. ACC Commissioner Tom Chasteert chairs the Health Trust Committee. He says the committee believes the contributions are necessary because of a jump in health insur ance premiums, which will total $1.5 million for the next fiscal year. Under the com mittee's proposal, $1,15 million would be paid by Athens-Clarke County. The differ ence would be made up by employees. “We’ve got a significant increase In cost," says Chasteen. “We’ve got to work out some way to compromise.” At recent public hearings, county employees have asked the Commission to leave the plan as is, saying they were promised continuing free coverage when the Athens and Clarke County governments uni fied in 1991. “Health insurance has gotten so expen sive, when you've got a group as large as ours, it's a major line item in the budget,” says Mayor Doc Etdridge. “We still have a good health insurance plan. We just think it's going to have to be refined to keep up with modem times.” But Eld ridge has requested the Commission wait a year before making any changes. “I think there’s a lot more to it than just ’should the employees contribute or should they not,*” he says. “There's got to t>e an awful lot of number crunching and analysis about the different ways you can approach it. 1 don’t think we're quite ready.” Eldridge would like to explore basing the amount of employee contributions on Income. He also believes retired county workers should be exempt from paying: “I think we have, if not a legal, a moral obliga tion to the retirees to continue them under the arrangement they now enjoy” he says. Commissioner Chasteen agrees that an in- depth examination of the plan is needed but feels some action is warranted right away to offset rate increases. “Well deal with this particular year now, and then we'll start to report on state legislators nationwide who are or who could be using their power as lawmakers for personal financial gain. The Center for Public Integrity is a non partisan, non-profit organization that “exam ines public service and ethics-related issues." Their nearly 200-page report covers the legislatures of all 50 states. The Georgia section of the report chroni cles the exploits of several state lawmakers, including former Sen. Diana Harvey Johnson (DSavannah), who was convicted on five counts of mail fraud last year, yet initially refused to give up her state senate seat while she appealed her case. She was finally pressured to resign by a federal Work proceeds on the downtown infrastructure, and will get worse this summer. judge Former City Engineer Umar Pittard (right) stopped by Thursday to kibitz. According to prosecutors, Harvey work immediately on the next fiscal year,” he says, “because it’s a major item and a major issue os far as cost to the local government and our employees." Debate on the proposal should be settled by June 6, when the Commission votes on the new budget. (Brad Aaron) SOME LEGISLATORS DO HAVE CONFLICTS Following a two-year study a Washington, D.C.*based watchdog group has released a Johnson used her position in the senate to funnel $80,000 in state tourism grants into her own business, CCA Consulting. Barring a successful appeal, Harvey Johnson will serve 41 months in a federal prison. The report states that at least !5 Georgia senators and representatives refer to them selves as “consultants” on their 1998 finan cial disclosure forms. In Georgia, the Center says, “consultant-legislators are not required to reveal who their clients are. In most cases, they won’t even say what kind of con sulting they do.” Rep. Robin Williams (R-Augusta) owns A- AffiMated Agency, an “Insurance management consultants holding company." Williams is also president of an insurance agency and another “consulting” firm, Williams Services. Williams, who sells property and casualty insurance, sits on the House Insurance Committee, where the Center says he “is active writing insurance legislation, including a bill that would allow property and casualty insurers to raise rates up to five percent in a year and nine percent over two years.” The report also describes the consulting activities of Sen. Bill Stephens (R-Canton), Rep. Doug Teper (D-Atlanta) and Rep. Tyrone Brooks (D-Atlanta). It points out that while consulting and voting on laws related to personal interests is not illegal, it presents potential conflicts of interest which are unknown to the public. The Center notes that Georgia lawmakers are only required to reveal investments that “constitute more than 10 percent interest in a business or have a fair market value of more than $20,000.” They do not have to dis close the employment or investment inter ests of their spouses. And, the report says, “if a voter looks at a lawmaker's financial dis closure form,” there is a “likelihood that he or she will not discover what the representa tive does for a living." Studying the 1998 financial disclosure forms of Georgia legislators the Center found that "19 percent served on committees that regulated their professional or business interest; six percent had financial ties to businesses or organizations that lobby state government; and seven percent received income from a government agency other than the state legislature.” The Center emphasizes that though 41 out of the 50 state legislatures (including Georgia’s) are part-time, state lawmakers “are more powerful than ever in making deci sions that affect their constituents” The complete report is available on-line at 50statesonline.org (BA) WORK SESSIONS COVER LAND USE The ACC Commission has set the dates for two work sessions to discuss the devel- c AthensgQQ/S, Center W. Cbyton St S4M260 Basic Beginner Class Starting Dates Thursday, June 8 7pm Friday, June 9 5:30 pm $60 for Six Weeks Please Pre-Register 546-4200 Ongoing Lfvrl l and inurmtdutif, Drop-in CJasits aha AvaiJaM*. From; mujin [iaPSssi Athens or aeoxotA Main Station ATLANTA: 4166 Buford Hwy, 6 Clalrmont 1*877*726-6287 ATHENS: Super Mcdo* Los Compadres- 1380 Plince Ave. 706*543.6777 Restaurant La Samba* 151 6 Broad Street 706.543.0023 m MJIGSKMUB MAY 31 2000
