Agenda - Council - 08/12/2024 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Fire Chief Kohner explained that the paid on -call firefighters are not included in the COLA increases so this would just be a 6% increase. Councilmember Musgrove asked why the paid on -call firefighters are not getting a COLA increase. Fire Chief Kohner shared that these firefighters' wages tend to fall behind since they are not being increased every year, resulting in them having to make large adjustments. He said there would be an opportunity to improve this structure to include these firefighters in the COLA discussions. Councilmember Musgrove asked if there is a reason these firefighters are not a part of the COLA discussions. City Administrator Hagen explained that they have not been included historically; however, there is nothing saying they cannot include these firefighters moving forward and approve their increase along with all of the other non -union positions. Councilmember Musgrove noted that it would be easier on the levy if they just have a yearly, gradual increase rather than getting behind and having to make this up with much larger increases. She said she would be interested to see if they are losing firefighters to other cities that may pay better. Mayor Kuzma said he would support the 6% increase to get these wages closer to the market rates. He added that it would also be a good idea to add these firefighters to the COLA discussion. Finance Director Lund discussed salary increases and health insurance costs. Councilmember Musgrove asked if the all -in personnel wages and benefits sheet includes the new personnel requests. Finance Director Lund said no but that additional number can be found two lines above on the sheet. Councilmember Musgrove asked if the current health insurance cost is $127,000 per month or per year and if this includes dental coverage. Finance Director Lund said it is $127,000 per year and includes health, dental, and life insurance. Councilmember Musgrove asked if the $127,000 is the increase for the year or the total. Finance Director Lund said it is the increase. She discussed the overall budget and shared that in last year's budget, they had $3,400,000 from other funding sources, including the legislative dollars for public safety and the capital equipment certificates. She explained that they now need to come up with $2,800,000 of funding to keep the budget fairly similar to last year. City Council Work Session / July 23, 2024 Page 5 of 12