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