Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current, January 04, 2017, Image 6

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Polk County itemizer observer., January 04, 2017, Page 6A, Image 6

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Newspaper Page TextPolk County News 6A Polk County Itemizer-Observer • January 4, 2017 PERS: Governments tackle increases in variety of ways Continued from Page 1A In 2013, the Legislature passed reforms including lowering cost of living ad- justments on benefits. The court ruled in 2015 that idea is OK for benefits earned after the legislation was en- acted, but not before. That decision wiped out most of longterm cost savings. That ruling, and others, have held the system to past agreements with employees, which lead PERS Executive Director Steven Patrick Rodeman to say that the ris- ing unfunded liability is both a concern and a stub- born problem to solve. In a September 2016 pres- entation to the Bipartisan PERS Solutions Work Group, Rodeman said that retired employees are responsible for most of the increases. Those benefits account for 64 percent of the program’s liability. “Proposed legislative con- cepts either shift the benefit cost from employers to mem- bers, or reduce the normal cost incrementally by reduc- ing benefits for active mem- bers, but do not reduce the unfunded legacy benefits that are the principal driver of higher employer rates,” Rodeman’s presentation read. Forward-thinking changes have been made. The Oregon Public Service Retirement Plan was created for workers hired after Aug. 29, 2003, and is significantly less costly, Crosley said. Even with those changes, PERS payments to retirees will continue to grow from about $4.5 billion in 2016 to PERS definitions and facts • Accrued liability: Beneﬁts already earned by retired or active employees. • Unfunded actuarial liability: diﬀerence between the cost of beneﬁts already earned and funds projected to be available to pay for them. In 2015, that diﬀerence was about $22 billion. • Tier 1: Pension program covering public employees hired before Jan. 1, 1996. • Tier 2: Pension program covering public employees hired from Jan. 1, 1996, through Aug. 28, 2003. • Oregon Public Service Retirement Plan (OPSRP): Program covering public employ- ees hired on or after Aug. 29, 2003. New PERS rates for local governments Polk County 2017-19 rates: Tier 1 & 2 payroll = 20.96%; OPsRP general payroll = 12.44%; OPsRP police & ﬁre payroll = 17.21% Polk County Fire District No. 1 2017-19 rates: Tier 1 & Tier 2 payroll = 22.53%; OPsRP general payroll = 11.91%; OPsRP police & ﬁre payroll = 16.68% City of Dallas 2017-19 rate: Tier 1 & Tier 2 payroll = 22.03%; OPsRP general payroll = 13.74%; OPsRP police & ﬁre payroll = 18.51% City of Falls City 2017-19 rates: Tier 1 & Tier 2 payroll = 17.05%; OPsRP general payroll = 10.19%; OPsRP police & fire payroll = 14.96% City of Independence 2017-19 rates: Tier 1 & Tier 2 payroll = 21.10%; OPsRP general payroll = 11.43%; OPsRP police & ﬁre payroll = 16.20% a peak of $8 billion in 2040. For the immediate fu- ture — the 2017-18 budgets about to be written — local governments are responding in a variety of ways. Polk County Administra- tor Greg Hansen said the county’s budget can absorb PERS if other costs don’t get City of Monmouth 2017-19 rates: Tier 1 & Tier 2 payroll = 19.09%; OPsRP general payroll = 10.81%; OPsRP police & ﬁre payroll = 15.58% Central School District 2017-19 rates: Tier 1 & Tier 2 payroll = 12.47%; OPsRP general payroll = 7.14% Falls City School District 2017-19 rates: Tier 1 & Tier 2 payroll = 6.59%; OPsRP general payroll = 1.26% Dallas School District 2017-19 rates: Tier 1 & Tier 2 payroll = 27.20%; OPsRP general payroll = 21.87% Perrydale School District 2017-19 rate: Tier 1 & Tier 2 payroll = 27.20%; OPsRP general payroll = 21.87% source: PERs out of hand at the same time. “If we don’t get large in- creases in health insurance … we should be able to w e a t h e r t h a t s t o r m ,” Hansen said. The city of Dallas set aside $84,000 in the current budg- et, and employees will begin paying a percentage of their health care plans to defray PERS costs, said Finance Di- rector Cecilia Ward. Falls City Mayor Terry Un- gricht said the information he has now points to mini- mal impact, but he will know more in a few months. Gloria Butsch, Indepen- PERS By The Numbers 1945 About 21 The year the Oregon Legis- lature created the PERS program. 213,455 Number of active or inac- tive employees who are part of the PERS system. 134,323 Number of people cur- rently receiving PERS ben- efits. 925 Number of employers that are part of the PERS sys- tems. About 74 Percentage of benefit pay- ments paid for by invest- ment earnings. dence’s finance director, doesn’t anticipate cuts to compensate for PERS, but said, “It is a bit early in the process to know fully how we will respond.” School districts may be in wait-and-see mode for the Legislature’s final say on the state’s 2017-19 budget. Gov. Kate Brown’s budget proposal released in Decem- ber — the first take on the more than $20 billion spending plan — attempted to set aside enough to main- tain current programs, in- Percentage of benefit pay- ment paid by employers. $2,347 Average monthly benefit payment for 2014 retirees. 44 Percentage of salary re- placed at retirement for 2014 retirees. 64 Percentage of actual liabil- ity accounted for by cur- rent retirees. 4 Percentage of estimated increase every two years until the 2021-23 bien- nium. source: PERs cluding PERS costs. Tami Montague, Dallas School District business man- ager, said the $8 billion going to schools in the governor’s draft may not be enough to save schools from cuts. “However, we really won’t know what potential reduc- tions look like until the Leg- islature sets the final budget for K-12 during their up- coming session,” she said. “Historically, the legislative final budget is a little higher than the governor’s, but we can’t be assured of that.” Cold weather settles in Polk County Itemizer-Observer staﬀ report POLK COUNTY — As tem- peratures drop, the American Red Cross shares these 10 steps to help you stay safe dur- ing cold weather. 1. Layer up. Wear layers of lightweight clothing. 2. Don't forget furry friends. Bring pets indoors, or make sure they have enough shelter to keep them warm and that they can get to unfrozen water. 3. Remember the three- feet rule. If Using a space heater, place it on a level, hard surface and keep anything ﬂammable at least three feet away. 4. Requires supervision — Turn oﬀ space heaters and make sure ﬁreplace embers are out before leaving the room or going to bed. 5. Don't catch ﬁre. If using a ﬁreplace, use a glass or metal ﬁre screen large enough to catch sparks and rolling logs. 6. Protect your pipes. Run water, even at a trickle, to help prevent pipes from freezing. Open the kitchen and bath- room cabinet doors to allow warmer air to circulate around the plumbing. 7. Better safe than sorry. Keep the thermostat at the same temperature day and night. 8. The kitchen is for cook- ing. Never use a stove or oven to heat a home. 9. Use generators outside. Never operate a generator in- side the home, including in the basement or garage. 10. Knowledge is power. Don't hook a generator up to the home's wiring. The safest thing to do is to connect the equipment you want to power directly to the outlets on the generator. (redcross.org) travel by reading 100 novels each year. He even enjoyed playing games on his Wii. After his failing eyesight, he still traveled by watching movies and TV. He is preceded in death by his wife Lois, his daughter Carol his brothers Chuck, Bob and Ray, and sister Ginny. He is survived by his son Mike (his wife Eva), grand- daughter Jennifer (her hus- band Johnathan) Mullins and 3 great grandchildren C o l b y, M a d d i l y n A n d William. Come celebrate Harry’s life for an informal gathering on Saturday, Jan. 7, from 3 to 5 p.m. at the Hong Kong Restaurant in Dallas. Private interment will be in Dallas Cemetery. Bollman Funeral Home is caring for the family. Photo by LUKAs EggEN/ Itemizer-Observer OBITUARIES Harry A. Moore March 2, 1928 – Dec. 21, 2016 Harry A. Moore, a resident of Dallas, died on Wednes- day, Dec. 21. He was born on March 2, 1928, in San Pedro, Calif., the son of Harry and Venley Moore. He was the middle child of five children. Harry joined the Mer- chant Marines at the age of 17 for two years. He then joined the Navy and served for 12 years sail- ing around the world, criss- crossing the equator and many great adventures. Harry later met Lois May- field, and they were married in August of 1966, at Catalina Island, Calif. They settled in Falls City. Harry worked for Willamette Industries ply- wood mill in Dallas for many years until his retire- ment. Harry and Lois enjoyed traveling to Hawaii several times. They also enjoyed traveling around Oregon, es- pecially, to the coast. They were a very active couple. After Lois had a massive stroke Harry cared for his wife in their home for 12 years. Lois passed away on April 17, 2004. Harry continued to stay active by golfing. He liked to Joyful Sound Hearing 312 Main Street • Dallas • Hearing Testing • Hearing Aids • Service Call today for your FREE Consultation Mark Sturtevant 503-623-0290 Personally involved and invested in the Dallas community Billy M. Sanders April 27, 1937 – Dec. 25, 2016 Billy M. Sanders, 79, died Dec. 25. Billy was born in Nampa, Idaho, to William and Mar- garette Sanders. Billy is preceded in death by his brother Lynn Sanders. Billy is survived by daugh- ters, Dena Sanders and Kerry Sanders-Leos; sisters, Darlene Eamons and Carma Hanson; brother, Nick John- son; and four grandchildren. Private family services will be held at a later date. Keizer Funeral Chapel handled arrangements. To leave an online tribute: Keiz- erchapel.com. Norma Lambert-Crites Welcoming new patients. Most insurance health plans accepted. Also a Moda preferred provider. Dec. 5, 1959 – Dec. 29, 2016 Salem 412 Lancaster Drive NE Salem, OR 97301 (503) 581-6265 Low Cost Cremation & Burial Funerals & Memorials Simple Direct Cremation $595 Simple Direct Burial $710 Traditional Funeral $2,275 Discount priced Caskets, Urns and other Memorial items. ~ Polk County’s ONLY Family Owned Funeral Homes ~ Privately owned cremation facility. Locally owned and operated by Oregon families. www.ANewTradition.com Services are pending at this time. Dallas Mortuary Tribute Center is caring for the family. Horace ‘Bill’ Steele Jan. 31, 1928 – Dec. 29, 2016 Horace “Bill” Steele, 88, died Dec. 29, 2016, in Dallas. Service will be on Jan. 6 at Dallas Alliance Church.