Des Plaines aldermen go against mayor, OK health insurance benefits
It's official: Health insurance benefits for elected officials in Des Plaines are now part of city code.
The city council's 6-2 second reading vote Monday night follows at least two months of debate at council meetings — an issue prompted by Alderman Denise Rodd when she ran for office in 2013 that officials be stripped of the coverage.
Des Plaines mayors, aldermen and city clerks have all been eligible for city health and dental coverage for more than three decades — something that's been “policy and practice” but nothing that was ever written in the code, according to Peter Friedman, the city's general counsel.
That led to the approval Monday of an ordinance codifying the perks.
Monday's vote is also a continuation of a political chess match with Mayor Matt Bogusz, who unilaterally decided last month to get rid of the benefits for all elected officials at the end of their current terms of office.
Bogusz, along with Rodd and Alderman Don Smith, doesn't take city health or dental benefits. He's said he would “use the tools available” to him to ensure the benefits are ended, indicating he may issue a veto.
If he does, that notification could come as soon as the next council meeting April 4, setting up a potential vote to override it April 18. Aldermen in favor of keeping the benefits have the required six votes to override a veto.
“I don't think public servants do this job looking for a payback,” Bogusz said Monday. “I think if you are looking for a payback, then you are in the wrong business.”
Some residents Monday night came to the defense of elected officials who receive city health coverage.
Brian Burkross argued the perks are a small price to pay for the $3,000 salaries aldermen receive.
“From the aldermen I've worked with on various issues, I think if you guys kept a log of how much time you put in, you're probably making $3 to $4 an hour,” he said.
Those who accept the city health plan must pay 12 percent of premium costs; the city picks up the remainder. Last year, coverage for elected officials cost the city $92,692.