Warren Tribune Chronicle on double dipping

From Buddy Coffey, December 10, 2007
Subject: More ' LEGISLATION ON EDUCATION'

The following editorial appears today in the “Tribune Chronicle”, a newspaper from Warren, OH

DOUBLE DIPPING NOT A GOOD IDEA

The Champion Local School District provides a quality education for its students. Consistently earning an excellent rating on the state report card, a distinction reached by only 15 to 20 percent of all Ohio districts, Champion stands out among its Trumbull County peers. Credit starts at the top. Superintendent Pam Hood has held the top post since 1994. While everybody from students to parents to board of education members share the credit, Hood is ultimately responsible. The same can be said for Champion’s labor peace. After working through strikes in 1997 and 2000, Champion reached amicable agreements with its unions without giving away the house, thanks in part to Hood’s leadership. In fact, last year the district and its employees worked through some difficult financial times. But that does not justify another abuse of Ohio’s troublesome law that allows public employers to rehire retirees.

The Champion Board of Education plans to approve a retire-rehire plan with Hood tonight. Under the plan, the superintendent would retire and collect, according to some reports, a major portion of her $104,332 annual salary. The State Employee Retirement System determines the amount based on age and years of service. The Champion board then plans to rehire Hood at a reduced salary and claim it is saving the district money by not hiring somebody new. The savings would be about $12,000 in the district’s multi-million dollar budget. That’s because the board reportedly plans to rehire Hood at approximately $92,000. The board apparently fails to take into consideration that a new hire should start at a salary lower than an outgoing superintendent who served excellently for 13 years.

Most public employers claim rehiring retirees saves them substantially in health care benefits. But in Hood’s case, Champion is already not paying for her health care. And even if it was, that’s hardly worth compromising the principle of denying a younger person a promotion and sending the message that professional advancement here is stifled. It also prevents an even younger person from entering the system, further contributing to Trumbull County’s brain drain.

The board should seriously reconsider this plan that pays Hood, in retirement, about $180,000 annually and, according to some reports, benefits that include a $23,000 expense account, up to $6,000 in performance bonuses, a $1,800 car allowance and more. And the state legislature should reconsider the law that is proving to be a serious strain on the public retirement systems. To offset the cost of double dipping, public employers, like the Champion school district, may soon have to contribute more to their employees’ retirement funds. In the long run, this isn’t saving taxpayers anything.