County OKs ’25 salary ordinance

The salary ordinance is in place for next year.

Jay County Council approved the county’s 2025 salary ordinance at a brief meeting Wednesday.

County auditor Emily Franks explained the ordinance serves as a formality for the state, with much of its content already approved by council amid the 2025 budgeting process. Changes to the salary ordinance from the current year include various wage increases — raises ranged between 3% and nearly 16% depending on the job — and updates regarding county health insurance.

In November, Jay County Commissioners approved a nearly $1.58 million proposal with Physicians Health Plan for employees’ health insurance in 2025. (The proposal came in at an approximately 8% increase for 2025. Commissioners also agreed in November to change insurance brokers, switching from OneDigital of Fort Wayne to Understand, Service and Innovate (USI) Insurance Services of Carmel.) Commissioners selected a plan in which the county will pay an additional $79,000 in order to have lower monthly rates for some plans.

Starting in January, employees on the plan with their spouse or with children and employees on the family plan will see monthly decreases, with those on the family plan seeing the largest decrease from $709.14 to $500 monthly for the high-deductible plan and from $961 to $750 monthly for the traditional co-pay plan.

Council members Jeanne Houchins, Dave Haines, Randy May, Faron Parr and Cindy Bracy, absent Harold Towell and Matt Minnich, approved the salary ordinance.

In other business, council:

•Recognized Haines and Houchins for their service. Haines — he was appointed by Republican caucus to fill the seat vacated by Sheriff Ray Newton — served as a council member for two years. Houchins served on council for a dozen years over three terms.

•Made the following additional appropriations: $20,000 for medical and hospital fees at Jay County Jail; $6,600.18 for professional services from Rundell, Ernstberger and Associates for work related to developing the county’s 68 acres on the western edge of Portland.

•Approved several transfers, including $57,200 for wages in Jay Emergency Medical Services’ budget; $29,344.54 in commissioners’ budget for cybersecurity insurance, $28,830 in commissioners’ budget for electrical upgrades at Jay County Country Living; and $22,570.32 in Jay County Sheriff’s Office and Jay County Jail’s budget for wages, prisoners’ meals and clothing.

•Heard a New Year’s resolution from May, who noted the county will have two new council members and commissioners — Michael Brewster and Bryan Alexander and Duane Monroe and Doug Horn, respectively — beginning in January. “I’m going to make a resolution that we all work together (for) what’s best for Jay County.” He suggested hopes for a new grocery store in Jay County and said he believes growth will start with housing. He also advocated for setting goals in the new year.