American Idol 2012 finale
Rollover crash injures 2
News hounds (5/24/12)
Michael D. Pitman reports about Butler County, Ohio, politics, county government, countywide issues and Butler County people just like you for Cox Ohio Publishing (including the Hamilton JournalNews, Middletown Journal and several weekly papers in Butler County). He wants your suggestions and questions for more news stories. Leave a comment for him here or e-mail Michael at Home > Blogs > Butler County News and Issues > Archives > 2011 > July > 16
Saturday, July 16, 2011
A recap of the workers’ comp missed payment
The late workers’ comp bill that allegedly will cost the county $1 million a year — but nobody can explain how that figure was calculated or if it’s accurate — was apparently a clerical error, according to some documents I gathered.
On Aug. 17, we’ll know if the good faiths attempt to pay the bill — which was apparently sent to the wrong state department — will have any ill effects.
Governmental entities were required to pay their 45 percent annual Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation payment on May 15 — a payment due the same time each year. However, Butler County’s payment, which was nearly $877,820, wasn’t made until June 9, and thus, according to the bureau, the county is in default.
Since the county participates in the retrospective rating program, a program they’ve been in since 1989, they were eligible for a discount if they make the full payment by May 15 — and if the payment is made by that date, then the county receives a .0005 percent premium rebate for each day it was paid in full before the Sept. 1 due date for the balance of the workers’ compensation payment.
The oversight was confirmed in a June 13 letter to Kathleen Davenport, regional liaison for the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation, from county Human Resources Director Gary Sheets called the late payment an oversight due to understaffing.
A $1 million impact on the county’s budget, which is $79.2 million for 2011, would likely require an increase of a 1 percent to the percentage of payroll set aside, said Office of Management and Budget Director Pete Landrum said. Each department currently sets aside 2.5 percent of its payroll to cover the county’s 2,500 employees, he said. (2,500 was the number of people the county employed in 2010)
Butler County Auditor Roger Reynolds reiterated assistant county prosecutor Dan Ferguson’s assertions the matter would be resolved and “I expect the issue to be fully resolved without any type of penalty.” But he wouldn’t say how much the default could cost the county and consulted.
If the county’s default appeal is denied, the county can be prevented from being eligible for future discounts, said workers’ compensation bureau spokeswoman Melissa Vince. She said in respects to the retrospective rating program, “an employer agrees to assume a portion of the risk in return for a possible reduction in premiums. The greater assumed risk, the greater the potential reduction in premiums.” She would not say, however, how much the county’s discount is or has been, or actual cost savings. Neither would county officials.
The county was notified by the Bureau of Workers’ Compensation on April 13 when the payment is due and how to report its payroll — which about $94.3 million — and how to submit the payment. Sheets said on Friday via an e-mail that no one in his office recalls seeing that letter.
Sheets said the staff became aware of the issue on June 6, the day before commissioners voted on the payment. County officials supplied the payroll report to the bureau after the commission vote and two days later the payment was made, Sheets and Vince said.
Commission President Chuck Furmon said staff is investigating and doesn’t want to place blame for the late payment.
“Rather than think of fault, we just want to get it corrected and make sure it doesn’t happen again,” he said.
Furmon wouldn’t speculate as to the cost of the county and declined to comment “until we get more details.”
Commissioner Cindy Carpenter heard the same $1 million estimate and said the commissioners were briefed on the issue “that it was overlooked by the auditor’s office. And our fact-finding investigation is under way.”
Reynolds said his office cannot pay a bill until an approved invoice comes to his office, which the workers’ compensation invoice came after the due date.
Thoughts?
Permalink | Comments (11) | Post your comment | Categories: Butler County, County Auditor, County Commission, County budget
Tweet
