Members of the court struggled Tuesday to find a way to handle the insurance in the short term, finally deciding to go with a negotiated offer from Prudential that will cost 41 percent more than last year's insurance. The county's going to be paying more, the employees are going to be paying more, and even with the 3 percent pay increase, some people will make less money. Commissioners said they are trying to avoid making a hasty decision that will trap the county in a multi-year insurance contract and will again seek bids in hopes of finding better prices. I'm not interested in paying any more consultants. The county pays for 90.96 percent, 60.03 percent, 61.26 percent and 47.36 percent of those costs respectively.
Employees pay for the rest by paycheck deductions.
County officials had been hoping for just a 15 percent increase in insurance costs once the bids were returned. Law enforcement officers petitioned the county for substantial raises, but commissioners granted a raise of only 3 percent - the same as all other county employees. Members of Nueces County Law Enforcement United, an organization of jailers, deputies and constables, have asked commissioners to narrow the gap between their pay and city police salaries, arguing they should be paid the same for performing similar jobs. All rights reserved.