An early retirement plan for Hamilton County deputies has both promise and pitfalls, county commissioners were told Tuesday.
On the plus side, officers with 25 years of service could retire at age 55 with a significant pay bump until they reach 62, the minimum age to receive Social Security. That would get them out of a potentially dangerous job and make room for younger- and lower-paid deputies.
The downside is many of those officers - everyone except those with 30 years of service or those older than 60 with 20 years in - would lose access to the county's retiree health benefits, which continue until age 65.
And then there's the cost - $350,000 a year starting out for about 168 officers. Another possible sticking point: If the county adopted the program and county officials changed their minds, anyone in the eligible group would remain eligible until he or she reaches retirement age, which makes the cost unpredictable.
And, of course, it would have to be paid for somehow.
Altogether, there was a lot for commissioners to chew on when County Mayor Jim Coppinger and representatives from the state Department of Treasury and Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System briefed them on the results of an actuarial study analyzing the plan.
"We generally tell folks to have a 40- or 50-year view of this," said Drew Freeman with the Treasury Department. "For a young officer who has time to plan for this, I think it's a really good deal."
Sheriff Jim Hammond has pushed hard for what's known as the "bridge plan," which would cover only certified law enforcement officers, not jailers or administrators in his 387-person department. He said his people are fully on board.
"I think it's the best and right thing for the men," Hammond said at the briefing.
A 55-year-old officer with 25 years' service making $40,000 a year would get about $1,000 a month under the current plan, vs $1,313 a month for a 60-year-old.
Under the bridge plan, 25-year officers who retire at 55 or thereafter would get $1,938 a month until age 62, when their checks would fall back to $1,313.
But retirement at age 60 would be mandatory, and many officers would have to find their own health care coverage.
"The insurance is a big thing," Coppinger said.
Commissioners had many questions about the county's commitment and the costs. Freeman and Karen Curtis with the retirement system said six Tennessee counties and several municipalities - including Signal Mountain and Cleveland, Tenn. - already are in the bridge plan and some have expressed concerns about costs.
Commissioner Joe Graham called that a "big red flag" and latched onto a comment by Hammond that "if this commission would ever straighten out the play plan, the officers would grab that" instead.
Hammond was referring to a plan set up under a prior administration that he said the county hasn't funded since he became sheriff. Graham suggested studying the pay plan to see if its benefits would accomplish the same thing.
Hammond demurred.
"It's really based on the physical ability to do the job after age 60. When you're out there running people down it becomes very trying," he said.
The bottom line is that the county's cost for retirement benefits will be higher, Freeman said, but he added that Hamilton County has a strong tax base to pay for it.
Should commissioners want to adopt the plan, Coppinger said, they'll have to figure out how to pay for it. He doesn't favor paying for a recurring expense through annual revenue growth, which is variable and which already pays for employee raises and health insurance, debt service and other spending.
And he doesn't like to use the "T" word, either.
Local government has worked hard to increase its revenue by helping the county grow, he said, and there's been no property tax increase for eight years.
"If the question is, can we always sustain [services] where we are, my position is we'll do that as long as we can," he said.
It's not an immediate question yet. Even if the county goes forward with the bridge plan, commissioners seemed to favor delaying implementation for a year or more so officers would have time to get ready.
Contact staff writer Judy Walton at jwalton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6416.