If, as two Hamilton County commissioners allege, the county’s pension committee hasn’t been updated since its creation more than 80 years ago, or at least in the last several decades, then state legislation that helps reconstitute the committee is probably in order.
Commissioners passed a resolution making that request to the state Wednesday at the behest of Commissioners Greg Beck, D-North Brainerd, and Warren Mackey, D-Lake Vista, who would like to see more money coming their way when they retire.
“It’s not a sin to want to increase salaries or pensions,” Beck told this newspaper’s David Floyd. “It happens every day all the time with everybody. It’s not a sin to want to do that. It’s not a sin for the state, it’s not a sin for the federal (government) to request increases in pensions or anything. … Why does anybody want to see that as taboo?”
We’re not sure who Beck believes is calling a step toward increasing salaries or pension a “sin” or “taboo,” but he may have been referencing his and Mackey’s previous attempts to change how their pay or benefits are determined, and the public reaction to their attempts.
In 2015, when Beck was previously on the commission, he twice left a letter lying on a table in the commissioners’ private quarters aimed at allowing commissioners to set their own pay instead of having it tied to that of the county mayor and county employees.