Vanport County commissioners on Sept. 2 reversed a recent administrative change to employee health reimbursement arrangements and voted to restore the prior contribution levels after employees and board members raised concerns.

Employee representative Sarah Geraszczak told the commission the county’s employee association was frustrated and lacked an explanation for the change. “Why was this brought about? Why are we changing everything to $3,000 across all policies? Why are we changing the reimbursement to being a monthly distribution?” she asked the board.

County staff and the employees’ finance representative explained the county’s budgeting approach for the HRA: the budget assumption uses a percentage of possible use (the board was told the historical budgeting assumption is 70% of maximum potential usage). Staff said that historical actual usage of HRA funds has been substantially lower, which reduces any projected savings from standardizing contributions.

Commissioners debated whether moving to monthly distributions solved a practical problem. One commissioner summed it up: “If the wheel's not broke, don't fix it.” The board first voted unanimously to front-load HRA contributions for the year rather than disperse them monthly, then later moved and approved a separate action to restore the previous HRA levels (single $2,100, single plus children $3,150, family $4,200) and retain front-loading.

The commission also directed staff to improve communication with employee representatives about budget items affecting benefits and to meet with employee leadership before future budget decisions. Human resources said it would schedule discussions well in advance of next year’s budget cycle.

Why it matters: The HRA (health reimbursement arrangement) affects employees’ out-of-pocket expenses and recruitment and retention. Employees said they were given insufficient explanation and late notice about the change; commissioners cited potential negative effects on staff morale and hiring.

The county will implement front-loaded HRA deposits this fiscal year and revert contribution amounts to prior levels while staff studies administrative and budgeting alternatives.