Commission approves real‑time payroll deductions; staff to quantify short‑term cash needs

County staff presented competing approaches for implementing the Employee Navigator benefits administration integration and how to collect employee premiums. The prior practice collected premiums one month in advance so funds were available when carriers billed; the Employee Navigator integration would collect on a current-month basis and delay the feed for employer contributions.

Mr. Emerson explained the operational benefits of using Employee Navigator (fewer manual entries, auditability) but warned that the system would not automatically capture some employer-side contributions and that manual entries might be necessary if the commission chose to maintain the previous advance-collection approach. HR and counsel stressed that Blue Cross Blue Shield bills a month in advance and that the county must ensure cash is available to avoid violating cash-basis requirements.

Commissioners voted to adopt the recommendation to move to real-time deductions (collect on a current-month basis) with the understanding staff would quickly identify any shortfalls that would require fronting employee contributions for the first billing. HR agreed to run a pivot and provide the exact cash shortfall by December 3 so payroll can be processed accurately.

The board emphasized speed: if manual entries are needed to preserve the prior advance-collection behavior, staff must begin that work immediately. Otherwise, the Employee Navigator integration will turn on in January with deductions starting in the first January payroll.