Carmel council expands deferred-comp benefits to fire department and approves ordinance
Loading...
Summary
The council voted to amend city code so Carmel Fire Department members can redirect the employer-equivalent 6.2% FICA contribution into deferred compensation, matching the police arrangement; the measure passed after the fire union reported a unanimous membership vote in favor.
The Carmel Common Council approved an ordinance to extend the city’s non-elective deferred compensation structure to the Carmel Fire Department, allowing the employer-equivalent 6.2% Social Security contribution to be redirected into firefighters’ deferred-comp accounts.
Zach Jackson, Carmel chief financial officer and controller, told the council the change mirrors a long-standing arrangement for the police department. “So instead of 6.2% going towards Social Security for police, we also put that in their deferred comp,” Jackson said, explaining the city’s practice of contributing the equivalent amount into deferred compensation rather than Social Security for covered employees. Jackson described the change as cost neutral to the city.
Sean Sutton, representing the firefighters’ union, said the membership had voted earlier in the year in favor of the change. “It was a unanimous vote by our membership,” Sutton said, characterizing the measure as increasing take-home pay for some firefighters depending on individual choices.
Councilor Taylor moved to suspend the rules and act on the ordinance the same evening. The council approved the motion and the ordinance was adopted at the meeting.
The action revises city code language that previously applied only to police so the same non-elective deferred-compensation option is available to Carmel firefighters. The ordinance will be implemented through human resources and payroll processes overseen by the CFO’s office; specific payroll timing or start dates were not specified in the council discussion.
