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Staff outlines options on salary and benefit requests as JBC delays final decision
Summary
Joint Budget Committee staff presented options on salary structure and benefits (WINS agreement components), flagged substantial health-premium increases (11.4–24%), and said JBC has not yet committed to a full compensation package; legislative management requested a preliminary decision by Feb. 17 to aid agency budgeting.
Craig Harper of Joint Budget Committee staff briefed the Executive Committee on statewide compensation common policies, describing a complex request aligned to the WINS partnership agreement and noting the JBC has not finalized decisions.
Harper summarized four WINS components that factor into this year’s request: a 2% structural adjustment to salary ranges, a 3.1% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA), a statutory step-plan implementation, and a 0.4% step-like increase intended to bring parity for nonclassified staff. ‘‘The combination of those ... gives a total increase of 3.5% in salary funding,’’ Harper said. He cautioned DPA’s estimates for the legislative branch are approximate but provided a ballpark figure of about $1.8 million to implement the COLA and step-like increases for legislative staffing.
On benefits, Harper said state-health-plan premiums are rising ‘‘between 11.4 and about 24%’’ depending on the plan, with Cigna plans on the high end and Kaiser on the lower end; under the WINS agreement the state’s proposal would absorb the premium increases so employees’ out-of-pocket shares would not increase for FY27. JBC staff recommended several options for savings, including denying the 2% blanket structural range boost and separating step-plan funding to improve transparency and targeting.
The committee did not take formal action but was told the legislative management team requested a preliminary decision on compensation by February 17 so agencies can build budgets; members were asked to review the materials and follow up before the committee meets again.
