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Salem Township approves 2025 pension obligations, renews health plan and authorizes fire department payments
Summary
On Sept. 18 the Salem Township Board of Supervisors approved the township's 2025 Minimum Municipal Obligations for defined-benefit and defined-contribution employee pension plans, renewed the UPMC health plan with an 8.4% premium increase, and authorized multiple fire and LST disbursements.
The Salem Township Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on Sept. 18 to accept the township's 2025 pension obligations and to authorize several budgeted payments tied to employee benefits and emergency services.
Supervisors adopted the Service Employees Defined Benefit Pension Plan's Minimum Municipal Obligation (MMO) for 2025. The board recorded a Normal Cost of 10.256 percent on an estimated active-participant payroll of $319,256, yielding a Normal Cost of $32,743 and a Financial Requirement of $42,959. After a funding adjustment the board approved a MMO payment of $31,316 to be deposited by year-end.
Kerry Jobe, a township supervisor, said the MMO represents a sharp decline from prior years and reflected the January 1, 2023 valuation: "We are finally out of the point where the taxpayers are subsidizing the pension system by putting more money into it than we are gaining." He said if markets hold the township can sustain current contributions.
The board also approved the Defined Contribution pension plan obligation for 2025: an employer contribution of 9.0 percent on estimated payroll of $175,674 for a total obligation of $15,811, and authorized payment consistent with that calculation.
Separately, supervisors approved renewal of the township's UPMC health plan, effective Oct. 30, 2024. The renewal carries an 8.4 percent increase, moving the estimated monthly premium from $12,174.07 to $13,199.96.
Supervisors authorized annual fire tax contributions of $35,000 each to the Slickville and Forbes Road Volunteer Fire Departments. The board also approved distribution of Local Services Tax (LST) receipts totaling $33,923.75 (split $16,961.87 to each company) and distribution of Commonwealth State Aid totaling $41,015.61 (split $20,507.80 each).
Votes at a glance: Minutes approval (motion_1A) ' passed unanimously; Expenditures approval (motion_1B) ' passed unanimously (total $171,198.01 across listed funds); Defined-benefit MMO acceptance (motion_1C) and payment (motion_1D) ' passed unanimously; Defined-contribution MMO (motion_1E) and payment (motion_1F) ' passed unanimously; UPMC renewal (motion_1G) ' passed unanimously; Fire tax and distributions (motions_1H, 1I, 1J) ' passed unanimously.
The board did not set additional conditions on these payments during the meeting; the meeting minutes reflect that routine disclosures of supervisors' prior business dealings with vendors were filed with the township secretary.
