Bedminster OKS new police contract

Bedminster Township Police Department officers will get pay hikes of 3.4 percent in 2013, 3.25 percent in 2014 and 3.1 percent in 2015 under a new contract approved Dec. 28, by the Bedminster Township Board of Supervisors.

For officers with four or more years in the department, the base salary is $75,790 this year, $78,253 in 2014 and $80,679 in 2015.

Beginning in 2014, the longevity bonus for officers will also increase, Jack Terry, township manager, said, going from its present 1 percent of base salary for each year after five years the officer has served plus $150, to 1.25 percent plus $150.

The contract sets rates for officers in their second year with the department and beyond, but does not specify a salary during the officer’s first year, Terry said.

A new officer being hired for the beginning of this year will have a base salary of $42,000, he said.

The township and officers worked together to reach a new contract, he said.

“I’m glad to see it’s settled and we didn’t have to go to arbitration,” Morgan Cowperthwaite, board chairman, said.

The contract also includes an increase in the percentage of health care costs paid by the officers, Terry said.

The officers are now paying 3 per-

cent of the costs, he said.

“They’ll be moving to 4 percent by the final year of the contract,” Terry said.

The new contract replaces a three-year one that ended at the end of 2012. That contract gave raises of 3.8 percent in 2010, 3.25 percent in 2011 and 3 percent in 2012. It also increased the share of pension funds coming from officer salaries, taking it from the previous 3 percent to 5 percent.

The year-end Dec. 28 meeting also included final approval of the 2013 budget.

The $1,989,493 total is 4.2 percent less than the 2012 budget and a “lean budget,” but continues the township’s existing services, Terry said.

The township property tax rate is unchanged at 7.5 mills, equal to $262.50 on a home assessed at $35,000. Each mill equals $1 of tax per $1,000 of assessed value. The 7.5 mills includes 4 mills for the general fund, 2.5 mills for open space and 1 mill for fire protection.

As included in the new contract, township police officers will get a 3.4 percent pay increase. Other township employees will get a 2 percent pay hike. Terry’s $87,000 salary will not increase.

A little more than twothirds of the township budget goes to employee pay or benefits and insurance. The cost for salaries and wages in 2013 is budgeted at $949,645, with another $413,061 going for benefits and insurance.