Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Employees in Warsaw's police and fire departments may see an alteration in their clothing allowance policy if the city's Board of Works approves a change it's considering.
At Friday's meeting, Warsaw Mayor Ernie Wiggins proposed adding the departments' annual $800 clothing allowance to the employees' paychecks. In the past, payments were made directly to vendors.
The advantage to including the clothing allowance with salary, Wiggins said, is that the money would be available at any time for the employees to use as they see fit. The downside, he said, is that taxes would be taken out of the clothing allowance.
Fire Chief Ken Shepherd said his department's objection to the change is that it would effectively reduce the amount of the clothing allowance.
"The firemen's concern is that $800 doesn't cover it now," and if the allowance was added to paychecks, taxes and sales tax would make it even less.
Wiggins emphasized that the change is only being considered, and that city attorney Mike Valentine is looking into the legalities of the change. "Nothing is cast in stone at this point," Wiggins said.
In other business, the board:
• Approved a termination date of Dec. 31, 2007, for the sewage contract with Winona Lake;
• Approved the 911 contract with the county, including a payment from the county to Warsaw of $55,600 for operating the 911 system;
• Approved a contract with Warsaw Housing Authority paying city building inspector Pam Kennedy $3,700 for services to the WHA, and another contract for paying the WHA $14,000.
The Board of Works meets at 8:30 a.m. the first and third Fridays of each month in the city council chambers.
