GI city council member shocked by pension fund mistake

Tools

by Lauren Conley

Story Created: Dec 13, 2012 at 6:47 PM CDT

Story Updated: Dec 13, 2012 at 7:50 PM CDT

An unapproved funding change in Grand Island nearly 8 years ago is now causing some heated debate. The Police department retirement fund is running out of money because they've been overpaying retired officers.

News 5's Lauren Conley spoke with city officials on the matter.

It was discovered by city council member Chuck Haase. He was actually the city finance director from 1992 to 1999. So he's very familiar with the system.

The claim for Sargeant Cole's pension was so large that Haase thought something seemed wrong.

He did some digging and spoke with the current finance director Jaye Monter. That's when he realized the city has been making a hefty mistake.

"The statutes are very clear that the city council is the governing body and is the administrator of this pension system. So they're responsible for the administration. To not take something to city council and change the policy is wrong under any circumstances. I'm amazed that all the senior directors in the city of Grand Island didn't recognize that. That concerns me a lot," said Haase.

He also says that there are officials with the city that likely know exactly who made this change, but aren't speaking up.

On Demand

This content requires the latest Adobe Flash Player and a browser with JavaScript enabled. Click here for a free download of the latest Adobe Flash Player.

Poll

Should the legal limit for alcohol behind the wheel be lowered from .08 to .05?

  • Yes
  • No

Local Gas Prices

Lowest Gas Prices in Tri-Cities
Nebraska Gas Prices provided by GasBuddy.com

KHASTV on Facebook

Weather Closings