FARRELL, PA. Police panel requesting more from member municipalities

By HAROLD GWIN
VINDICATOR SHARON BUREAU
FARRELL, Pa. -- The member municipalities in the Southwest Mercer County Regional Police Commission are being asked to boost their contribution to the department by 5 percent next year.
The commission gave tentative approval to a $1,249,000 budget for 2004 Wednesday. The spending plan shows a $73,000 increase over this year's budget.
James DeCapua, commission chairman, said the increase can be found in a $31,000 jump in hospitalization costs, nearly a $12,000 jump in workers' compensation insurance and the rest in a 3.5 percent wage increase for employees.
The department has 14 full- and eight part-time officers.
Farrell will be asked to cover most of the increase as it is the largest municipality covered by the department and already pays the lion's share of the expense. The 5 percent increase in operating assessments against Wheatland and West Middlesex, the other two members, is a much smaller amount of money.
Miscellaneous sources
DeCapua had some concerns about the budget unveiled Wednesday, noting that it shows $15,060 in income from miscellaneous sources, an amount he doesn't believe will materialize.
That line item generated only $1,600 this year and shouldn't provide much more than that in 2004, he said.
However, that inflated revenue item can probably be offset by reducing the amount spent for police overtime and part-time officer salaries, he said.
The commission may also be able to drop its errors and omissions insurance on commission members at a savings of about $5,000, he said. The members are already elected officials in their home communities and are covered by insurance there.
DeCapua said the rise in hospitalization insurance would have been worse had the commission not decided to eliminate dental and vision supplemental insurance in 2004.
The commission changed insurance carriers at the beginning of this year and was able to pick up that added coverage at no additional cost.
However, the commission said then that, should the cost of the dental and vision coverage increase, the Fraternal Order of Police would have to pick up the added expense.
The police never approved that plan and, when costs did rise, refused to pick up the expense, prompting the commission to end the coverage with the end of this year.