Key Players in Acton's Chapter 69 Debate Speak Out (VIDEO)

Mike Gowing, chairperson of the Acton Board of Selectmen, supports the adoption of Chapter 69 and predicts that this will occur at the November 21, 2011 Board of Selectmen meeting.

Gowing is being criticized by many citizens and town employees for pursuing this change.

Opponents of the measure include Acton Education Association president Marc Lewis, a teacher at who does not believe that the Acton Public Schools teachers (pre-K through grade 6) should be treated differently than the teachers (grades 7-12.)

Under Chapter 69, Acton Public Schools teachers and other town employees will be assigned health insurance that will differ from that of regionalized school employees.

Lewis does not agree that Acton’s financial condition fits the criteria necessary for invoking Chapter 69’s provisions. Stating that he had to get the word out quickly to union members in order to give them the chance to voice their opposition, Lewis explained that Acton is neither in a state of emergency nor unable to negotiate health insurance benefits for its employees.

"Neither of these conditions exists here in Acton," said Lewis. "We are not in dire financial need. We’re in better shape than predicted."

Asserting that the way that health insurance for teachers has historically been provided is optimal, Lewis stated, "this would change things without any input or say from the school committee. They know our needs and we have a relationship with them."

Lewis explained that every three years, when the teachers’ contracts are negotiated, all of the Acton Public Schools and regional school district teachers are considered in the same manner. 

“We’ve always been looked at and treated as one teaching force,” said Lewis.

A relevant factor that seems related to the teachers’ dismay over this impending change is that, in their most recent contract negotiations (which concluded this past spring), they agreed to take on more financial responsibility for their health insurance premiums than ever before. The average contribution went from 15 to 25 percent.

"The school committee said that’s what the town needed, and we did it," said Lewis. "That’s what’s so upsetting and frustrating about this. We just finished negotiating last year. We ratified a contract that passed."

After looking at the current Group Insurance Commission (GIC) health benefits, which Gowing called “the worst case,” Lewis was alarmed. Charges for hospitalization are currently nonexistent for teachers; the GIC’s plan requires $300 or $700 tiered co-payments depending on how the specific hospital is categorized.

"That’s a difference of thousands of dollars for some teachers," Lewis explained.

Lewis pointed out that the teachers’ contract is comprised of many pieces, not just health insurance benefits. He explained that the town has always provided excellent coverage for its educators, and, in return, the teachers have accepted lower salaries and made other concessions.

Should Chapter 69 pass, Acton Public School teachers will continue to be provided the health insurance benefits outlined in their current contracts. When the term expires on August 31, 2013, they will receive benefits that are negotiated with either the Board of Selectmen or Town Managers, not with the school committee.

In agreement with Lewis around the potential split between benefits afforded to pre-K through grade 6 teachers and grade 7-12 teachers is Acton-Boxborough Regional School committee chairperson,  John Petersen. 

"I really don’t want a second grade teacher to have a different plan design than a teacher in the junior high," Petersen stated. "This doesn’t make any sense and it doesn’t strike me as particularly fair."

Gowing does not agree that Acton does not meet the criteria for a town in a state of emergency. Citing that fact that the town’s cash reserves total about $8 million and that overspending amounts to approximately $2 million per year, he sees a crisis looming.

"This year, the schools and the town are looking at capital purchases that have been put off because the economy’s been so awful," Gowing said. "This means that we’ll probably use even more."

According to Gowing, this "negative spending" has been occurring for three years.

"We did it intentionally; we had reserves in place," said Gowing. "People indicated that they wanted to have the same level of services that we’ve had in the past. But you can’t live off of your savings."

Gowing says that he is not unsympathetic toward town employees who have come forward to tell their personal stories of financial strife. Some have spouses who are unemployed or underemployed and rely heavily on the family health insurance provided to them. But he is quick to point out that level funding means that no one in town has lost his or her job.

"We didn’t lay anyone off," Gowing emphasized. "We found other ways we could cut expenses."

Referencing the economic climate of the last few years, Gowing stated, "the old days are gone. It’s never going back to the 1990s. We’re not going to see hand-over fist revenue coming into the town and new growth."

Gowing also points out that Chapter 69 requires that town officials charged with designing the new health insurance plans look out for those employees who would be impacted the most by changes. There is some flexibility regarding the return of some of the savings to deserving individuals or even to the group as a whole.

"Let's step up to the 'reality plate' and see if we can't find a way to figure out how to take care of everybody," Gowing said.

Acton teacher, parent and homeowner, Kate Fitzmaurice, has lived in town for twenty years and has been a public school teacher here for fifteen of those years. She has been following the health insurance debate as it unfolds, but is concerned about broader issues as well.

"It feels like there’s this trend that’s been going on for the last two years, that slowly but surely, the people who are working in the leadership of the town seem to be, again and again, thinking more about the financial aspect of how the town is run and less and less about the human face of the town and what’s important about it," Fitzmaurice said.

Fitzmaurice stated that, like many others, she would prefer that her tax burden not increase. However, she realizes this may be necessary.

"I really do care about the quality of our experience here," Fitzmaurice stated, adding that it goes beyond the good school system and includes other services like the fire and police departments. "We need to think about the big picture and what’s made our town as successful as it is."

The two-week extension of the discussion around Chapter 69 expires on November 21, 2011, A vote on the matter is expected to take place that night at 6:30 p.m. at Town Hall.

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