The Montgomery County Council is stuck on how to overhaul the county’s disability pension system amid debates over whether to tie the payoff amount for hurt police officers to the severity of their injury.
Council President Phil Andrews, D-Gaithersburg/Rockville, who has co-sponsored legislation seeking more oversight into the disability pensions program, promised Tuesday that the council would vote on the issue next week.
The announcement comes a day after County Executive Ike Leggett and the Fraternal Order of Police union failed to reach an agreement on disability pay after months of effort.
Currently, police officers injured in the line of duty who receive disability pay receive about two-thirds of their salary in a tax-free pension, regardless of the nature of their injury. A report by the county’s inspector general found that half of the police who retired in a three-year period qualified for disability pay, including some who went on to work physically demanding jobs.
In the last 24 years, 40 percent of officers have retired claiming a disability, according to the Fraternal Order of Police.
The proposed legislation would institute a two-tiered disability pay for all county employees: One for partially injuried workers that would pay pensions at 52.5 percent of an employee’s salary, and one for fully injured employees, who would receive 70 percent.
County council staff said the majority of police officers who receive disability pay suffered from orthopedic injuries that would be considered partial disability and the county would save between $1 million and $2.8 million a year by switching to a two-tiered system.
Andrews said the two-tiered system, which is modeled on disability pay system for county firefighters, “makes intuitive sense” because it pays less money to hurt police officers who are still able to find substantial employment despite their injuries and more money to officers who are totally incapacitated.
“It’s hard to make a case against a two-tiered system,” Andrews said.
The police union has argued against the proposed changes and said the county’s firefighters agreed to a two-tier system in “exchange for significant pension benefit improvements.”
Councilman Mike Knapp, D-Upcounty, said he hadn’t heard a compelling reason why the system should be changed.
“It doesn’t appear to be addressing a specific problem,” he said.
The proposed legislation also would change how the county determines whether an employee has been disabled, including requiring an independent medical examination for disability cases.
