City Council transit oversight committee held a discussion on the transfer of benefits regarding pensions and health care for River Valley Transit employees who are about to become a part of an authority, which begins its fiscal year on July 1.

Council President Adam Yoder, committee chairman, asked for an update on behalf of the city and the employees.

A pension formula that worked when the water authority left the City of Erie will be applied to “get the ball rolling,” said Jill Nagy, transit solicitor.

Mayor Derek Slaughter noted how the city Officers and Employees Pension Board recently met on the matter.

Additionally, the city is checking on its investment plan from Wells Fargo to determine if the employees can transfer their money into the new authority plan and that will happen because it is the employees’ money, according to Nagy.

Health care

“We had a robust conversation with Benecon on health and wellness for the city,” Nagy said.

In particular, there were questions about who will be responsible for any “runoff” claims that occur before July 1.

Officials are working on a methodology to track those claims.

For example, if someone were to fall ill or have surgery prior to June 30, those details need to be solidified.

The authority board will likely vote and be asked to recommend accepting such claims.

Adam Winder, River Valley Transit Authority general manager, said efforts were made to shop around for the best health insurance option for employees, with significant savings of hundreds of thousands of dollars potentially available.

Authority board member Chuck Crews asked whether there was any chance for a lapse in medical insurance coverage.

“As a parent going through transition, I would not want to see any time when employees or their families would not be covered,” Crews said.