AUBURN — Health benefits for county commissioners are coming to an end.

The Androscoggin County Commission unanimously voted Wednesday to eliminate all health benefits for themselves by the end of next year.

The four new commissioners — Ronald Chicoine, Sally Christner, Alfreda Fournier and Matthew Roy — will see their benefits stop by the end of this year. The remaining three commissioners, who were all in office prior to the expansion of commissioners from three members to seven — Beth Bell, Randall Greenwood and Elaine Makas — will continue receiving benefits for one more year.

Those benefits will end Dec. 31, 2016, when their terms end.

Chicoine, who made the proposal, explained that benefits will remain with the original three commissioners for one more year because the benefits were expected at the time they were elected.

“After next year, there will be no benefit compensation, so the compensation issue will be fixed,” Chicoine said. “Hopefully, that will alleviate anxieties in the community and help us be good stewards of the county’s money.”

Chicoine’s motion to end the contentious benefits passed 7-0. The Budget Committee had also recommended to stop the benefits.

The decision appears to be an attempt at compromise on the issue of the commisioners’ salaries and benefits, which has sharply divided commissioners and the county municipalities for the past year.

After the vote on benefits, commissioners restored the cuts to their salaries. Commissioners’ salaries will remain at $5,000 for the second consecutive year, with $5,500 for the chairman. The Budget Committee had proposed cutting the salaries by $2,000 apiece.

Unlike the unanimous vote on benefits, the commissioners voted 5-2 to restore the cuts. Chicoine and Christner voted against the motion.

“It showed a lot of courage for Commissioner Chicoine and Commissioner Christner to take the position they did and their vote,” Budget Committee Chairwoman Emily Darby said. “I also commend all four of the new commissioners in agreeing with the Budget Committee in the area of benefits. Hopefully, this is a good sign.”

Municipalities and the county have been locked in a dispute since last year’s budget season, when the Budget Committee attempted to lower the commissioners’ salaries below what commissioners had proposed. The committee also voted to eliminate commissioners’ health insurance. 

Claiming the changes made to the county charter gave them power to set the budget, commissioners overruled the committee and restored their salaries and health benefits.

The issue ended up in court after the Androscoggin County municipalities, whose officials make up the Budget Committee, filed suit against the commissioners in July.

In completing work on the 2016 budget, commissioners added the $35,000 back that was cut from its legal fees, for a total of $75,000. Greenwood, who moved that the cut be restored, said the Budget Committee’s cut was not realistic.

Commissioners also shifted funds from $20,000 in unexpected fuel savings. With roughly two-thirds of the savings coming from the jail, the jail’s underfunded overtime account was increased by $13,500. The District Attorney’s office will receive $2,500 to help fix Internet problems in the new office. Both motions, made by Greenwood, passed unanimously.

Administrator Larry Post suggested that commissioners set aside the remaining $4,000 in savings.

The final budget adopted by commissioners totals $12.2 million. Minus revenues of more than $3.6 million, municipalities will be responsible for raising $8.56 million in taxes — an increase of 2.4 percent.

ssherlock@sunjournal.com