Cudnik to return as GIS director
The familiar face in the Putnam County Plat/GIS Office will remain in place in 2022.
GIS Director Robbie Cudnik was reappointed to her post during a brief meeting of the Putnam County Commissioners on Thursday.
When the Commissioners made their department head appointments last week, the matter of GIS director was tabled until the year’s final meeting.
Following an executive session earlier on Thursday, Rick Woodall, David Berry and Tom Helmer voted unanimously to reappoint Cudnik to her position.
The Commissioners annually meet on the final business day of the year to approve any final claims for the year. Aside from this, Thursday’s meeting also had the GIS director matter as well as some questions regarding a sizable bill to county health insurance provider Anthem.
Specifically, the county owes Anthem $159,015 for the plan year running from Aug. 1, 2020 through July 31, 2021. This is due to eight different county employees exceeding the $50,000 stop loss maximum for their health insurance.
For several years, the county has been on the other side of the coin, receiving rebates from Anthem.
“We’ve enjoyed several years of being under and getting money back,” Woodall told the Banner Graphic.
Each time this has happened, the county has put the money in its Health Insurance Trust, the balance of which sits around $1 million currently.
Anthem requires that balance to stay at $600,000 for situations such as this, so the Commissioners approved paying the $159,015 bill from this account.
Woodall also noted that when premiums for individuals went up from $189 a month to $205, the county chose to pay the difference rather than pass the cost on to employees.
Woodall said a meeting is likely in February for the county to re-examine health insurance options, such as again exploring the possibility of self-funding. The idea has been examined previously but would not have been cost effective at the time.
The first regular meeting of the Putnam County Commissioners for 2022 is set for 9 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 4 on the first floor of the Putnam County Courthouses. All county offices are closed Monday in observance of the New Year’s holiday.