LITTLE ROCK — A circuit judge has ruled that Springdale can pay for health insurance for four city council members.
Springdale resident Anita Davis in June filed a lawsuit in Washington County Circuit Court against the city and four aldermen - Jim Reed, Mike Overton, Bobby Stout and Jeff Watson - who receive health insurance benefits.
Davis claimed in the suit that state law forbids aldermen from receiving compensation over and above their salaries. She argued that the city should not be paying 70 percent of the aldermen's premiums.
Davis said in her lawsuit that the aldermen should reimburse the city for more than $65,000 in premiums.
Washington County Circuit Judge Mark Lindsay dismissed the lawsuit and granted a summary judgment in favor of Springdale and the aldermen on Sept. 4. The judge's order on the ruling was filed Monday.
The council did not adopt an ordinance approving payment of the premiums, but it lawfully passed a resolution and included the premiums as a line item in the city budget, which was approved by the council, according to the order.
Two attorney general's opinions - in 1997 and 2005 - have concluded that the city can pay for insurance for aldermen.
Davis had said aldermen should pay for their own insurance.
"It's just wrong," she told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. "We don't go to the trough for benefits. If they want their insurance, they can keep it but pay for it. You have grown men with full-time jobs taking advantage of us."
Reed is retired from the Springdale School District but also works in the district's maintenance department. Overton operates his own real estate and storage companies. Watson is an attorney, and Stout is retired from the U.S. Postal Service.
Northwest Arkansas, Pages 12 on 09/22/2009