Town Administrator Releases Statement Defending Emergency Pay

The controversy concerning overtime pay for the former mayor of Vernon during the three states of emergency last year, prompted a statement from Town Administrator John Ward issued in a press release. Ward's statement defended the payments arising from the two snow storms and Tropical Storm Irene.

Questions about the overtime paid to Jason McCoy, mayor at the time of the storms, arose at a that approved additional funds for winter storm Alfred cleanup. McCoy received $3600 in overtime pay calculated at a rate of $25 per hour. Several Democratic council members questioned the propriety of the overtime pay, claiming the mayoral position was a salaried position.

McCoy, a Republican, defended the decision , citing both the additional hours he worked during the power outage, as well as the failure of Connecticut Light and Power to meet their obligations to repairing power lines, requiring the town to take on safety burdens it ordinarily would not have had.

In total, McCoy received an addition $4,030 in overtime for his work during the winter storm emergency. He received $2,430 for the January storm, and an additional $1751.40 in overtime for work performed during Tropical Storm Irene for a grand total of $8,211.40.

Total overtime paid to employees during winter storm Alfred totalled $278,861.33. For Tropical Storm Irene, the total was $40,654.79.

The statement cited a legal opinion offered by attorney Edward O'Donnell, stating that exempt employees could be compensated for work performed above and beyond their normal duties.

In an e-mail dated July 28, 2011, O'Donnell stated, “Town employees, including exempt employees, put in additional hours and worked extraordinarily hard to remove the snow and secure the safety of Vernon's citizens and buildings.”

The Town received funds from an insurance claim which were used to pay the additional funds for the January storm.

Employees received over-time compensation for additional work performed during the Tropical Storm Irene and winter storm Alfred emergencies.

Ward's statement also claimed, “it should also be noted, with respect to all three events, the Town Council recognized by vote each event as an emergency and duly authorized emergency expenditures.”

Criticism of the overtime payments to the former mayor continued after his letter of defense, most vehemently from former mayor Ellen Marmer who wrote, “being on call 24/7 comes with the territory.”

Others defended the payouts, owing to the exceptional nature of the emergencies.

McCoy did not seek re-election in the 2011 municipal elections and is currently running for the US Senate in 2012.