• 39°
Hartselle Enquirer

Morgan BOE informed about Affordable Care fines

Morgan County Schools could be forced to pay $2 million in fines to the federal government after Jan. 1, 2015, unless the school system provides health insurance coverage for at least 95 percent of its employees.

This information was passed on to school board members by chief school finance officer John Godwin at a work session Jan. 9, during which time he reviewed provisions of the Affordable Care Act.

“We are required to provide health care insurance for all of our employees as long as their work week averages 30 or more hours over the course of a year,” Godwin pointed out. “Currently, we are at 97 percent coverage. If we remain at that level in 2014, our fine would be $40,000 based on a fine of $3,000 for every employee not covered by health insurance. If the average dropped below 95 percent, the fine would be $2,000 times every employee in the system, or $2 million.”

Godwin said the state is recommending that school system employees not be allowed to work multiple jobs as a means of keeping part-time employees such as substitute teachers under the 30-hour cap.

“Our ultimate goal is the have everyone covered,” he pointed out.

“We’re monitoring this in the finance department,” Godwin stated, “and we’ll take steps to keep them updated about their hours.”

He said employees currently without health care insurance are mostly substitute teachers and contract workers.

At a Glance

PowerGrid Services in Hartselle evacuated for bomb threat

Morgan County

20 under 40: Trey Chowning

Falkville

20 under 40: TJ Holmes

FRONT PAGE FEATURED

20 under 40: Spencer Bell

FRONT PAGE FEATURED

20 under 40: Shelby Keenum

FRONT PAGE FEATURED

20 under 40: Rachel Howard

FRONT PAGE FEATURED

20 under 40: Mary Virgina Halbrooks

FRONT PAGE FEATURED

20 under 40: Maggie McKelvey

Decatur

20 under 40: Maegan Jones

FRONT PAGE FEATURED

20 under 40: Lindsey Tapscott

FRONT PAGE FEATURED

‘He lets us have sex’: More details emerge on Hartselle man accused of child exploitation 

FRONT PAGE FEATURED

Hartselle church creates Easter-themed escape rooms 

Danville

Family tradition: State livestock show legacy spans generations

Editor's picks

Baseball for Beau: More than $8k raised for scholarship named after Hartselle child  

Falkville

20 under 40: Lela Weeks

FRONT PAGE FEATURED

20 under 40: Kalleigh Thomas

FRONT PAGE FEATURED

20 under 40: Jaime Hatcher

Hartselle

Veteran Hartselle firefighter charged with possessing child porn

FRONT PAGE FEATURED

Cerrowire expansion named finalist in Business Alabama Awards  

At a Glance

Work begins on repairing two bridges over I-65 in Morgan County in coming weeks

At a Glance

Tickets for Morgan County Sports Hall of Fame banquet available

Falkville

Morgan County volunteers celebrated at annual fire department banquet 

FRONT PAGE FEATURED

Man jailed for stealing car from jail after earlier release 

FRONT PAGE FEATURED

Police: Hartselle man encouraged children to have sex inside his apartment

x