Starke County Sheriff Seeks Approval for Supplemental Pension Fund

Sheriff Oscar Cowen
Sheriff Oscar Cowen

Starke County Sheriff Oscar Cowen came before the board of commissioners yesterday to ask approval for implementing a supplemental plan to the Police Pension Fund program.

“Morgan Stanley is offering a supplement to our retirement and they have to have approval through the Commissioners so the Auditor’s Office can deduct from the percentage of pay that the employees want to put into a supplement retirement,” Cowen told the Commissioners. “They are willing to come up and present a program, but they said they just need the approval of the Commissioners to have the supplement so the Auditor can deduct it from their pay.”

The supplement would be part of a Deferred Retirement Option Plan, or DROP, plan.

Merit Board President, Ken Arnett, said that the supplemental plan was brought up a year ago, but only a couple of officers expressed interest in using it. He said more are now interested so the participants would like to have it presented to the commissioners.  There is no cost to the county.

The plan will be presented at the February 6th meeting.