Carrollton gifts employees gift cards instead of cash

By Editor | December 20, 2023 |

By Carmen Ensinger

The city of Carrollton has found a way to get around Uncle Sam getting a portion of its employee’s Christmas bonus – give them a gift card instead of cash. They do not have to claim the gift card on their W2 as income, but they do if they are given the bonus as cash.
Last year it was brought up that employees who were given a $100 bonus at Christmas time really weren’t getting the $100 bonus because they were having to pay taxes on that amount. Therefore, the city council agreed to give them a bonus of $125, to take into account the taxes that they would incur on the bonus.
City treasurer Diane Hendricks got to looking into the matter and discovered that the city could give a Visa gift card to the employees at a cost of just $5 per card, thus saving the city $20 per employee and the employee would not be forced to claim it as income.
The council, at the Dec. 14 meeting, unanimously voted to give the full-time employees a visa gift card in the amount of $100.
There was some discussion, however, on part time employees. It was agreed to give part-time employees $50, but what was in how many hours an employee needed to work to qualify as part time and receive the bonus.
Personnel and Finance Committee Chairman Larry Gillingham said Hendricks had checked with the other towns in Greene County to see what they were doing.
“Diane did a pretty thorough job of looking at the other cities in Greene County and we are all doing the same thing,” Gillingham said. “She has the suggestion that those people who were 50 hours or less receive the $50 or less.”
Hendricks said it was up to the council, but that is not what they did last year.
“Last year, you decided they had to work at least 56 hours,” she said. “That was seven, eight-hour shifts for our part-time police officers. That is what you did last year.”
Council members were given a list of employees, part time and full time, along with the hours they had worked for the year.
“Then if you look at the paper she gave us, you are only eliminating one person,” Alderwoman Bernie Faul said. “Maybe we need to look at this before the night we hand out the Christmas bonuses next year. Maybe we need to get with the Chief and see what he thinks is fair for how many hours they should work, because I agree it is not fair. These guys that work full time and you have a guy that works only 37 hours and he is going to get half of what your full-time guys are getting is not quite fair.”
Alderman Larry Gillingham agreed, to a point.
“But I think everyone should get something,” he said. “In my opinion, even those who do not meet that should still get something.”
Gillingham also thought the elected officials, ie, aldermen, should also get bonuses.
“I think the aldermen should have the same consideration as everyone else at Christmas time,” he said.
City Attorney Bill Strang said that wasn’t going to happen.
“It is in the ordinance what you get and in order to do a bonus you would have to allow for it in your ordinance,” he said. “The ordinance would have to specifically say that.”
Strang brought up the Gift Ban Act which has a limit of $75, but said that is talking about some third party giving a gift to a member of the council.
“But where the city is giving it to their own people – I think that fits more under salary,” he said. “I have never researched it, but it seems to me where that is where it would be.”