On Dec. 12, the Butler Eagle printed a front-page article regarding Center Township’s board of supervisors giving themselves a pay raise over the next five years if and when they are reelected to office as allowed by recently enacted House Bill 2288.

While state law has not authorized any pay raises for supervisors throughout the state since 1995 (so it was long overdue), you should know the Center Township board has been voting every year since 2006 to take full advantage of a loophole in the township code by giving themselves the same health benefits which are provided to full time employees of the township.

In the advertised budget for 2025, all five supervisor salaries combined total $12,500, while their health benefits total $154,000!

Can you think of any other part time job that has an annual salary of $2,500 plus almost $31,000 in (tax-free) health benefits, which even includes spousal and family coverage?

Apparently still finding this unequaled fringe benefit to be insufficient, they then recently voted to increase their wages the very first chance they had.

If you cannot attend their annual reorganization meeting on at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 2 at the Unionville Volunteer Fire Company to voice your opposition, I hope you will join me in recruiting and electing future Center Township supervisor candidates who promise to always put their constituents’ interests ahead of their own.

Gary Rauschenberger, Center Township