Benefits
- Dental
- Flexible Spending Account (FSA)
- FMLA
- Health Savings Account (HSA)
- Holiday Leave
- Life Insurance
- Medical
- Retirement & Deferred Compensation 457 Plans
- Vacation & Sick Leave
- Vision
Dental
The City of Billings offers a dental insurance plan as a voluntary benefit to its active employees. All permanent 20+ hours per week employees are eligible on the first day of the month following a month of full-time employment. Otherwise, at every annual enrollment period they can elect to enroll in the dental insurance. The dental plan provides for dental and orthodontic coverage. The employee is responsible for the entire premium, on a pre-taxed basis, and must remain on the plan for two years once they enroll.
Just like our medical insurance, our dental plan is also self-funded with EBMS, our third-party administrator. There is no In/Out-of-network with dental. Some dental providers will offer discounts for EBMS. Please inquire with your provider.
Forms and Resources.
Flexible Spending Account (FSA)
You can save money on your healthcare (medical flex) and/or daycare (dependent flex) expenses with an FSA. You set aside funds each pay period on a pretax basis and use them tax-free for qualified expenses. You pay no federal income or Social Security taxes on your contributions to an FSA. (That’s where the savings comes in.) Your FSA contributions are deducted from your paycheck before taxes are withheld, so you save on income taxes and have more disposable income.
Flexible Spending has to be re-elected annually and you may choose to enroll in one or both. Each account under the Flexible Benefits Plan has separate rules governing benefits and plan administration. It is important not to overestimate your eligible expenses because tax laws require that any unused amounts be forfeited at the end of each Plan Year. FSA through the EBMS platform offers debit cards for flex participants.
For more details, see our annual Benefits Guide under Forms and Resources.
FMLA
The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) allows employees to balance their work and family life by taking leave for certain family and medical reasons. The FMLA seeks to accomplish this in a manner that accommodates the legitimate interests of the employer, and minimizes the potential for employment discrimination on the basis of gender, while promoting equal employment opportunities for men and women.
FMLA provides certain employees with up to 12 work-weeks of unpaid job-protection leave in a specified "rolling back" 12-month period. The Federal Law requires group health insurance benefits to be maintained during the leave as if the employee continued to work instead of taking leave.
Leave Conditions
Employees taking FMLA leave for their own serious health condition, or leave to care for a family member with a serious health condition, will be required to use their accrued, paid leave prior to being granted FMLA leave without pay.
If the leave is for a reason that qualifies as FMLA leave, and the employee's sick accruals are exhausted, the employee is required to use his or her accrued, paid vacation. The total of paid and unpaid FMLA leave will count against the 12 work-weeks of FMLA leave entitlement.
Eligibility
Employee must have been employed with the City of Billings a cumulative total of at least 12 months prior to leave.
- Employee must have worked 1,250 hours (exclusive of vacation, sick leave, and holidays) in the 12 months preceding leave time.
- The 12 months of employment need not be consecutive months.
- The 1,250 hours include only those hours actually worked paid leave and unpaid leave, including FMLA leave, are not included.
FMLA Paperwork
FMLA paperwork can be found under Forms and Resources.
Health Savings Account (HSA)
Health Savings Accounts are only available to active employees on a High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP) per IRS regulations.
An HSA is a tax-advantaged account established to pay for qualified medical expenses for those who are covered under a high deductible health plan. An HSA has maximum allowable contributions annually on a pretax basis depending on if you have individual coverage or family unit coverage. Your HSA can pay for medical expenses that the HDHP does not cover and for other qualified medical expenses, which include most medical care such as dental and vision. Funds are placed in your account and they are portable, meaning you keep your account even after you leave your job. You will use a debit card for payments.
Who can elect a health savings account?
An eligible individual is anyone who is under age 65 and:
- Is covered under a high deductible health plan (HDHP)
- Is not covered by any other health plan that is not a HDHP
- Is not currently enrolled in Medicare or TRICARE
- Has not received medical benefits through the VA during the preceding three months
- May not be claimed as a dependent on another person’s tax return
For more details, see our annual Benefits Guide under Forms & Resources.
Observed Holidays
The following are holidays observed by City employees:
- January 1 - New Years Day
- Third Monday in January - Martin Luther King Day
- Third Monday in February - President’s Day
- Last Monday in May - Memorial Day
- July 4 - Independence Day
- First Monday in September - Labor Day
- Second Monday in October - Columbus Day (MPFE Bargaining Unit Only - Police Officers)
- November 11 - Veteran’s Day
- Fourth Thursday in November - Thanksgiving Day
- Fourth Friday in November - Day after Thanksgiving (All employees except MPFE Bargaining Unit - Police Officers)
- December 25 - Christmas Day
Regulations
Employees receive a holiday for every day declared a legal holiday by the Governor of Montana or the Mayor and City Council of Billings through a resolution or ordinance.
In addition, you also receive every day in which a general election is held throughout the State of Montana.
Basic Life & AD&D
- $10,000 term-life insurance coverage for the bargaining employee that is fully paid by the City.
- $25,000 term-life insurance coverage for the non-bargaining employee that is fully paid by the City.
- All regular full-time employees are eligible for coverage on the first day of the month following 30 days of full time employment.
Additional Life Insurance
The City also offers Additional Life Insurance - Voluntary Benefit:
- Additional supplemental life insurance coverage is to employees and their spouses.
- The employee pays the entire premium and is based on age, coverage, and non-smoker / smoker. Premiums are payroll deducted.
- All regular, full-time employees are eligible for coverage on the first day of the month following 30 days of full-time employment.
Long Term Disability
The City offers a Long Term Disability (LTD) as a voluntary benefit.
- The employee pays the entire premium which is based on age and income.
- Premiums are payroll deducted.
- All regular, full-time employees are eligible for coverage on the first day of the month following 30 days of full-time employment.
MEDEX Travel Assistance
- Sponsored by Standard Life Insurance for employees traveling out of the county
- Review the brochure for details
Medical & RX
The City of Billings offers two health insurance plans - one standard plan and one high deductible plan. There is a significant monthly contribution by the City. However, most plans require cost sharing by the employee on a pre-tax basis.
All permanent 20+ hours per week employees of the City are REQUIRED to participant in the medical plan. They are eligible on the first day of the month following a month of employment.
Our Health Insurance Plan is self-funded with Employee Benefit Management Service (EBMS) serving as our Third-Party Administrator (TPA).
Transparency in Coverage Rule
November 2020 the Transparency in Coverage Final Rule was released by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Department of Labor and the Department of Treasury (The Departments) with the goal of improving price and quality transparency within healthcare. The Final Rule went into effect January 1, 2022, with enforcement delayed by the Departments until July 1, 2022, for the In-Network and Out-of-Network Allowed Amounts files. In compliance with the requirements of the Transparency in Coverage Final Rule, is the link to the Machine-Readable File (MRF).
You can access the Machine-Readable Files here:
Network Providers
Effective January 1, 2012, Rocky Mountain Health Network (RMHN) is the In-Network provider for the City. The City of Billings has entered into an agreement with certain providers within the RMHN for discounted fees. The RMHN network does include the majority of the St. Vincent Healthcare affiliates.
To locate a Network Provider, you will want to find a provider that is listed with RMHN and accepts the EBMS-City of Billings discount arrangement. Do this by following the link listed below and selecting "EBMS-City of Billings" on the drop down menu labeled "Insurance Accepted" or copy and past the link into your browser.
Rocky Mountain Health Network
Follow this link, and select "EBMS-City of Billings" on the dropdown menu labeled "Insurance Accepted."
Participants can also obtain services at RiverStone Health. Benefits will be paid at the Network Provider benefit level.
Retiree Health Insurance
The City of Billings also offers retiree health insurance plans to eligible retirees, paid 100% by the retiree.
RX
The city's plan has three (3) types of Rx pharmacy claims that Magellan Rx, our Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) processes for us. They are:
- miRx mail order - "mandatory" for maintenance medications
- Retail (Target, WalMart, etc.) - acute treatment medications
- Specialty - medications for MS, Crohn's, Rheumatoid Arthritis, etc. If you are prescribed a Specialty Rx, please reach out to EBMS for the best option for you as a City of Billings participant
Retirement
Eligible employees of the City of Billings participate in mandatory MPERA – Montana Public Employees Retirement Administration retirement plans per state statute. For the city this includes: PERS (Non-Bargaining & Teamster Union), MPORS (Police Union) and FURS (Fire Union). See their site for information regarding these retirement systems and purchasing service. http://mpera.mt.gov/
If you qualify for retirement, according to your MPERA retirement system, please read the Highlights of Retirement at the City of Billings.
Montana Public Employees Retirement Systems
(PERS, FURS, MPORS)
PO Box 200131
Helena, MT 59620-0131
Phone: (877) 275-7372
Deferred Compensation 457 Plans
As a local government, the City of Billings sponsors a 457(b) plan.
This plan is a voluntary supplemental retirement savings program that allows participants to make payroll deduction contributions before taxes, over the 26 pay periods, up to IRS annual limits.
All full-time employees are eligible to participate and enroll at any time during their employment with the City of Billings.
Employees can invest the funds in a vast array of funding options per our plan, to obtain the highest return on your investment.
Fire Union employees vendor is Nationwide:
All other employees vendor is MassMutual:
**Part-Time Employees are entitled to these benefits on a pro-rated basis**
Vacation Leave
Available balance is eligible to be used after 6 months of service
- Beginning year 1 thru 10 years of completed service - accrue up to 4.62 hours/pay period
- Start of year 11 thru 15 years of completed service - accrue up to 5.54 hours/pay period
- Start of year 16 thru 20 years of completed service - accrue up to 6.47 hours/pay period
- 21+ years of service - accrue up to 7.39 hours/pay period
An employee can have a maximum of two times annual vacation accruals in their vacation bank at the end of the first pay period in January. Vacation leave accruals are paid out at 100% when you leave employment.
Sick Leave
Available balance is eligible to be used after 3 months of service
- Employees accrue up to 3.7 hours/pay period. There is no maximum accumulation. Sick leave accruals are paid out at 25% when you leave employment.
Vision
The City of Billings offers vision insurance on a voluntary basis through the VSP network.
Pre-tax premiums are 100% paid by participants and employees are required to stay enrolled for one year.
All permanent 20+ hours per week employees are eligible on the first day of the month following a month of full-time employment. Otherwise, at every annual enrollment period they can elect to enroll in the vision insurance.
Click here for Forms and Resources.