Brown, a 36-year Easton firefighter, served on the IAC as a firefighter’s representative several years ago. However, at one point, feeling that town officials were not giving the Committee proper recognition, all of the Committee members quit.

“It was in the early ‘90s and we were not receiving any respect from town officials. We were an Advisory Committee in name only, and we refused to continue with the sham,” Brown said.

However, times have changed, and the current Board of Selectmen and Town Administrator Martha White felt it was in the best interest of the Town to have an IAC in place. The Committee consists of a representative of each of the Town’s seven employee unions and a retiree representative.

“The Selectmen picked me from among five retirees applicants. This was a surprise to some because they know I’ll never be a rubber stamp for town officials,” Brown pointed out. The selectmen also realized that Brown had been a finance committee member for 14 years, a capital planning committee member for 6 years and had a strong municipal health insurance background.

Easton firefighter Bill Downey is an elected member of the Bristol County Retirement Board. Downey feels that Brown is a good fit for the IAC.

“Retirees will be well represented with Dave on the IAC. He knows his stuff when it comes to health insurance and will be a good fit in working with the unions,” Downey said.

Insurance Premiums Increased

Shortly before Easton’s new IAC took effect, Easton Town Meeting voted to increase the insurance premium contribution of employees and retirees from 20 percent to 25 percent.

“This actually represents a 25 percent increase in premium dollars for a retiree,” noted Brown. “The employee unions’ new contracts provide for a raise, so there was a quid pro quo involved, but this doesn’t help retirees.”

Town Meeting voted against acceptance of Sec. 18, Ch. 32 B, which would have required retirees who are eligible for Medicare to enroll in Medicare Part B at a current cost of $88.50 per month. This vote on non-acceptance of Section 18 goes against the prevalent tide of acceptance of Section 18 by most cities and towns.