The Town Board in Amherst has approved a lifetime perk for a Town Justice based upon his personal plea.
Judge Mark Farrell and his wife will receive lifetime health insurance coverage, though town policies explicitly exclude such coverage as a possible benefit. In a closed session, Farrell argued before the board that he was verbally granted the coverage when he became Town Justice in 1994. No records or evidence of that agreement exist, but Board members contend that Farrell was convincing in his argument.
The annual cost to the town will be $9,000.
A recent pay increase sets Farrell's annual salary at better than $96,000.
