Cumming Taxpayers Paying $75K Health Insurance for Mayor's Girlfriend

Cumming Mayor H. Ford Gravitt admitted Tuesday to signing his longtime girlfriend Angela Mullinax onto the city’s health insurance plan, despite the fact that she has never been employed by the city.

Councilman Rupert Sexton, a retired insurance agent, requested a list of city-paid health insurance recipients from the city’s human resources department to find ways to trim the budget. Mullinax, who does not live with Gravitt, was listed as a recipient. According to the document, the city pays a monthly $633.10 monthly premium for Mulinax’s health insurance. Sexton says Mullinax’s health and dental insurance benefits have so far cost taxpayers roughly $75,000 since she started receiving benefits in 2005.

Meanwhile, Mayor Gravitt is attempting to have Sexton impeached by accusing him of releasing private information. Last week, the list of health insurance recipients appeared on a social media site run by citizen activists in Forsyth County that criticized Gravitt for extending the city’s health insurance plan to Mullinax. Sexton maintains he only released the information to fellow council members and the mayor.

Within days, Gravitt called a special meeting to consider impeaching Sexton for releasing the document, which includes employees’ names, whether they hold a single or family policy, and how much money the city and employees pay toward their insurance, WSB-TV 2 reports. All information available within the document is available as public record via Georgia’s Open Records Act.

City Council members voted Tuesday to convene a three-member panel to investigate the situation and determine whether a vote should be taken on Sexton’s impeachment.

Image: City of Cumming