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County''s budget won''t count on PERS reform.

Article Excerpt
Byline: Randi Bjornstad The Register-Guard

CORRECTION (ran 5/1/03): Legislative reform proposals would eventually eliminate the money match option for people in the Public Employees Retirement System as other options supercede it in value. This clarifies a story on Page D1 on Tuesday.

Several big-ticket items slashed from Lane County's proposed 2003-04 budget - such as 84 jail spaces, a resident sheriff's deputy in the Florence area and half the beds for treating juvenile substance abusers - could find their way back in.

But that's only if the Legislature continues on a course to make profound changes to the state's Public Employees Retirement System.

And even then, it would be a gamble.

County Administrator Bill Van Vactor, who delivers his annual county budget message today, said he's "lost some sleep" since a House committee passed a series of amendments last week that would roll back payments for some retirees and change future benefit calculations.

The result could cut as much as $6 billion off a shortfall projected at $16 billion over the next two decades.

In the short term, it could...

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