Oregon Public Broadcasting

States around the country are rushing to solve vexing budget issues in this recession. But those solutions aren't coming easily and they're going to take a long time.

A long time.

Those are some of the lessons discussed at a conference this week in Portland as state budget officials from around the country swapped ideas for how to tackle the red ink.

If no man is an island, then no state is either. Except Hawaii, of course.

Even though states have different tax structures, they share many of the same challenges right now when it comes to balancing the books.

That's the premise behind this meeting. It's the National Association of State Budget Officers -- the people who specialize in the nitty-gritty details of state spending plans.

Pari Saberty from Ohio has just finished telling her counterparts from around the country about her state's experience.

Ohio is consolidating the administrative functions of 15 different agencies. I asked her if that's the kind of thing that could work elsewhere. Maybe. But she cautions don't expect huge savings right away.

Pari Saberty: "It takes a long time to get one of these operations up and going. Itís not just logistical. Often you have to do things to change legislation."

In fact, Ohio started down this road four years ago, before the recession hit. Others at the conference had ideas about slimming down the workforce -- closing institutions, scaling back pension benefits. But in many cases the ideas were just that: ideas.

Political realities make pushing through those kinds of changes a daunting task.

One speaker knows a thing or two about political realities in Oregon. Governor Ted Kulongoski held up as a model the government overhaul efforts of his so-called Reset Cabinet.

He said fundamental change is needed to the way state government works.

Ted Kulongoski: "Working families, vulnerable citizens, educational institutions and our economy have suffered real damage. And we now know that our traditional playbook is outdated and ill-equipped to repair that damage."

But even Kulongoski's efforts won't bear fruit right away.

Many of his Reset Cabinet's recommendations would require approval from voters or the legislature. And that wouldn't happen until after he leaves office in January, when a new governor takes over responsibility for writing the state budget.