Oregon Public Broadcasting

Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski pulled the trigger Tuesday on a series of across-the-board budget cuts. It means reduced funding for education, public safety and human services.

The cuts are in response to a half-billion dollar budget shortfall.

With minor exceptions, the cuts being enacted are what agencies laid out earlier this month.

A couple things to keep in mind.

First, some of the cuts won't take effect right away. Reductions to in-home care for seniors and the disabled will be phased in over several months.

Second, there's still a chance that Congress will approve additional funding for Medicaid and education.

That could offset some of the cuts in Oregon. But Kulongoski spokeswoman Anna Richter Taylor says the governor decided not to wait for Congress to make a move.

Anna Richter Taylor: "The reality is thereís growing uncertainty about federal assistance coming in. And the longer we wait, the larger the cut has to be to achieve the savings."

The governor can only make across-the-board cuts. In announcing the reductions Kulongoski repeated his call for lawmakers to dip into reserves to keep three state prisons open. The Department of Corrections says it would need to close them in order to reach the nine percent cut mandated by the governor.