The Senate has passed a bill that would take away a significant state employment benefit, one which could potentially cause a heavy liability for the state.

The bill, which was presented to the Senate by Sen. Beverly Evans, R-Altamont, and originally sponsored by Rep. David Clark, R-Santa Clara, seeks to abolish the current unused sick leave program for public employees, causing them to filter the benefit toward a 401(k) and/or a medical savings plan.

Party lines pretty much determined the fate of the bill, which affects nearly 18,000 full-time public workers in the state. A 20-8 vote in the Senate moved the bill to the governor for final approval.

"Our salaries (for public employees) have not kept up with the increasing costs of medical insurance, and with that, double inflation has caused us to be out of balance," said Sen. Beverly Evans, R-Altamont. She said it is time to take care of the problem before it gets out of hand. Clark has said that if something isn't done now, within 10 years the "unfunded" sick-leave conversion will end up costing the state $250 million.

"How can they modify and take away a benefit of this magnitude without the input of public employees?" said Audry Wood, director of the Utah Public Employees Association. She said she was very disappointed with the outcome and believes there was "a better way to deal with it."

Sen. Patrice Arent, D-Murray, encouraged lawmakers to consider the employees this bill would affect and not pass it. She feared passage of the bill would decrease morale and impact work attendance.

"We have to look at what we are doing to our employees and the commitment we've made to them," Arent said.

The bill would allow employees to continue to bank eight hours in exchange for one month of insurance coverage after retirement until Jan. 1, 2006. Hours accrued after that date would be under new program rules.

Sen. Ed Mayne, D-West Valley, tried to amend the effective date to be six months later, which would allow another legislative session where further discussion could be heard.

"We're going to lose a lot of public employees who have given their life to the public and to us, and what are we saying to them . . . that we're not willing to sit down and talk about alternatives," he said.

Sen. Dave Thomas, R-South Weber, assured the body that the benefit was "vested," that it was protected with the accepted effective date.

"I have seen actuarial schedules," he said, "There is a problem, and we have to do something about it." He said there is plenty of time for the new program to take effect.

Mayne disagreed and said he thinks there will be a rush in the public sector toward retirement.

Wood sided with him, calling the decision a "fairness issue."

A lot of employees will want to retire early and take advantage of the phase-out, she said. "They are taking away a right of public employees."

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E-mail: wleonard@desnews.com