With more cuts scheduled for Oregon courts, even longer lines at courthouses seem inevitable, reports the Oregonian. By May 1, court administrators expect to eliminate the equivalent of 95 full-time positions statewide, and that means fewer employees at the counter to accept payments for tickets, to answer questions, to pull files from archives, to enter warrants into the computer system and to staff courtrooms that hear criminal and civil cases.
The cutbacks bring the total number of positions cut since 2009 to 296, a 17 percent decrease. Some of the eliminated jobs were vacant already and left open because administrators predicted future budget woes, but the others are now held by dozens of employees who will get laid off. There is the chance that lawmakers will add back some of the jobs in coming weeks or years. The Judicial Department is applying for a $1.1 million emergency infusion from the Legislature this spring in hopes of softening the blow.