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(Salt Lake City-AP) -- Utah firefighters are not happy with Governor Olene Walker's first budget proposal.
The eight (B)billion dollar budget released yesterday includes a plan to shift the burden of paying firefighter retirement benefits to local governments.
Firefighters say times are tough for local communities and will be even tougher if state highway funds are shifted to education. That's also included in the proposed budget.
Walker says she expected complaints. She says the state is not trying to take away firefighters' retirement funds.
She says firefighters will get their retirement one way or another, but it's time to take a closer look at the budgets.
(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
