Topeka ? A proposal to help the financially troubled public employee pension system was significantly reduced and delayed Wednesday after Gov. Kathleen Sebelius said the state couldn’t afford the plan as originally envisioned.

The Joint Committee on Pensions, Benefits and Investments still recommended the state issue $500 million in bonds, which would provide an infusion of cash and boost the investment earnings of the Kansas Public Employees Retirement System, or KPERS.

However, the committee, at the urging of Sebelius, reconsidered its proposals for paying off the bonds.

Republicans accused Sebelius, a Democrat, of putting off needed assistance to KPERS, which because of inadequate state funding and stock market losses is running a $3 billion deficit between assets and future pension responsibilities.

Using a football analogy, Rep. John Edmonds, a Republican from Great Bend, said, “We are essentially putting KPERS on the 3-yard line with 97 yards to go.”

Edmonds is chairman of the legislative pension committee that on Dec. 1 recommended the state issue $500 million in bonds to shore up KPERS, which manages $9 billion in assets for 240,000 members.

By investing the funds and earning 8 percent profits, state financial experts said KPERS would reap a benefit of $4 billion over the 30-year payback of the bonds. But there is no guarantee the investments would produce the 8 percent returns.

Under the original, repayment of the principal and interest on the bonds would have cost about $40 million per year and come out of the state’s general tax fund.

But Sebelius’ budget director, Duane Goossen, said that because of a tight budget, the state couldn’t afford those payments. Sebelius recommended paying off the bonds by taking the money out of the state’s contributions to the pension fund. Those contributions are scheduled to start increasing next year.

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Under Sebelius’ proposal, the benefit to KPERS would decrease from $4 billion to $1 billion, officials said.

Democrats on the pension committee defended Sebelius’ position, saying that there are too many budget priorities and not enough money to go around.

“Though we desperately need to address KPERS, it is not the only desperate problem we have,” said state Rep. Geraldine Flaharty, D-Wichita.

But Republicans said paying off the bonds with monies from the state’s contributions to the pension fund negated most of the benefit to KPERS.

“I don’t think it’s worth the risk,” state Rep. Melvin Neufeld, R-Ingalls, said.

Senate President Dave Kerr, a Hutchinson Republican, went along with Sebelius’ strategy, saying that a little help was better than none. But he noted it was ironic that Republicans were fighting for the larger KPERS package when they usually get accused by Democrats of shortchanging retirees.

The motion to change the payments from the state general fund to state contributions to KPERS was approved 6-5. Voting to change the payment plan were Sens. Anthony Hensley, D-Topeka, Steve Morris, R-Hugoton, Kerr, and Reps. Margaret Long, D-Kansas City, Vaughn Flora, D-Topeka, and Flaharty.

Those opposed to the change were Sen. Jim Barone, D-Frontenac, and Reps. Ray Cox, R-Bonner Springs, Bill McCreary, R-Wellington, Clark Shultz, R-Lindsborg, and Neufeld. Edmonds didn’t vote, saying his vote wasn’t necessary because he would have sided with the majority, even though he criticized Sebelius for paring back the plan.

Because of the payment change, the Kansas Development Finance Authority will not be able to issue bonds until new legislation is passed, which will be introduced when the Legislature starts its session on Monday.