Doyle
Doyle v. City of Medford
Opinion
Opinion
BACKGROUND
A. Factual and Procedural History
In 1981, the Oregon State Legislative Assembly enacted Oregon Revised Statutes section 243.303(2), which read, in pertinent part:
The governing body of any local government that contracts for or otherwise makes available health care insurance coverage for officers and employees of the local government, may, in so far as and to the extent possible, make that coverage available for retired officers and employees of the local govern- ment and for spouses and unmarried children under 18 years of age of those retired officers and employ- ees. The governing body may prescribe reasonable terms and conditions of eligibility and coverage, not inconsistent with this section, for making that cover- DOYLE v. CITY OF MEDFORD 5179 age available. The local government may agree to pay none, part or all of the cost of making that cover- age available.
1981 Or. Laws page no. 258 (emphasis added).
In 1985, the statute was amended. The most significant change was that the legislature replaced the discretionary word “may” with the mandatory word “shall.” The statute currently reads: