NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- State employees who volunteer for buyouts that seek to cut about 2,000 state jobs could be eligible for incentives worth between $23,000 and $47,000, depending on length of employment.

Related: Read Reporter Cara Kumari’s Blog From the Legislature | Watch The Story

State Finance Commissioner Dave Goetz presented details of the incentives packages Monday in a House Finance Committee hearing.

Gov. Phil Bredesen's proposal is meant to save about $64 million amid a shortfall in the upcoming budget year that's approaching a half-billion dollars.

"This represents our best thoughts so far on how the voluntary buyout, voluntary separation plan can be carried forward. This is a work in progress," Goetz said.

The buyouts would include cash incentives based on an employee's length of service, 18 months of health insurance benefits and two years of tuition to a state community college or university.

The plan is expected to cost the state roughly $50 million.

Channel 4's Cara Kumari reported on her blog that employees will get a base payment equal to four months salary. Workers will also receive an extra $500 for each year of service and receive their next scheduled longevity payment.

Kumari reported that employees' insurance would extend six months beyond the date of the employee's separation, at which point an additional 12 months of COBRA would be provided.

The average cost of the two years of tuition was estimated to be $7,122, Kumari reported.

If the state doesn't get 2,000 workers to accept the buyout, cuts will be delayed until after Jan. 1., 2009.

The House last week delayed approving the state's budget over several Democratic lawmakers' concerns that they didn't know enough about how the buyouts will work.

But many lawmakers in attendance at the Finance Committee meeting said they felt more comfortable after House Democratic leaders met with state Comptroller John Morgan and Treasurer Dale Sims over the weekend to hash out details of the plan. The meetings were not advertised to the public.

The Legislature is exempt from the state Sunshine Laws requiring government bodies to hold open meetings.

"I personally think that a buyout is going to achieve what we want it to as far as those employees -- and the key word is voluntary -- who want to voluntarily retire from state government," said House Speaker Jimmy Naifeh, D-Covington, who attended the secret weekend meetings.

Some state employees have taken a wait-and-see approach to the buyouts.

"A lot of people that are eligible for retirement right now, they’re looking and anticipating and wanting to find out what’s going to be offered," said state employee Dan Hart.

The Tennessee State Employees Association had a positive response to the package.

"They are very lucrative and very attractive if someone is wanting to start a new career or leave state government," said TSEA representative Zoyle Jones.

The TSEA said it still has some reservations about the process, especially the selection process on who will be offered the buyout.

Administration officials want to have the buyouts wrapped up by Aug. 1 and had expected to begin any necessary layoffs a few days later, but one of the proposals to come out of the weekend meetings was to delay any layoffs until at least Jan. 1.

Those discussions also led to a proposal to offer a one-time $400 payment to state employees in lieu of a pay raise.

Naifeh said the payments would be funded out of state reserves.

"What it amounts to is a one-time assistance in the immediate cost-of-living increase we feel our state employees have," House Finance Chairman Craig Fitzhugh, D-Ripley, said.

Another proposal to come out of the meetings was one to maintain the state's matching dollars for employees' 401(k) retirement program.

Naifeh said House leaders met Monday morning with the governor to present their ideas and said Bredesen indicated he would go along with them. They've also discussed the plan with Senate Republican leadership.

"I think it’s very generous. I think it’s the humanitarian thing to do. I mean, if people are going to take a voluntary layoff, then there ought to be some rewards for them, and this plan provides that for them," Naifeh said.

Bredesen spokeswoman Lydia Lenker said the administration wasn't going to stand in the way of the legislative proposals, including the $400 payment to all state employees.

"That was not part of the governor's budget proposal, but there's a clear legislative desire to do this, and we're not going to stand in the way," she said.

Senate Finance Chairman Randy McNally, R-Oak Ridge, said he personally could support the House Democrats' proposals.

"In my thinking, the 401(k) would be important. I don't like dipping into reserve, but at the same time we're not giving state employees a raise," McNally said.

Goetz said finance officials and Segal Co., a consulting firm helping to devise the buyout plan, expected that most employees interested in the buyouts would be those who had either worked for the state less than 10 years or were nearing retirement.

Rep. Mike Turner, an Old Hickory Democrat who last week said he wanted to use $100 million from the state reserves to delay any layoffs, said he was more comfortable with the buyout proposals this week as long as enough employees accepted them to prevent layoffs.

"I think this buyout package is actually pretty generous," he said.

Lawmakers are expected to vote on the budget when they go back into session on Tuesday.