Is there any way to find out in davance whether an employer will try verify education/degrees for applicants? Is there a standard for this, particularly among municipal employers?

I read an article which said that a lot of them do, I'm not sure if all of the employers do so.

Are you planning to lie to a potential future employer?

You should note that in most places, if they find out years later you lied like that, that is grounds for them to fire you without severance.