Across the state, Arizonans are bracing for federal spending cuts that will take effect Friday barring compromise between President Barack Obama and the House Republican leadership over a plan to reduce the national debt.

Lawmakers have been rushing to pass election reform measures this year, hoping to enact laws that would thwart the type of problems that marred the 2012 election.

For decades, police have been peering into backyards from helicopters to look for signs of crime without having to get search warrants.

But the impending revolution of drones, or unmanned aircraft, brings fears of a Big Brother rising to watch over people’s lives. And now concern about unmanned aircraft has spawned legislation to force police officers to get court approval when they want to use the technology in criminal investigations.

A state Senate bill is raising the question of how many committees it takes to build a highway in Arizona.

The measure would require a legislative committee to review most new highway construction projects as a final hurdle before work could begin.

Reversing a decades-old policy, the Arizona Corporation Commission will allow the owners of small utility companies to pass their income taxes off to consumers across the state.

Two tech company executives called it the future of voting in Arizona: online voting systems in the digital age that provide faster and more reliable vote counts and make participation in the state’s elections easier than ever before.

The House approved a measure that would repeal automatic benefit increases for new state employees, and change benefits for surviving family members of deceased Arizona state employees.

The state is suing the Arizona Cardinals and the Arizona Sports and Tourism Authority, alleging they are violating the Americans with Disabilities Act because they don’t have adequate accommodations for deaf and hard-of-hearing fans.

Concerned that a complicated licensing system deters would-be hunters and anglers, the Arizona Game and Fish Department wants to simplify things by bundling options. But under current law any such changes must go through a three-year legislative process at the State Capitol.

The state’s accounting system is on life support, but thanks to funding allocated last year by the governor and the Legislature it’s getting an overhaul that officials say is long overdue.