First, House Democrats and Gov. Katie Hobbs rejected the House GOP budget proposal. Now, Senate Republicans have rejected the spending package shortly before introducing their bipartisan deal with Hobbs. 

“This budget is viable, unlike the fantasyland budget proposed in the House,” said President Pro Tempore T.J. Shope in a news release today. 

Sen. John Kavanagh also called on House Republicans to support the Senate’s budget, acknowledging Hobbs has already vowed to veto the House budget. At the same time, lawmakers only have two weeks to get a budget signed before a government shutdown. 

While the House budget will likely not go further than passing the House, Rep. Matt Gress said on June 13 that he hopes it will serve as a procedural framework to consolidate House GOP requests into the Senate’s budget. 

“Our budget is certainly more conservative than what I suspect this bipartisan agreement will be,” Gress said during the June 13 budget vote. “We are close. I think a budget deal is imminent.”

Political consultant Barrett Marson said it was important for the House to show Hobbs that the Republican caucus was united even if its budget would go no further in the legislative process. 

No Republicans voted against the budget, although some, including Reps. Teresa Martinez and Justin Olson, expressed hesitation before voting to pass the budget. Only Reps. Justin Wilmeth and Chris Lopez didn’t vote for the budget because they were not present on the floor. 

“They have at least stated their ground,” Marson said. “Look, things were stuck, and now they’re going to unstick it.”

Senate Republicans have recognized that Hobbs will never sign a budget that only garners GOP support. 

“Elections have consequences. We are in an era of divided government, and we must proceed as such. Republicans can’t get everything they want, and neither can Democrats,” Shope said in the news release. 

GOP consultant Doug Cole agreed with that approach. 

“I can tell you with all certainty that the majority of the folks involved in the (budget) process will be unhappy. But that’s how our system is set up,” Cole said.