Arizona Capitol Times Your Inside Source for Arizona Government, Politics and Business

The Republican-led Legislature plans to approve an $8.6 billion spending plan for the state on Tuesday, shortly after Gov. Jan Brewer and GOP leaders sealed a budget agreement last week.

Here’s a list of some of the most controversial, substantive or prominent measures that are awaiting a vote, struggling to get support or are simply caught in the moratorium and are ready to be sent to the governor’s desk.

The 2012 session appears to be in its final days, but some of the biggest pieces of legislation this year — including Gov. Jan Brewer’s proposal to make it easier to fire state employees — remain stuck at the state Capitol.

The glut of measures yet to be passed — or in some cases held by legislative leaders — is at least partially a result of an embargo on sending bills to the governor after she threatened to veto all bills until a budget deal is reached.

Lawmakers and the governor plan to set aside $450 million to offset anticipated deficits in the state budget in two years.

That’s money that won’t be available for critical needs now, but depositing it in the state’s “rainy day” fund reaffirms a fiscally conservative outlook that has dominated the Capitol following the fiscal crisis that led to several years of incessant budget slashing.

As Republican lawmakers begin to receive briefings on the budget deal that GOP leaders and the Governor’s Office agreed to in principle April 25, details are beginning to emerge.

The major sticking point between the two sides has been revenue projections — not just for the upcoming fiscal year, which begins July 1, but also for the following two years. Though Gov. Jan Brewer had been unwilling to adopt the Legislature’s more cautious revenue estimates, it appears she had a change of mind.

The Legislature is sitting on at least a dozen measures it has already approved instead of sending them to the governor, a decision that follows Gov. Jan Brewer’s threat of a blanket veto of all bills that land on her desk before a budget is adopted.

After weeks of budget talks with no agreement in sight, Gov. Jan Brewer gave legislative leaders an ultimatum, telling them she would veto bills until work on the state’s spending plan is complete.

But rather than force a quicker budget resolution, it could result in more heartburn between the two sides. In fact, there were indications some Republicans might be taking a look at abandoning negotiations with the governor in favor of working with Democrats to ensure a veto-proof super majority behind a budget.

Gov. Jan Brewer’s decision to not sign any new bills until she gets a budget came only after Senate President Steve Pierce and House Speaker Andy Tobin backtracked on agreements they made with the governor on a handful of spending items, according to a Brewer spokesman.

After Gov. Jan Brewer yesterday told GOP legislative leaders that she will veto any bills that land on her desk before a budget is completed, the warning is being heeded in the Senate. “I am not sending any bills to her today,” said Senate President Steve Pierce. “She asked not to. So we’re going to try and help her out and work with her.”

Talks on the budget may be on the verge of breaking down, as Gov. Jan Brewer today told Republican legislative leaders that she will not sign any more bills until the budget is done.

Republican lawmakers and Brewer have been at loggerheads over a budget deal all session. The governor called for increased spending in education and some social programs, but Republicans have said she wants to spend too much money.