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

A bill approved by the Arizona Legislature would end the flat right that misdemeanor DUI defendants now have under state law to a jury trial for a first offense.

Fiscal hawks who took the reins of the state government this year promised a new era of conservatism and delivered where it mattered most — by drafting a spending plan that rejected gimmickry in favor of significant cuts to core government services.

But the aftershocks of 2010’s Republican tsunami were also felt elsewhere, and this Legislature’s Tea Party leanings became the refrain for the 2011 legislative session.

Despite a festering budget deficit, lawmakers have found a way to grant Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu’s request for funds for border-related immigration enforcement.

While the battles Wisconsin Republicans waged against their state’s teachers unions dominated news coverage in a made-for-television drama, their legislative counterparts in Arizona moved against government employees with far less fanfare.

A legislative economic panel, whose recommendations legislators typically use in forecasting how much cash the state will get, has downgraded its revenue forecast for next year.

Tea party supporters in Arizona could show off their affinity for the movement on their vehicles if Gov. Jan Brewer signs a bill sent to her Wednesday creating a special "Don't Tread On Me" license plate.

Gov. Jan Brewer's vetoes of a half-dozen bills sponsored by fellow Republicans are raising eyebrows, with some conservatives questioning whether she is still one of them.

Arizona lawmakers have approved a bill to recognize a Colt revolver as the state's official firearm.

A drug testing bill proposed as a response to Arizona voters' legalization of medical marijuana is headed to Gov. Jan Brewer.

Conservative lawmakers who rose to power following the last election set the tone for this session and left significant marks on major pieces of legislation that have come to define the achievements and failures of Arizona’s 50th Legislature, which wrapped up the annual legislative session just as the sun was rising this morning.