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House speaker proposes ballot measure on Medicaid expansion
Unable or unwilling to take on Medicaid expansion at the Capitol, House speaker Andy Tobin wants to ask voters in the state whether they want to expand Medicaid coverage. He is working on a resolution to send the question to the ballot in a special election this year.
Speaker Tobin key to Medicaid expansion deal
Gov. Jan Brewer's proposal to expand the state's Medicaid program to 300,000 more poor Arizonans may pass or fail based on just one person in the Legislature: Republican House Speaker Andy Tobin.
When bills get hung up, is it policy or personal?
Bills die for a variety of reasons at the Arizona Capitol, but none go down in a more explosive manner than when personal politics outweigh the merits of legislation in the eyes of bill sponsors and lawmakers who vote on the measures.
Governor stops signing bills pending progress on Medicaid
Just when it looked like the Legislature couldn’t get any slower, Gov. Jan Brewer told legislative leaders to stop sending her bills altogether and if they do, the implied threat is that she will veto them.
Biggs, Brewer, Tobin have options on Medicaid issue
Gov. Jan Brewer is determined to expand Arizona’s Medicaid plan, Senate President Andy Biggs has vowed to prevent it, and House Speaker Andy Tobin is somewhere in the middle.
Brewer OKs extra redistricting commission funds
Gov. Jan Brewer has signed a bill providing yet another supplemental appropriation for the commission that drew up new legislative and congressional districts following the 2010 Census.
Election bills face further problems in conference committee
Lawmakers attempted to push through a set of bogged-down election bills in a comprehensive 43-page amendment in conference committee Wednesday afternoon, but the committee was called off minutes after the amendment began circulating at the Capitol.
Senate president vows to block Medicaid expansion plan
Senate President Andy Biggs said Tuesday he would do “everything I can” to prevent Gov. Jan Brewer’s proposal to expand Medicaid from reaching the Senate floor for a vote.
Fixing the Funding Gap for a Better Arizona
Scott Mussi’s and Serena Unrein’s guest opinion titled “HB2646 is risky business for taxpayers” published April 16 is factually wrong and improperly suggestive on so many points, it begs a response.
Lawmakers aim high in budget talks
Small-group discussions have begun on the state budget, offering rank- and-file lawmakers their first chance to give input on next year’s spending plan, and nearly everyone has a pet priority they want funded.
Despite changes to election reform bills, Democrats, Hispanics still opposed
Latino voters and Democratic lawmakers remain opposed to two controversial bills to reform Arizona’s early voting system despite efforts to add bipartisan amendments to each measure.
Predicting Brewer vetoes is difficult; reasons vary
Figuring out how to avoid Gov. Jan Brewer’s veto pen is a guessing game that leaves even some of the most seasoned veterans at the Capitol perplexed.
Many lawmakers and lobbyists say there are no hard and fast guidelines for avoiding a veto from a governor who vetoed 91 bills in her first four legislative sessions.
