Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey has allowed so many vacancies on the board overseeing the nearly $35 billion retirement pension fund covering the majority of state, city and county workers that it has been unable to do any substantive work since November.

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.

A committee that studied funding issues with Arizona's pension system for public employees is recommending that current and former workers be allowed to move into a 401(k)-style plan as an optional alternative to fixed-benefit pensions.

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer has signed a bill reversing a cost-cutting decision that made state and local government employees pay a bigger share of the costs of the state's main public retirement system.

Lawmakers are trying to tap the state's main retirement system for public employees to replace state funding for research projects meant to help spur economic development.