Sign In
Free Newsletter
Senate splits sales tax hike from income tax cuts
***UPDATED AT 5:30 P.M.*** Senate Republicans approved key changes to the budget deal during a committee hearing Aug. 10 in an effort to muster 16 votes to pass the entire proposal.
Senate readies two bills for committee vote Aug. 11
The Senate assigned two House budget bills to the Appropriations Committee on Aug. 7, signaling that changes will be made to the budget deal that the governor and Republicans had reached.
House leader calls budget ‘best deal possible’
More than a week after the governor and legislative leaders announced a new budget deal, the state was still without a complete budget and time was running out to call... […]
Heard Museum to close in Surprise
The Surprise branch of the Heard Museum is closing at the end of the year. Museum director Frank Goodyear Jr. says the long struggling museum is a victim of the recession and low visitation.
Final budget approved for Mohave County
A U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge is ordering the owner of the Phoenix Coyotes to show why he should not be held in contempt of court.
Two reasons Sen. Harper flipped on budget
Two recent developments persuaded a conservative Republican senator to switch his stance from opposition to support for a budget package that has stalled in his chamber for weeks. One was an e-mail from the Americans for Tax Reforms, a national anti-tax group that administers the No New Taxes Pledge.
No action on budget; Legislature to return Friday
The Legislature is set to meet on Friday, Aug. 7 in another push to pass a budget in time to get Gov. Jan Brewer's sales tax referral on the ballot this November.
Revenue slides again; deficit grows by $230M
Nearly one-fifth of the state’s general fund revenues eroded in the 2009 fiscal year, the largest decline on record since World War II. New revenue figures show the state was short nearly $479 million in fiscal 2009, which ended June 30.
No budget this week; session will drag into Aug.
The Senate met for a few minutes today (July 31), but only to adjourn the special session until Aug. 4. Even then, though, it’s not clear whether leaders in the Senate will be able to gather enough votes to pass the budget legislation that has tied them up for the past several days.
Senate falls one vote short, may try again today
Despite intense lobbying, Republican leaders failed to persuade Sen. Pamela Gorman to vote for a referral for a sales tax increase. Brewer talked with Gorman, the majority whip, for more than an hour at Gorman's Senate office, but the governor was apparently unable to persuade the senator to change her mind.
Tired of waiting, House passes budget
The House of Representatives has given its approval to a budget deal that was hammered out with the governor earlier this week, but it is unknown when the Senate will take up the matter as it isn’t clear if they have the votes needed to pass it.
Huppenthal in, Gorman out; vote begins in Approps
Senate President Bob Burns has replaced a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee in another attempt to get the votes to pass a budget deal with the governor at the committee level.
