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Panel OKs bill to track illegal immigrant students
A House panel has approved a bill that would require schools to annually report how many illegal immigrants are enrolled and how much it costs to educate them.
Proposed school funding change flunks test
A House panel overwhelmingly rejected changing to how student counts are determined for public school funding, saying daily attendance averages wouldn't properly reflect how many students are enrolled in school.
Renewable energy bills could force constitutional showdown
A pair of bills designed to upend the Arizona Corporation Commission's requirement on renewable energy could force a court battle over whether the Legislature has the power to tinker with the commission's decisions.
Lawmakers’ first duty: Show up and vote
Here’s the simple mathematics of representative government: Arizona taxpayers pay for lawmakers to show up and vote on every bill in the Legislature. Now here’s the flaw in that equation: Lawmakers get paid whether they show up or not. Unfortunately, many Arizona residents were underrepresented at the Capitol during last year’s regular legislative session.
Allen: Fraud plan was ‘pat on the head’ for Seel
Rep. Carl Seel may think that Sen. Carolyn Allen tried to run his fraud reduction scheme through the ringer last spring, but the Scottsdale Republican now says it was actually legislative leadership who put her up to the task.
Capitol Quotes 10/30
"He just arrived, like a lot of freshmen, believing that he's going to save us from ourselves... He probably thinks he's going to work his way to the White House. And he's not alone in that." - Sen. Carolyn Allen, a Republican from Scottsdale, speaking Oct. 28 about the approach taken by Rep. Carl Seel and other new lawmakers in the 2009 legislative session.
Wishful thinking interrupted by budget reality
JLBC has singled out three budget provisions that wouldn't live up to their billing: a plan to save $50 million due to reduced fraud in the health care system; deals to privatize nine of the 10 state prisons; and a plan to raise $735 million by selling dozens of state buildings, then leasing them back. But there's more.
Seel: Anti-fraud measures can be implemented
Rep. Carl Seel tells our reporter that, while JLBC is technically correct that the Health and Welfare BRB (Laws 2009, 3rd Special Session, Chapters 3 and 10) did not have the statutory changes necessary to implement the anti-fraud mechanisms at AHCCCS under the federal false claims act, there was a provision he said he quietly slipped into the General Government BRB (Laws 2009, 3rd Special Session[...]
Splitting budget bill jeopardizes support in House
While splitting the tax referendums may help the budget agreement gain enough support to climb out of the Senate, the maneuver might alienate enough House members to kill the fledgling deal.
Capitol Quotes 5/22
“I think we can do at least three, maybe five. I mean, we’re not going to privatize death row, obviously.” — Rep. John Kavanagh, a Republican from Fountain Hills, speaking... […]
