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Senate panel OKs bill to temporarily end voter-protection of spending
A Senate panel April 6 advanced a bill that would give lawmakers more flexibility on spending, regardless of whether voters intended the money to be spent on specific programs.
Arizona poised to sue feds over health care
The Legislature is moving ahead with plans to give Gov. Jan Brewer and lawmakers the authority to sue the federal government over the health care law, even though lawmakers pushing for a lawsuit were unable to fully explain the legal basis for a court challenge.
Lawmakers will face $450M shortfall if voters reject ballot measures in Nov.
Lawmakers may find themselves back at the Capitol for another budget round if voters in November knock down a proposal to eliminate an early childhood development program and take its money, and sweep funds reserved for preserving Arizona's open spaces.
Despite wide support, construction of a $187M medical school building still on hold
On the surface, it seemed like a no-brainer to build a new Health Sciences Education Building for Arizona's three state universities.
Budget plan shifts cost of jailing juveniles to cities, counties
Lawmakers are tossing around a budget plan that would shutter the Arizona Department of Juvenile Corrections, put counties in charge of incarcerating juveniles and shift some of the cost to municipalities.
Authorless budget proposal aired by Approps Committee
Members of legislative budget committees on Feb. 18 saw how a secretive budget proposal that has been circulated around the Capitol in recent weeks stacks up to the budget plan offered by Gov. Jan Brewer, but much of the discussion focused on who drafted the authorless spending plan.
Covert, bipartisan budget plan unveiled
Secret plotting to balance Arizona's wildly out-of-whack budget got started in an east Phoenix restaurant best described as a hole-in-the- wall. What better place than a hole-in-the-wall to work on a budget full of holes?
Speed cameras could be gone in a flash
The end appears near for speed cameras on Arizona highways. The biggest question is which method will be used to get rid of them. So far, lawmakers have introduced three measures to repeal the statutes that allow the photo-enforcement system. Another bill doesn't exactly repeal photo enforcement, but it would render the system useless.
End of GOP budget fight? Seriously?
For the first time in at least six years, the annual release of budget plans by the Arizona Legislature and the governor didn't result in bickering. Of course, it helps that the legislative Republican majority didn't put out anything even closely resembling a budget plan this year.
Brewer budget plan a tenuous proposition
Gov. Jan Brewer's budget plan is structured much like a game of Jenga. Pull out one piece, and the entire pile of blocks could come crashing down. The plan, released Jan. 15, would balance the budget using a variety of maneuvers to reduce costs and raise new revenue. But some of the ideas rely on future events that are out of the governor's control.
House panel passes bill curbing day labor
Day laborers and those who hire them would face criminal charges if they disrupt traffic under a bill approved by a House committee Jan. 21.
AZ, feds choose opposite directions on health care
As the federal government prepares to expand health care coverage to more Americans, Arizona may be looking to drastically cut back on its Medicaid program to help solve state budget problems.
