The push to refer Gov. Jan Brewer’s Medicaid expansion plan to the ballot began in earnest as opponents of the bill rallied at the Capitol before fanning out across the Valley to collect signatures.

The bipartisan coalition forming around Medicaid expansion flexed their political muscle on Monday, shooting down a pair of amendments and approving another amendment to a Medicaid expansion supporter’s bill involving school bonding.

Arizona lawmakers have slashed $1 billion from public education dollars in recent years and gone to court to avoid mandatory increases in school funding. Now they want taxpayers to directly cover the costs of new construction, repairs, equipment and school buses.

Even the question of who is a lobbyist is debatable, thanks to wide-ranging exemptions in the laws governing who is required to register as a lobbyist. Those exemptions cover everyone from John Q. Public to, arguably, one of the state’s most powerful public policy groups: The Goldwater Institute.

Religious organizations would qualify for new property tax exemptions under legislation moving forward in the Arizona House of Representatives.

Calling the Capitol a soft target for terrorist threats that could decapitate the state and destabilize the nation, Republican Rep. John Allen of Scottsdale is pitching a plan to install a full vehicle barrier around the Capitol complex.

Arizona’s Republican congressmen recently sent a joint letter to House Speaker Andy Tobin asking him to push forward legislation barring automatic deductions of union dues from public employees’ paychecks.

A trio of Union busting bills is heading to the House Government Committee on Tuesday, kicking off the second straight year of high-profile battles between the Legislature and public employee unions.

Despite being elected by his colleagues as Majority Leader last session, Rep. Steve Court announced today that he would not be seeking re-election this year.

This week’s most outstanding quips, jibes and utterances.