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Senate reaches filing deadline; fewer bills on tap
The bill moratorium is over, but senators still filed fewer bills this year than they did last year. This year, 443 bills were filed in the Senate before the Feb. 1 deadline. The House still has another week before representatives are cut off.
Day 3: Tracking the fifth special session
Day 3 of the fifth special session has started. It's expected to be the final day. Check back for up-to-the-minute updates.
Running for the Legislature or statewide office
Here’s a list of potential legislative candidates in 2010. At least 15 seats are expected to be vacant in the Senate because of term limits, retirement, or because senators are seeking other positions. Meanwhile, some 13 House members cannot seek re-election in 2010.
Tracking the special session
Click here for up-to-the-minute updates on the Legislature's fourth special session. Our reporters will be at the Capitol all day (or all week, if it comes to that), tracking the progress of the four pieces of legislation in the House and Senate.
Maybe rules were meant to be broken
Looks like both Republicans and Democrats in the Senate are ignoring their own rules. Sen. Steve Pierce decided to go into executive session when the governor arrived today. "That's my prerogative to do so, and I think we will do so right now," he said...
Scores of sidelined bills coming back in 2010
Lawmakers may not be finished with their work for the year, but many are already looking ahead to 2010, when they can resurrect the plethora of bills that fell victim... […]
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.
Legislative UPDATE: Budget deal hung up
Republican leaders and Gov. Jan Brewer might have reached a tentative budget agreement, but they don't have the votes, for now at least, to get it to her. That became apparent when the Senate adjourned tonight without hearing the budget in Approps.
Burns strips Verschoor of leadership role, removes 2 from Rules panel
The president of the Arizona Senate has removed Thayer Verschoor from his leadership position, replacing him with a freshman lawmaker. Sen. Steve Pierce, a lawmaker from Prescott, was appointed July 8 to replace Verschoor as Senate President pro tempore, as well as on the six-member Senate Rules Committee.
UPDATED: Brewer praises budget deal, credits vetoes
Gov. Jan Brewer praised lawmakers for their swift and bipartisan work in passing four new budget bills on the first day of the special session, and she credited her vetoes of the previous budget as the force that pushed them together.
4 budget bills pass unanimously; much work remains
The Arizona Legislature voted unanimously July 6 to pass four bills, one of which would restore funding to public education and add another approximately $400 million to schools. The measures garnered bipartisan support, passing unanimously, first in the House and then in the Senate.
Quorum likely for special session
Most Arizona senators will be present for the opening of the special session on July 6, according to staff members in their Senate offices. A handful will probably be absent, including senators Meg Burton Cahill of Tempe and Richard Miranda of Tolleson.
