Lawmakers, governor move closer to a budget deal, including university bonding

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(AZ Capitol Times) Lawmakers strove to set a budget in motion on Monday night, but fell short of introducing bills as staff worked feverishly to put in writing a $9.8 billion spending plan late into the evening.

The Republican leadership in the House and Senate adjourned for the day shortly after 7 p.m. following an afternoon of behind-closed-door briefings, as rank-and-file Republicans were provided details of a tentative budget deal struck between the two chambers, and Gov. Doug Ducey.

With no budget bills in sight on Monday evening, the earliest budget bills could clear the Legislature and be sent to the governor’s desk for a signature is now Thursday. According to the Arizona Constitution, budget bills must be read in three calendar days.

Budget documents used to brief GOP lawmakers, obtained by the Arizona Capitol Times, reveal a tentative deal that gives Ducey much of what he asked for, including a host of new initiatives to boost K-12 funding, new school construction and maintenance dollars, and money for a two percent teacher pay raise over two years.

It also appears that a deal struck that governor’s university bonding proposal, a sticking point, has ended the stalemate at the Capitol.

Read the full story at AZ Capitol Times

Corrie O'Connor