By Mary Jo Pitzl |Arizona Republic
With less than a month until their deadline, Arizona lawmakers are making another attempt to pass a state budget.
A spreadsheet with details of a possible spending plan, negotiated by Republican leaders and the Governor’s Office, was distributed to lawmakers Monday.
But the $16.8 billion in state spending for next year contained in those documents — a massive increase over the current $12.4 billion budget — is widely viewed as far from the final product.
And it’s more like dead on arrival, said Sen. Paul Boyer, R-Glendale, who said the plan as currently written doesn’t do enough for education funding.
A “no” vote from Boyer, or from any Republican in either the House or Senate, could imperil the plan, which was drafted by the GOP majority with input from Gov. Doug Ducey’s office.
Lawmakers must have a state budget in place by July 1, when the new fiscal year starts. A $13 billion plan that emerged in mid-April faltered as Republicans split in opposition — with some complaining it spent too much and others saying it didn’t spend enough. Ducey complained it fell short of addressing the state’s needs, given the rise of inflation.
