Farley Report, Mar. 9, 2010

by: Zelph

Tue Mar 09, 2010 at 19:50:39 PM MST

Howdy,  Friends O'Farley...

Allow me to apologize on behalf of Republican leadership. While last week was officially declared as "Budget Week", they never actually came up with any budget proposals.

So this week is, once again, "Budget Week"!

We actually do have a budget proposal on the table today. The Republicans would again have a lot of apologizing to do, if they were actually sorry for what they are about to do to the state of Arizona.

It's a bloodbath that will last for generations.

This budget was worked out behind closed doors with input from Republican members only, and even state agencies were not consulted, or allowed to testify -- for the first time in memory.

It doesn't even balance the budget -- it uses illegal raids and wishful thinking that will be reversed by court rulings. This phony budget will appear to balance the budget long enough to carry Republican legislators through their November elections until it falls apart completely, leaving our state in ruins.

There are actually two budget proposals: One if the voters pass the sales tax May 18, and another if voters decline.

Budget 1: EVEN IF THE TAX PASSES, here's just some of the damage:

--> 417,982 Arizonans will lose their health care (including 47,000 children on KidsCare), as detailed in last week's Farley Report. This will destroy more than 42,000 jobs, lose us more than $2.8 billion in federal matching funds and stimulus money (some of which will need to be refunded), and put our hospitals, trauma centers, and emergency rooms in danger of closing.

--> Many services to the developmentally disabled will be cut or eliminated, including vision care, attendant care, transportation assistance, and dental services.

--> All-day Kindergarten will end, as will adult ed, gifted, family literacy, and GED programs. In all, $832 million will be cut from K-12 education in Fiscal 2011. We are funding our kids at 2004 levels, despite the huge increases in student population. Class sizes will soar past 50 kids. Imagine the dividends this de-funding of our education system will pay 10, 20, 30 years down the line.

--> Universities will have their per-pupil funding cut by 25%, ensuring more massive tuition increases.

--> The Arizona Department of Juvenile Corrections will be eliminated, and its duties will be transferred to the counties without funding to pay for it. This is part of $124 million in cost shifts to cities and counties, who are also struggling. The Maricopa County Administrator testified in the Appropriations Committee this morning that counties will be forced to raise property taxes on us all or face possible bankruptcy if they are already up against their spending limits.

--> All funding for the high-wage job-creating Science Foundation Arizona will be cut.

--> Lottery funds (Heritage, LTAF) for State Parks, rural transit, and urban transit will be eliminated, causing transit programs and state parks to be shut down.

--> The Arts Endowment, Jobs Training Fund, Housing Fund, and Underground Storage Tank and Emissions Inspection Funds will be completely swept into the General Fund, so there will be no money for arts, housing, jobs training, or emissions & underground storage inspection.

--> The Departments of Environmental Quality and Water Resources will be cut off from the general fund, and will be funded entirely by the industries which it regulates. The funds in which those fees are stored will still be subject to sweeps by the Legislature. This was the way we ended up with no state parks -- make the agency self-funding, then swipe their funds. In the same way, we may also end up with no money to keep our air and water clean and plentiful.

--> Voters will be asked in November to eliminate First Things First and redirect those cigarette tax funds from early childhood education programs into the General Fund, and to eliminate Growing Smarter funds for conservation while also sweeping those funds. The budget is silent on what happens if voters refuse to go along with these schemes, leaving another gaping deficit.

--> By April 1, all state employees will be cut by 5% either through pay cuts, layoffs, or furloughs.

Budget 2: IF THE TAX FAILS, there will be more blood, IN ADDITION TO THE ABOVE CUTS. Here is a bit of how it gets even worse:

--> All departments will be cut by another 5%, except:

--> University funding will be cut by another 12%

--> AHCCCS will be cut by another 9%

--> Community colleges will be cut by another 11%

--> Corrections will be cut by another 7%

--> K-12 education will by cut by another 12%

--> The Department of Fire, Building and Life Safety will be eliminated completely

--> The Judiciary Department will be cut by 10%

--> The Department of Health Services will be cut by 8%

Just Say 'No' to Goat-People

by: Zelph

Tue Mar 02, 2010 at 22:14:57 PM MST

In other news, dim-bulb Frank Anternori was named by the Pima County Board of Stupes to replace State Senator Jonathan Paton, who resigned to run for Congress.  Anternori will move from the State House to the State Senate and the Board of Stupes  will now have to select from a list of three candidates to fill the resulting vacant House seat. If you want this position, apparently all you have to do is threaten them and they'll fold like a tortilla.

Some believe that Anternori's move to the Senate will complicate budget negotiations since he is close friends with hardliners in the House and likely to side with them.  The Senate has been able to pass budget bills only by very slim margins and Anternori's vote could prove troublesome.  Stay tuned.  And just say 'no' to goat-people.

Farley Report, Mar. 2, 2010

by: Zelph

Tue Mar 02, 2010 at 21:27:35 PM MST

Howdy,  Friends O'Farley...

Let's start with a few stats.

The House has finished hearing House bills and the Senate has finished hearing Senate bills. So this is a good time to look at what bills went where, and whether certain bills from members of a certain political party were treated fairly.

In the House, Democrats introduced 233 bills, while Republicans introduced 638 bills.

Out of those lovely bundles of legalese, Republicans had 70%, and Democrats had only 16% of their bills heard in committees.

To put it another way, 448 House bills were heard in House committees. Out of those bills, 8% were sponsored by Democrats, and 92% were sponsored by Republicans.

If bills were heard based on the number of members of each party, Democrats should have had 42% of the bills heard. But in this system, to the majority goes all the power. It may be time for a different majority.

But wait, It's Budget Week!

Problem is, there's no budget yet.

The promising compromise Third Party Budget I spoke about a couple of weeks ago is all but dead, since current Republican leadership seems to have no interest in ideas that include any increase in revenues, even if they have bipartisan support.

We hear that the most recent proposals will be similar to the Governor's draconian budget as introduced in January, but there are some added twists which may or may not be revealed this week.

We do know they will be eliminating all-day Kindergarten, which means that kids will start their schooling with a weaker foundation and struggling young families will have to find childcare or pay tuition at their public school. We also know they plan to raid voter-protected funds including First Things First and the Growing Smarter funds. I wonder if the public will agree that the Legislature is more trustworthy than the People when it comes to spending taxpayer money.

We also know that they will include Governor Brewer's health care cuts. Just so we are all on the same page, here is a review of who's going to get hurt:

"Solar Job Killer" Bill Update

by: Zelph

Sun Feb 28, 2010 at 21:43:14 PM MST

One day after publishing a letter to the editor in the Arizona Republic pleading for support of HB2701, Rep. Debbie Lesko withdrew the bill, after the governor and various lobbyists had a "come to Jesus" session with her, reminding her that costing the state jobs would not enhance the reelection chances of Republicans.

Hilariously, House Speaker Kirk Adams claimed that he and the other Republican co-sponsors of HB2701 are not anti-solar.  Why, he said, we passed SB1403 last year which "propelled Arizona to the forefront internationally as an attractive location for renewable energy".  Adams apparently forgot that he voted against that very bill.  Oopsie.

So this job killing bill is dead as doornail,right?  Not quite. This morning on Channel 12's Sunday Square-Off Starlee Rhoades of the Goldwater Institute said that she plans to push for its reintroduction later in the legislative session.

Just for chuckles, give Rep. Lesko a call at 602-926-5413 or e-mail her at DLesko@azleg.gov and ask her why she withdrew HB2701.  Word is, she's not talking and neither are the other Republican co-sponsors.

Jobs, We Don't Need No Steenking Jobs

by: Zelph

Tue Feb 23, 2010 at 21:44:14 PM MST

Despite the strong possibility that Suntek will reconsider its decision to build a solar panel manufacturing plant in Goodyear, if HB2701 becomes law, the House Government Committee voted 5 to 2 to pass the bill out of committee this evening.

The "Yes" votes on the bill included Rep. Steve Montenegro, R-Litchfield Park.  I guess Republicans don't care so much about creating jobs in their districts if they are those icky solar jobs.  Perhaps their constituents care more about this and need to be reminded of these sort of votes come election time.

The following legislators voted for HB2701 which could cost Arizona the Suntek plant:

Steve Montenegro (R) LD12
David Gowan (R) LD30
Judy Burgess (R) LD4
Adam Driggs (R) LD11
Frank Antenori (R) LD30

The following voted against HB2701:

Chad Campbell (D) LD16
Warde Nichols (R) LD22

Anna Tovar (D) LD13 left early and did not vote.

Tom Chabin (D) LD2 was excused.

Farley Report, Feb. 23, 2010

by: Zelph

Tue Feb 23, 2010 at 18:35:34 PM MST

Howdy,  Friends O'Farley...

Welcome to the Farley Report's 100th Edition! I hope you are still aglow over US Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood's visit to Tucson last Thursday.

You can visit my website (http://www.FriendsOFarley.org) to see a photo of the Secretary and I holding that big $63,000,000 check that represents the final piece to the funding puzzle for Tucson's Modern Streetcar.  

It's been nine long years of working together with many of you to get this done, and we deserve to savor a true victory for Tucson. The streetcar will produce hundreds of jobs this year, and thousands more in coming years as it makes Downtown Tucson the economic engine for the region, powering us out of this recession.

Yes, you and I will be riding the Streetcar from the University Medical Center through the UofA campus, Fourth Avenue, Downtown, and the Westside Mercado District in less than two years. I'm hoping our dedication day will coincide with the Arizona Centennial -- February 14, 2012.

Meanwhile up I-10 a ways, it's Striker Week here at the Arizona Legislature wherein many otherwise inoffensive bills gain strange new evil powers when their guts are stripped out and replaced with all new internal organs.

It not only sounds like a horror story, it is!

Farley Report, Feb. 16, 2010

by: Zelph

Tue Feb 16, 2010 at 20:04:19 PM MST

Howdy,  Friends O'Farley...

Let's imagine for a moment the scene in the underground bunker here at the Capitol where the far-right wingers who control this place are plotting their next moves.  They haven't balanced the budget yet. Times are still really hard. People are really getting angry at how our state is heading for even worse trouble thanks to their lack of action on fixing our fiscal house.  Some are worrying that after 44 years in power, the voters might finally turn against them.

What's their next move? Based on debate on the floor yesterday, the Republicans have decided to go for the tried-and-true strategy of using the power of government to attack someone else. This time, it's gay and lesbian people, along with single women of all kinds, and foster kids.

Apparently it wasn't enough for them to enshrine discrimination in the state constitution by banning loving couples from marriage. Warde Nichols (R-Gilbert) is pushing a bill (HB2148) to ban them from adopting kids, too.  

While the intent of this bill is clearly discrimination against LGBT citizens of Arizona, there's a lot of other collateral damage along the way. Currently, law requires that judges use as their primary consideration the "best interests of the child" when providing placement. HB2148 requires that all adoption agencies give "primary consideration to placement with a married couple."

That means that single heterosexual women are left out, too, even though single women adopt one-third of all foster kids, and those women are more likely to adopt the kids who are hardest to place with families, especially older kids.

Bottom line is, if this bill passes more kids will stay in the foster system for longer periods of time, even as loving families of all kinds are doing everything they can to bring them home. The best interests of ideological extremism appears to trump the best interests of kids every time, when legislative Republicans are calling the shots.

Meanwhile, all Arizona kids are gearing up for more cuts to our public schools. What are Republicans doing about that? Apparently their solution is to dramatically increase the private school voucher program that has been providing huge tax breaks for rich families to send their kids to private schools on the public dime.

Yesterday in Ways & Means, we heard even more bills that would expand this STO voucher program, one of which (HB2660) would triple the individual contributions to $1500 in tax credits per person. Since our Arizona income taxes are the lowest in the country out of all states that charge income tax, if you owe $1500 in Arizona taxes in the first place, you are truly rich. Do the rich need more tax giveaways right now?

AZ Legislature Refers Sales Tax to May Ballot

by: Zelph

Thu Feb 04, 2010 at 20:43:07 PM MST

... the estimated $940 million the tax increase would raise would not be available until the fiscal 2011 budget year. Next year's deficit is about $3 billion.

There remains a $1.4 billion deficit for the 2010 budget year that this tax won't help with, even if it passes, which is seriously in doubt.  $1.2 billion of this gap is expected to be eliminated by borrowing against the state lottery and against state buildings, as well as rolling over payments to schools to the following year.

Democrats have complained that there is no guarantee that the tax, if it passes, will be used to fund education and health care as stated:

Some of the Democratic opponents complained that voters have been lulled into thinking that the sales-tax hike is a silver bullet. Even if voters approve sales-tax hike, said Rep. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Phoenix, Brewer's budget still calls for big cuts to education, health care and public safety.

Rep. David Schapira, D-Tempe echoed that. Although the sales-tax measure is written to direct two-thirds of the proceeds to education and the rest to health care and public safety, there is nothing to prohibit lawmakers from cutting other dollars from those funds, he said.

Some Democrats believe it was a mistake to give bipartisan cover to the governor's tax referral which "which won't work to stop big cuts or balance [the] budget."  Just what will happen if voters shoot down a regressive sale tax and Republicans in the State Legislature use this as a justification for slashing and burning education and health care even further?  

The Republican Dark Lord will be in Arizona today and tomorrow and he is not pleased with the betrayal of some of his minions in referring a tax increase to Arizona voters.  You better believe that many of them will heed their master's voice and do all they can to make sure that this ballot referral goes down in flames at the polls.

Farley Report, Jan. 26, 2010

by: Zelph

Tue Jan 26, 2010 at 20:02:58 PM MST

Howdy, Friends O'Farley...

It's been a quiet week in State Wobegon...

Actually, it has been anything but a quiet week. More legislators are declaring their intentions to run for more offices, committees are pumping out some really suspect bills, House Republicans are trotting out their corporate-bailout deficit-expansion package, teachers and historic neighborhoods are under attack, rumors of yet another Special Session are in the air, and the Republicans are still not willing to work with Democrats on budget solutions.

But there is some good news.

First, one of the best U.S. Transportation Secretaries we have ever had, Ray LaHood, put in to effect today a ban on driving while texting for all interstate truck and bus drivers. Violators will be fined $2,750, so our roads will be a little safer as of today. I will fill you in on our latest efforts to ban DWT in AZ in a couple of weeks.

Second, in even better news, the efforts of the payday lending industry to stave off their imminent demise have failed in their current form. These predators, spreading out all over the capitol, have been trying to reverse the clear mandate of the voters and gain a new lease on life through legislation sponsored by House Republican Whip Andy Tobin, R-Paulden.

Yesterday in the House Banking and Insurance Committee, Tobin pulled his bill at the last minute when it became clear that all Democrats and even some Southern Arizona Republicans will not budge in their opposition to payday lenders.

The predators and their lobbyists are not yet completely defeated -- they are now desperately shopping around concessions in their efforts to stay alive, so we must remain vigilant to assure that the stake goes through their heart as of June 30. I'll keep you posted on their ongoing attempts to make a comeback and will continue to push for their elimination.

Now on to the bad news.

Farley Report, Jan. 19, 2010

by: Zelph

Tue Jan 19, 2010 at 19:39:43 PM MST

Howdy,  Friends O' Farley...

The Capitol is emptying out a bit this week:  Three Republican Senators have already announced their intention to resign and run for Congress -- Paton against Giffords, and Waring & Gorman for the vacant seat left by Shadegg's retirement.

Perhaps they were not looking forward to spending the rest of the session dealing with budget issues. Here's hoping that four more Republican Senators follow suit, giving Democrats a temporary Democratic majority in the State Senate until their replacements are named!

Last year the Governor decided to wait until June to issue her proposed budget. This year, it's right on time. Unfortunately, it's wrong on almost everything else.

Before we get to the bad news, let's start with the three things she did right. She did give a nod to a few Democratic ideas for revenues. She wants to slightly expand the sales tax to cover certain repair services, hire a few more auditors to bring in money from tax cheats, and stop the sales tax accounting credit which gives $20 million a year back to mostly big retailers as payment for filling out their tax forms.

These are good ideas, although there are a whole lot of additional ideas (billions of dollars worth, in fact) for closing tax loopholes that should also be on the table. Why only choose repair services, which would bring in $13 million a year? Why not also tax extended warranty sales -- the ones the Best Buy salespeople pressure you to buy when you get a big-screen TV? That would bring in $30 million. Or country club memberships? Or any of thousands of other products and services currently exempted from taxation?

She also is pushing her temporary one-cent sales tax increase to shore up revenues, but it is unlikely that this would be sent to her desk without being accompanied by the big tax giveaway package being heard in the House this Thursday. That's the one I previewed last week that will slash corporate income tax which shifting property taxes off big businesses and onto residential homeowners, including retirees on fixed incomes. This package combined with a sales tax increase would simply mean a shift off the rich and onto the middle class.

The rest of the Governor's budget is an all-out attack on the middle class, seniors, kids, education, cities and counties, jobs, hospitals, health care, and our future. Yes, she proposes a billion dollars in new revenues, (and $2 billion in new debt) but she still proposes more than a billion in new cuts, including $750 million to education. We pay more and get less.  Here are a few examples of how we all get whacked:

Farley Report, Jan. 12, 2010

by: Zelph

Tue Jan 12, 2010 at 19:48:16 PM MST

Howdy,  Friends O'Farley...

It's Opening Week of Regular Session, but this legislative reunion doesn't quite have the same excitement to it after meeting more or less constantly for the previous year.

What does add to the excitement is the vastness of our fiscal crisis, and the persistent lack of leadership from the Governor and the legislative Republicans as we seek to address the crisis.

Here are the facts:

--> $1.5 billion deficit for this fiscal year, which is half over already
--> another $3 billion deficit for next fiscal year
--> We've already in debt to our necks, so there's very little left to borrow against.
--> It's too late to increase revenues by a vote of the people.
--> The state could simply run out of money by February or March.

Here are the Republican responses to the crisis:

--> The Legislative Republicans want to make the deficit bigger by enacting a huge package of corporate tax bailouts and a massive shift of property taxes off of big businesses and onto homeowners, including retirees on fixed incomes. They also want to cut another couple of billion dollars from education, health care, and universities, eliminating tens of thousands of additional jobs.

--> Governor Brewer wants an unspecified revenue increase to pay for future tax cuts for big corporations and the rich while making another billion in cuts. She announced this in her State of the State while blaming every Democrat from Governor Napolitano to the Attorney General to Congress to the President for "stealing our freedom". She did not say what we would have done without our $5 billion in stimulus money provided by these freedom thieves.

The governor did not tell us many details, but did unveil her plan to throw 300,000 Arizona citizens off their healthcare.

She wants to ask voters to rollback the eligibility level to qualify for AHCCCS health insurance from 100% of the federal poverty level to only 33% of the federal poverty level. Voters in 2000 decided to expand that coverage to cover all those in poverty, and we specifically rejected a competing initiative that would have done what the Governor now wants to do.

Let's parse this proposal a little more closely.

Senate President Bob Burns said yesterday that he believes that poor people were choosing to buy other things besides health insurance, so kicking them off AHCCCS would help them prioritize better.

The federal poverty level for a family of 3 is $18,310 in income per year. If that family were able to buy the same health insurance available to state legislators, without any subsidy from the state, they would have to pay $14,400 a year just in premiums, not including co-pays. That leaves $325 a month to pay for those non-essential luxuries like food, clothes and shelter.  I wonder what choices President Burns might decide to make in that situation.

These 300,000 will no longer get regular preventive care, so they will show up terribly sick at emergency rooms with no way to pay. Hospitals will have to turn them away to get sicker and possibly die, or take them in with no source of reimbursement and risk their own fiscal health.

That's why even the Republican- and business-friendly Arizona Chamber of Commerce opposes this terrible idea -- we will all pay for that in reduced availability of hospitals and clinics, and skyrocketing insurance premiums and medical costs.

Governor Brewer claims this will save us $700 million a year to kick these 300,000 people off healthcare. But as I learned this morning, we would also lose up to $1.5 BILLION a year in lost stimulus funds.

I am a member of a new committee to examine more closely the federal stimulus money and how it has worked in Arizona. We learned that there is another stimulus bill working its way through Congress that would offer us a desperately needed lifeline for this fiscal year and next. It could mean that we would get up to $1.5 billion or more over that period of time to help shrink our deficit.

But if we changed AHCCCS eligibility, we would violate that bill's eligibility requirements and lose that lifeline completely.

Do You Believe in the Tax Fairy?

by: Zelph

Mon Dec 28, 2009 at 22:37:27 PM MST

Actually it's impossible to balance the Arizona state budget without additional revenue.  Sadly, the RepubliKooks in the State Lege still believe in Voodoo Economics and answer, not to the voters of Arizona, but to their Lord and Master Grover.  They think if they cut taxes even more, the frickin' Tax Fairy will leave money under the pillow to balance the Arizona state budget.  It's bullshit and even many Republicans realize it's bullshit.  Sadly, it's the kooks who tend to win Republican primaries, because it's the RepubliKooks who vote in them.

So why are Dems in Arizona too timid to speak the truth?

I don't want to seem like a Concern Troll, but Republicans, isn't it time you stop electing kooks and morons?  Do you really want to be known as the "I'm With Stupid" Party that gets blamed for driving Arizona into insolvency?

Oh, don't worry.  Dems don't have the stones to call you on your bullshit anyways.  At least not the ones I've seen in the State Lege.  They're all listening to overpaid political consultants who say you should never ever attack Republican political philosophy in a "Red State".  Until they learn, Dems in Arizona will always be the Washington Generals.  Tell me again why Arizonans should bother to vote?  Why shouldn't we just pack up and move to some state that isn't self-selecting to be occupied by idiots?

Farley Report, Dec. 1, 2009

by: Zelph

Thu Dec 03, 2009 at 05:12:02 AM MST

Howdy,  Friends O'Farley...

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving with your friends and family.

I certainly did with mine, but in the back of my head at all times was the knowledge of the pain many Arizonans are experiencing right now due to our economic crisis, and due to the complete lack of leadership on display by those currently in control of our state.

The latter was on prominent display last week and the week before that as we limped through a special session that continued to hack away at our education system and programs for our most vulnerable citizens -- our elders, our children, those who are sick and homeless, and victims of crime and abuse.  

We managed to do two good things. We now allow certain agencies to spend money they are already collecting in fees. That will allow departments like Revenue to continue operating beyond December 1 and allows the Corporation Commission to re-open the Tucson office so that we can facilitate new business applications in Southern Arizona.

We also agreed to pay Science Foundation Arizona the $18 million that we illegally took back from them earlier this year. They will use this money to fund the state's most promising high-tech research so that we can diversify our economy and help to make us more recession-proof in the future.

But the legislative majority also passed -- and the Governor signed -- two bills to chop another $144 million from K-12 schools and $155 million from DES from programs that help the developmentally disabled, seniors in need of food aid, child protective services, and many more of our citizens who are in trouble. These were the same cuts the Governor vetoed last summer, saying that she would not balance the budget on the backs of children and the most needy.

There was no discussion of any revenues to preserve any of these vital programs while making us more fiscally stable for the coming decades. That is, there was no discussion from the legislative Republicans.

Cruisin' With the Senators

by: Zelph

Mon Nov 16, 2009 at 18:40:27 PM MST

Senate President Pro Tempore Barbara  Leff (LD-11) won't be attending.  She'll be on a Caribbean cruise.

The Senate Grand Old Party tradition of leaving for a cruise during a state budget crisis was started  by State Senator Thayer Vershoor (LD-22) and continued by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Gray (LD-19).

If I didn't know better, I'd think Senate Republicans don't care a rat's ass about resolving the state's budget woes and see this crisis as an opportunity to starve the beast.  But I'm sure our Republican State Senators are very caring people who very wish only the best for the people of our great state.  Except for those trough-feeding teachers, that is.

Farley Report, Oct 6, 2009

by: Zelph

Tue Oct 06, 2009 at 21:52:55 PM MDT

Howdy,  Friends O'Farley...

Here we are in October, and our deficit is now $1.5 billion and growing.

Constitutionally, the Legislature is supposed to have delivered a balanced budget on June 30, but no one seems to want to enforce that clause. Perhaps this could finally be a good use for Sheriff Joe?

Dressing the Governor and the Legislative majority in pink stripes and locking them into Tent City could finally force an agreement of some kind. Not that I want to spend too much time thinking of the images that go with that scenario.

There is some talk of the Governor calling us into special session again next week (that's Special Session Number 4 for those of you keeping score at home), and perhaps another after that one's done. But the call has not yet gone out.

The first one needs to happen soon to keep some departments afloat. The AZ Corporation Commission (ACC) in particular is in a pickle. The Governor signed a bill that cuts off funding from the ACC, but vetoed the part that allows them to fund themselves. For that reason, they are nearing the flat-broke stage.

To solve that, the Phoenix Republican majority on the Commission voted 3-2 to close the ACC office in Tucson, over the objections of the two Democrats who were worried the office may never again open. Not only does this hurt Tucson, it will force all new business applicants to go to Phoenix to get their paperwork and double the time it takes to get that paperwork processed.

A fix would be easy to do in a special session, and wouldn't cost any money, but the Governor is afraid (with some reason) that legislative Republicans would turn that session into a public flogging of the Governor, and the Speaker and President are not convinced that the problem needs to be fixed before January.

We'll see if common sense prevails over Republican infighting and we get that special session soon.

The stickier problem is the growing deficit. The legislative majority is still jonesing for that education equalization property tax cut -- the one that is effectively a huge bailout to the state's largest corporate landowners (including large California investors). This would of course make the financial picture $250 million worse.

And the Governor seems to be giving in to the majority's desire to see more cuts. Today she was quoted as saying: "There will be probably a lot of programs that will have to be done away with."

Senate Appropriations Chair Russell Pearce is happy to lead the bandwagon to dismantle state services. He publicly stated that his first priority is to slash education, specifically to get rid of full-day Kindergarten and shrink the schoolyear by five days. What good is education in a 21st-century economy anyway?

Kongratulations Kooks!

by: Zelph

Mon Sep 14, 2009 at 22:03:42 PM MDT

Moody's Investors Service lowered its ratings outlook on Arizona to negative from stable, citing significant revenue underperformance, sizable budget deficits and tightening liquidity.

You should be proud of yourselves!  Arizona will now find it extremely difficult to borrow the money it needs to stay afloat.

Thanks to you, Arizona will have billion-dollar deficits all the way into 2013 unless devastating cuts are made to crucial services.  Lobbyist Kevin DeMenna believes that Arizona is well on the way to insolvency.  Thousands of public employees will lose their jobs and extreme cuts will made to education, health, and public safety.  Don't whine that it's not your fault.  Hold your head up high.  You've starved the beast!  That what you wanted, isn't it?  Now all them trough-feeding school teachers will have to get real jobs!

Good luck next election, KonservaKooks.  You'll need it.

Correction and Clarification: Arizona's actual credit rating has not yet been lowered by Moody's. They have, however, decided that the outlook for Arizona is negative and are keeping a close eye on the situation in order to decide whether to reduce it.  I have little doubt that they will do so in the future, given the unwillingness of our legislature to resolve Arizona's budget crisis in a productive manner.  This will make it more difficult and more expensive for the state to borrow money in the future.  The KookieKons in our state legislature don't care.  They want to starve the beast.

The debt-rating service downgraded Arizona's credit outlook from stable to negative and although Arizona's credit rating has not yet been lowered, Moody's analysts could change that at any given time as they look for continuing budget declines.

Upon issuance of the Moody's warning, State Treasurer Dean Martin said a lowered rating could cost Arizona tax payers millions more in interest rates, which is cause for even more concern since he's had to continue borrowing money to keep the state operating this summer during budget decision delays. An Arizona Republic article quotes Martin as saying the state is seeking a lender to open a $500 million line of credit for the state.

Farley Report, Sept. 1, 2009

by: Zelph

Tue Sep 01, 2009 at 20:40:39 PM MDT

Howdy,  Friends O'Farley...

It's been a month since I last wrote you. On the budget front--despite a whole lot of talk and drama--nothing has happened.

It really is like living in that great movie Groundhog Day, where Bill Murray keeps waking up to the same day where the same things happen no matter how he tries to change his behavior. Except these shenanigans are much less entertaining -- real people (like you and me) are really going to get hurt.

After weeks in Special Session #3, the Republican majority managed to send Governor Brewer the same budget that was on her desk a month ago and was vetoed. Once again, this was without the sales tax referral that she had demanded as the price for her signature.

Last time, the Governor didn't just veto, she verbally smacked those bills down with pretty clear language, calling it an "irresponsible" budget that failed to "protect critical funding for education, public safety, and care for our most vulnerable citizens."

The most recent Republican-only budget package was sent to her about a week and a half ago, and she still has not indicated whether she will sign it. If she does, that 180-degree turn will destroy her credibility.

If she vetoes it, we're left with no budget as we face possible state bankruptcy, worsening credit ratings, IOUs to state employees and contractors, a shutdown of most DPS services, and more, unless we are called back into a special session to finally get a reasonable budget.

In pursuit of that goal, the Democratic House and Senate leaders were finally invited to engage in those elusive 5-party talks over the past two weeks. In spite of good faith efforts to find common ground, Republican leaders have so far refused to budge.

My Voodoo Curse Worked!

by: Zelph

Fri Aug 28, 2009 at 20:40:59 PM MDT

Stop me if you've heard this one.  Really?  Curt Shilling? Really?

Huppenthal Skates

by: Zelph

Thu Aug 27, 2009 at 21:39:57 PM MDT

Either way, the fix was in from the beginning.  

In the course of his "non-sign theft", the Huppster got into a tussle with an elderly woman who was trying to keep him from "not" stealing it.

Huppenthal hopes this fiasco won't hurt him in his upcoming race for Superintendent of Public Instruction.

I hope you've learned a valuable lesson, kiddies: IOKIYAR!

I sure hope no one steals his campaign signs!  That would be wrong. And remember, it's only OK if you're a Republican.  Otherwise you could go to jail.

It's all the Democrats Fault? Really, Governor Brewer?

by: Zelph

Mon Aug 17, 2009 at 22:39:22 PM MDT

So who's to blame for the horrible budget passed by the legislature which the accidental governor is now considering signing?  Why, it's all the Democrats fault!

Sen. Sen. Jackass Harper (R-Surprise!) has even likened the behavior of legislative Democrats to the regime of Saddam Hussein.

Now it's rumored that Governor Brewer is going to sign a budget that she previously said would result in "devastating cuts  to education, public safety and our state's most vital health services for the frail." It's a budget that funds tax cuts for the wealthy and for corporations with a regressive sales tax on consumers.

It's also a budget that isn't even balanced as required by the Arizona Constitution.

Can any lawyers out there tell me what standing one needs to sue the Arizona legislature for failing to fulfill their Constitutional obligations?

Update from Rep. Sinema after the jump: