(The Center Square) – The Arizona Legislature Friday passed a budget that Gov. Katie Hobbs is expected to sign, with just days left to keep the government running.
“When it comes to the budget, it takes three to tango,” state Sen. John Kavanagh, the Republican who chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee, said on the floor before senators approved Senate Bill 1735, the General Appropriations Act, by a bipartisan vote of 21-8. He was referring to the Senate, the Governor’s Office and, as the last partner in the budget dance, the House.
“The only losers, in my opinion, are the reporters, who until January will be desperate for stories,” Kavanagh said, referring to the start of the next regular legislative session.
The House approved the newest version of the $17.6 billion budget Thursday night after Hobbs vetoed two of the House’s budget proposals Wednesday night, while noting she supported the budget the Senate passed June 20.
Senators from both parties noted Friday’s legislation, despite some changes by the House, is virtually identical to the earlier Senate budget.
Voting yes for the latest budget, Senate President Warren Petersen, R-Gilbert, criticized the House for its tardiness in passing a budget that Hobbs would sign.
“The more savvy media folks know what happened. We should have finished two months ago,” Petersen said, speaking calmly but with a serious tone. “For those who allowed this to happen, I would say, ‘Get your house in order,’ because I’m certain this body and the public won’t be fooled a second time.”
Without a budget signed by Hobbs, the Arizona government would shut down Monday for the first time in its history.
Republican and Democratic lawmakers largely agreed the budget was one they could live with in the face of a divided government. Republicans hold majorities in both houses of the Legislature, but lack enough seats to override the Democratic governor’s vetoes.
Sen. Lauren Kuby, D-Tempe, said on the floor that the budget wasn’t perfect and fails to fully reflect “the people’s proposals, the people’s values.”
But she said she would vote for the bipartisan budget.
“As it turns out, the third time is a charm,” Minority Leader Priya Sundareshan told senators.
“The House has finally come to the conclusion that this chamber landed on weeks ago,” the Democrat said.
“Despite the changes we’ve seen from the House, the budget we vote on today is nearly identical to” what the Senate approved June 20, Sundareshan said.
While noting she was still voting “no” on the budget, Sundareshan noted passage would keep the Arizona government operating.
“Arizona will not shut down,” she said.
Sen. Kiana Maria Sears, who’s been in the Senate for 90 days as of Friday, said she was grateful the budget includes money for the arts, which helps the economy to thrive. She added she was glad to secure an additional $2 million for the Commission for the Arts, $2 mllion more for the Area Agency on the Aging and $2 million for a program to encourage Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program recipients to purchase fresh, farm-to-table Arizona food.
In a news release, the Democrat said she was proud of the work she and Minority Whip Rosanna Gabaldón did to prioritize spending for higher education and capital investments for state universities.
“I look forward to the day when we can fully fund education,” Sears said on the Senate floor.
