The GOP leadership in the state lege has been behind closed doors busily ginning up an FY10 budget. A summary of a draft version is floating around.
The Reps are attacking pretty near everything that they hate -
KidsCare Children's and Parents' programs
Adding copayments to AHCCCS
Massive lump sum salary reductions to state employees
Cut child care subsidies
Suspend Lottery payments to homeless programs
Implement drug testing for TANF recipients
Eliminate full day kindergarten and early kindergarten
Suspend operations of the Governor's Office of Equal Opportunity
Suspend general fund appropriations to Arizona Commission on Indian Affairs
Reduce state share of Justice of the Peace salaries
Rollback the FY08 state university financial aid and WICHE increases
Eliminate Math/Science funding (I think that refers to the Teacher Student Loan Forgiveness program, but I'm not sure)
More university rollbacks relating to the Water Institute, medical, science and other specific programs
Major fund transfers from the AG's office and other agencies
...There's more, but I'll let folks with more time and patience cover this in more detail.
One other thing?
While the cuts that they are proposing to the agencies and organizations that serve Arizonans are specific, deep, and painful (as pretty much everybody expected), the cuts that they are proposing for legislative operations and the agencies and organizations that serve the lege are unknown.
Literally.
Those are all up to the discretion of the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate.
Looks like this year's budget is going to be an exercise in "do as we say, not as we do."
Expect more details to hit the AZ blogosphere tomorrow and this weekend; the rumor is that this will be officially unveiled on Monday.
Stay tuned...
P.S. - if a reader wants a copy of the summary that came in today, email me or let me know in a comment and I'll send it to you.
3 comments:
I find it rather curious how at the state level the Republicans have provided a budget (as it should be considering their majority position) but won't provide a budget on the federal level. On each level the minority party complains about the budget but (if I accept at face value the assertions made by AzBlueMeanie) fails to provide an alternative budget.
Very curious.
Thane:
I'd point out that the difference is that the national federal budget as proposed by Democrats has already been out there for two or three weeks (depending on whether you count the President's budget or the congressional budget) while as we see here the house GOP budget has yet to be unveiled.
I think you need to give Democrats at least a week to respond after the budget is unveiled before you make that case.
Well, with the (former) Governor gone, it looks like Republicans are behaving like Republicans. Next time I hear my Republican neighbors griping about budget cuts at the school, to the police or to the community college I will be able to answer, "well you voted for it!"
Maybe I will do a blog post fairly soon entitled, "You can't just vote Republican with impunity."
And yes, I would be interested in seeing it.
I need something to get annoyed over this weekend.
Post a Comment