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In a dramatic late night session that went on until the very end of the fiscal year, lawmakers approved a budget package that included numerous spending cuts but did not contain the referral of a sales tax increase to the ballot. The legislature adjourned sine die at 7:30 am on July 1.

 

Governor Brewer, who received the bills early Wednesday morning, signed the main budget bill with a number of line item vetoes on social services and education. The Governor then vetoed the rest of the package and called a special session, to begin July 6, to adjust the budget and consider the tax increase referral.

 

The Governor's veto of the trailer bills eliminated a number of county impacts from the enacted budget, including cost sharing provisions for Restoration to Competency and the Arizona Community Protection and Treatment Center, $22 million in contributions from Maricopa and Pima counties, and a provision increasing the county share of justice of the peace salaries.

The veto also removed a property-tax related provision that would have reduced secondary assessment ratios for all property classes to 16 percent for future overrides and bond elections.  The new ratio will be in effect in 2012. The provision would not have impacted the existing levy on county flood, public health, jail and library districts.

 

The Governor's signature of the main budget bill means that two county impacts (a $14 million shift of HURF funds to DPS and the elimination of Summer Youth Employment) were contained in the enacted budget. The budget also contains funding for Prop 204 hold harmless.

 

To view CSA's analysis of impacts in the transmitted and enacted versions of the budgets, click here.

 

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As lawmakers crossed the finish line, a number of county-related bills moved quickly through the chambers. CSA's omnibus bill, HB 2236: county operations; management (Tobin) successfully passed the legislature and is now on the Governor's desk. The measure, which includes a number of provisions that will assist counties in managing the economic downturn, passed the House on final read with near-unanimous support.

 

HB 2258; consumer fireworks (Biggs) passed both chambers and was transmitted to the Governor. Legislative members, especially from rural areas, continued to express concerns that counties could not restrict the use of fireworks due to fire danger or for other public safety reasons. Cities are permitted to regulate the use (but not the sale) of fireworks. The Governor has ten days from the day of transmission to sign or veto the bill or let it become law without her signature.

 

SB 1111: county planning and zoning; revisions (Paton) was amended in the House to include Rep. Crump's special health district reform bill (HB 2273), which had already failed twice as a standalone measure . The bill was not Third Read in the House and never transmitted back to the Senate.

 

HB 2280: illegal aliens; enforcement; trespassing (Kavanagh) failed in House Final Read. The bill would have prohibited any local policies contravening federal immigration law; it contained wide ranging provisions requiring local governments to verify immigration status, and allowed any person to sue a local government over immigration violations.

 

Look for CSA's 2009 Legislative Summary for details on the county-related bills passed this session. The summary will be released in July.  

 

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Four hundred million dollars of funding for the State Criminal Alien Assistance Program (SCAAP) was restored in a proposal approved by the U.S. House of Representatives last week.

 

The program was zeroed out in the White House budget proposals, but a campaign by county and law enforcement officials from Arizona, border states, and across the country convinced representatives to restore the funding. SCAAP money is used to offset the costs local governments incur to prosecute and incarcerate illegal immigrants. Although the program provides only partial reimbursement, it is an important funding source to help address growing law enforcement and criminal justice costs.

 

CSA, Governor Brewer, and a number of stakeholders have communicated the importance of SCAAP to Arizona's congressional delegation and the Appropriations committee members. Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick (D-1) coordinated with Rep. Gabby Giffords (D-8) and Rep. Harry Mitchell (D-5) to launch a "Save SCAAP" campaign, with support from a number of Arizona county officials.

 

The proposal now moves on the U.S. Senate.

 

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The Governor has called a special legislative session to address the adjustments to the FY10 budget and the imposition of a temporary tax to fund education, health and human service, and public safety on Monday, July 6. Many legislators have made plans to travel during this time of year and Capitol observers are unsure how many legislators will return to the legislature for the special session.

 

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