The state government will not shut down in one week without a state budget. It is like a giant glacier that will keep moving by its own momentum until sometime in August. But that will not stop someone from covering the clocks in the House at midnight on June 30th to freeze time because it's great theater. (With an acknowledgement to Albert Einstein, who said massive objects warp space-time, and the state is a massive object.)
This recent email from the Senate Republican Chief of Staff, Josh Kredit, concisely summarizes what happened in budget negotiations:
Josh Kredit
@JoshKredit
For those watching or interested in the Arizona Capitol budget debate, I just sent this email to House Republicans:
Good morning members, I feel compelled to provide you all with the facts about the budget:
The Senate tried for months to work with the House Appropriations chair to negotiate a budget. On one hand House leadership was telling their members there was no capacity for new initiatives this year. Yet when we met with the House, they wanted to decide how to spend all the taxpayer dollars surplus, leaving no capacity for the Senate or governor’s office.
In late May, the House contacted the governor’s office to meet alone to discuss revenue, etc.
So, the Senate also contacted the governor’s office to discuss revenue.
That meeting led to a couple more between the Senate and governor’s office, but before those talks got too far along, the Senate reached back out to the House, asking for them to come into the negotiations and fight alongside the Senate.
The Senate never heard back.
So what was the Senate supposed to do given it was late May with one month before the budget deadline? It did what it had to do and negotiated a budget, and at the same time fought for and secured Republican priorities. A budget that funds public safety, border security, K-12 education and ESAs, protects school choice and freedom schools, includes tax cuts, and one that still leaves capacity for the House Republicans to have $90m of room for their member budget requests.
Once this framework was agreed to in concept, word was sent to the House that they still had $90m of capacity for their budget priorities. The House then began communicating House Republican requests and the $90m bucket was filled up.
At one point, the question came up as to whether the budget should be sent to the House with some work still to be done so that the House could make its own impact on it. However, House leadership communicated that it wanted all of its member requests put in the budget and to then send it over essentially completed.
So that is what happened.
I know for a fact that the House is meeting right now with the governor’s office.
None of these facts were included in a press release that was sent out yesterday, so I felt compelled to correct the record.
Many remain hopeful that a positive resolution is still possible in all of this.
We keep electing Republicans and watching them fail. We see yet another feeble effort at budget negotiation. The bills they send to the Governor are Kray-kray. They are inept and need to go. How about we do something a little different in next years midterms?
What happened to Rep. Gress’s wedding in Italy? Did they all go? Good luck to him and Daniel but their timing was not, seemingly, well planned for a couple of Ducey vets.
The state government will not shut down in one week without a state budget. It is like a giant glacier that will keep moving by its own momentum until sometime in August. But that will not stop someone from covering the clocks in the House at midnight on June 30th to freeze time because it's great theater. (With an acknowledgement to Albert Einstein, who said massive objects warp space-time, and the state is a massive object.)
This recent email from the Senate Republican Chief of Staff, Josh Kredit, concisely summarizes what happened in budget negotiations:
Josh Kredit
@JoshKredit
For those watching or interested in the Arizona Capitol budget debate, I just sent this email to House Republicans:
Good morning members, I feel compelled to provide you all with the facts about the budget:
The Senate tried for months to work with the House Appropriations chair to negotiate a budget. On one hand House leadership was telling their members there was no capacity for new initiatives this year. Yet when we met with the House, they wanted to decide how to spend all the taxpayer dollars surplus, leaving no capacity for the Senate or governor’s office.
In late May, the House contacted the governor’s office to meet alone to discuss revenue, etc.
So, the Senate also contacted the governor’s office to discuss revenue.
That meeting led to a couple more between the Senate and governor’s office, but before those talks got too far along, the Senate reached back out to the House, asking for them to come into the negotiations and fight alongside the Senate.
The Senate never heard back.
So what was the Senate supposed to do given it was late May with one month before the budget deadline? It did what it had to do and negotiated a budget, and at the same time fought for and secured Republican priorities. A budget that funds public safety, border security, K-12 education and ESAs, protects school choice and freedom schools, includes tax cuts, and one that still leaves capacity for the House Republicans to have $90m of room for their member budget requests.
Once this framework was agreed to in concept, word was sent to the House that they still had $90m of capacity for their budget priorities. The House then began communicating House Republican requests and the $90m bucket was filled up.
At one point, the question came up as to whether the budget should be sent to the House with some work still to be done so that the House could make its own impact on it. However, House leadership communicated that it wanted all of its member requests put in the budget and to then send it over essentially completed.
So that is what happened.
I know for a fact that the House is meeting right now with the governor’s office.
None of these facts were included in a press release that was sent out yesterday, so I felt compelled to correct the record.
Many remain hopeful that a positive resolution is still possible in all of this.
11:11 AM · Jun 21, 2025
·
54.9K
Views
We keep electing Republicans and watching them fail. We see yet another feeble effort at budget negotiation. The bills they send to the Governor are Kray-kray. They are inept and need to go. How about we do something a little different in next years midterms?
The less they do, the better off we are. AZ is at the lower end of the total tax burden and we can stay that way if the Legislature is not in session.
Nonsense. They need to earn every nickel of their pay. I don't mind paying for services rendered and neither should you. Nothing is free. Get real.
Ok good citizen-when are you running for 24k job? Right....
No-one's life, liberty or pursuit of happiness is safe when the legislature is in session.
What happened to Rep. Gress’s wedding in Italy? Did they all go? Good luck to him and Daniel but their timing was not, seemingly, well planned for a couple of Ducey vets.
Maybe if we had ranked choice voting and/or open primaries, we could elect fewer extremist legislators who are allergic to compromise.