Arizona facing government shutdown over budget stalemate – Washington Examiner
Arizona is facing the potential of a goverment shutdown due to a budget stalemate between the state Senate and House. The Senate, led by Governor Katie Hobbs, approved a $17.6 billion budget without allowing the House to debate the matter, which has left the lower chamber with limited options. The House had previously passed its $17.3 billion budget with only Republican support, as Democrats boycotted the vote.Governor Hobbs has dismissed the House’s proposal as “dead on arrival.”
Considering the budget impasse,House Speaker Steve Montenegro has suggested passing a short-term “continuation budget” to avoid a shutdown after June 30. Though, Senate President Warren Petersen claims there’s enough support for the Senate’s version of the budget, which he believes must be bipartisan to ensure it receives the governor’s approval. The situation remains tense, with both sides needing to negotiate effectively to prevent the shutdown and fulfill government functions. Additionally, some progress was made as the House passed funding for renovations at Chase Field, which the governor is expected to sign.
Arizona facing government shutdown over budget stalemate
Arizona could be headed toward an unprecedented government shutdown over a stalemate on the state’s budget.
The Arizona Senate negotiated its $17.6 billion budget with Gov. Katie Hobbs (D-AZ), approved it, then promptly ended its legislative session without giving the Arizona House an opportunity to debate the matter. The move left the lower chamber with just one option: approve the Senate budget.
If a new budget is not in place by July 1, the start of fiscal 2026, the Arizona government will shut down.
The Arizona House had adopted its own $17.3 billion spending plan, which was approved by only Republican votes because Democrats, who were not involved in negotiations, boycotted the vote. Hobbs has described that version as being “dead on arrival.”
But hard-line conservatives in the Arizona House have criticized the Senate text, saying it does not go far enough for their causes. Republican Arizona House Speaker Steve Montenegro said in a statement that the lower chamber would pass a short-term “continuation budget” to avert a shutdown and fund the government past June 30 to continue negotiations.
Montenegro has said that the Senate version of the budget does not have the votes to pass in the GOP-led House. Senate President Warren Petersen disputed that claim when he ended the Senate’s session.
“We have one job to do down here at the Capitol,” he wrote on social media. “Pass a real budget. Not a fake budget for optics and talking points that will be gutted by a line item veto pen, but a real budget that has a consensus of conservative Republicans and gets a signature.”
Petersen said the budget must be bipartisan between the Republican-controlled state House and Hobbs’s Democratic administration, noting that the governor can remove Republican priorities she doesn’t like through line-item vetoes.
“This was a good budget. … It wasn’t uber conservative, but it leans right, which is about as good as you can get,” Petersen told KTAR News.
It’s unclear if Petersen would support a continuing resolution. Hobbs, however, said that Arizona House leaders “abdicated their responsibility” during the negotiation process and that a continuing resolution will “immediately be met with my veto pen.”
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“It’s time for House Republican leadership to come back to reality, stop wasting everyone’s time, and show some common sense by working with their colleagues in a productive fashion to deliver on behalf of the people of Arizona,” Hobbs said in a statement.
The Arizona House managed to pass $500 million in funding for renovations at Chase Field, home of the Arizona Diamondbacks, in Phoenix. The legislation will head to Hobbs’s desk, where she is expected to sign off on it. The Diamondbacks said they will contribute $250 million to fund renovations, which include upgrades to the ballpark’s air conditioning system and its retractable roof.
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