By Bob ChristieCapitol Media ServicesPHOENIX — Three months into the Arizona Legislature’s annual session, lawmakers are ready to take some time off and go to a work schedule many would love to have — just one day a week.But the move to Wednesdays-only at the Capitol is a sign that lawmakers are ready to finally start tackling the most serious issue facing the Republican-controlled Legislature and Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs this year: hammering out a state budget deal.Getting to an agreement will be a hard lift this year, because a massive budget deficit means cuts, and lots of them. And there is new spending that needs to be squeezed in as well, including more than $100 million to meet a federal judge’s order to improve prison healthcare and a projected $450 million boost for the state’s Medicaid program.And Hobbs acknowledged last week that she’s hoping new revenue forecasts due April 11 will help close a massive gap between the shortfall her office’s budget team projects and the deficit expected by the Legislature’s budget team.”I certainly think that those projections will help us have a better picture of where the revenue is, because I think that’s one of the biggest places of contention right now,” Hobbs said.Her office projects a deficit nearing $1 billion between the current and upcoming budget year. Analysts for the Legislature’s Joint Legislative Budget Committee put that number at $1.7 billion. And that doesn’t include $300 million in K-12 education s …
[wpts_spin]{Read|See} the {entire|full} article {on|about} infrastructure development in Arizona, or, read more news about {Arizona real estate investing|real estate investing in Arizona|real estate investing in Arizona}. We {warmly |}{welcome and |}encourage you to {mention|recommend} our site to your{ circle of|} fellow investors, {letting them |allowing them to }benefit from the valuable{ resources and|} insights we provide. {Thanks!|Thank you!}[/wpts_spin]
