Arizona Legislature: Budget negotiations resume as another Republican vows to vote 'no'
Another day passed. It was another day without a state budget.
The Arizona Senate adjourned shortly after 4 p.m. on Thursday and was set to return Friday morning. The chamber still does not have the needed votes to move a budget.
Senate President Karen Fann said lawmakers were "still negotiating."
"We are still in negotiations with the parties so no need for our members to be here," she told The Republic via text message.
Fann sent an email to Senate members and staff telling them to clear their weekends — particularly rough considering the Memorial Day holiday.
"We continue to make progress with the budget negotiations," she wrote. "I am hopeful we can be finished by Friday but in the event we are not, please plan on working Saturday. We will then take Sunday off for Church and Family time and return back to the floor on Monday, Memorial Day, and continue working throughout the week."
Sen. J.D. Mesnard, R-Chandler, said, "They don't have the votes."
Mesnard remains a no vote on the budget until a "hold-harmless" tax plan, meaning one that would not raise taxes on any Arizonan, is included.
Mesnard, who worked as a legislative staff member before running for office and has been at the Capitol about 17 years, said the number of times he's been at the Legislature on a Friday is in single digits. The number of times he's been there on a Saturday is twice, he said.
"This is obviously very unusual," he said.
Several holdouts remain, although a couple of lawmakers switched to yes votes in the past few days.
Sen. Paul Boyer, R-Phoenix, said he's still against the budget.
Sen. Heather Carter, R-Cave Creek, who was a no vote, did not immediately respond to a message seeking an update.
The Senate Republicans hold 17 seats in the chamber and need 16 votes to pass a budget without assistance from Democrats.
House votes not clear
As of 5 p.m. Thursday, the House was not debating budget bills. Instead, the chamber debated bills that had previously failed, a change to Empowerment Scholarship Accounts for Native American students and a measure to provide funding to prevent abortions.
The House could have problems with moving its budget, too. Rep. Kelly Townsend, R-Mesa, said she would vote against a K-12 education budget unless a bill to punish school districts for political speech passed.
The House GOP holds 31 seats in the chamber, a one-seat majority. It can't afford to lose a single vote if it wants to pass a budget without Democratic votes.
And on Wednesday evening, Rep. Tony Rivero, R-Peoria, told the Arizona Capitol Times that he, too, would vote against the budget without significant changes.
Rivero also told the Capitol Times that he wants less money socked away in the state's rainy day fund, opposes the GOP leadership plan for income-tax rate changes and demands funding for Arizona trade offices abroad, among other issues.
House Speaker Pro Tempore T.J. Shope shrugged his shoulders when asked what was going on with the budget.
"Look man, I got nothing," Shope said, showing a reporter a bitmoji reflecting his frustration and apathy.
If lawmakers continue at the pace they're on, Shope said, budget work could very well go through Friday and "probably" Saturday.
"If it were up to me, I'd come in Sunday. Mass is only 45 minutes," Shope said.
Budget stalls out
It's been a frustratingly slow budget week for many at the Capitol as lawmakers wrangle over the $11.8 billion spending plan.
The appropriations committees in both chambers approved the budget Wednesday, though Republicans in the Senate had to add members to the panel to ensure there were enough votes to pass that first hurdle.
The broad strokes of the budget provide additional funding for K-12 and higher education, an expansion of Interstate 17, a tax plan that aligns the state with federal tax changes and pay raises for some state employees.