An Arizona House committee appears poised to add millions in spending for K-12 education to break a stalemate that has stalled a budget deal for several days.
Lawmakers worked into the early morning hours Friday to continue to craft the nearly $9.6 billion spending plan. It’s been stalled after some House Republicans balked at what they believe are funding shortfalls for some school budget items.
Gov. Doug Ducey is counting on rank and file lawmakers to restore some of the cuts in public school funding that he helped negotiate.
Spokesman Daniel Scarpinato conceded his boss signed off on the plan but insisted that does not mean it's what Ducey really wants in the end. "And the goal is getting a budget that moves forward in the process and that has an end result that's positive for K-12. And he believes we're headed in that direction and that the outcome's going to be positive," Scarpinato said. "But this is a process that involves the House and the Senate and members. And it's important that their voices are part of it.
Democratic leaders in the House point out that per-pupil spending will go down under the current budget deal. They say it's about $21 million less than last year's spending.
With a big state surplus for the first time in years, they say now is the time to restore cuts made in recent years.