skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

AZ Lawmakers Fail to Pass Education, Social Service Cuts

play audio
Play

Friday, November 20, 2009   

PHOENIX - A budget deal to cut another $300 million in education and health and welfare spending has failed in the Arizona Senate. Republican leaders plan to try again Monday after failing by one vote Thursday.

John Wright, president of the Arizona Education Association (AEA), the state's largest union representing educators, which opposes further cuts, says lawmakers can only cut so much of the state budget before the public is going to revolt.

"Parents are going to visit their children in school these days and find class sizes of 40 and higher, and recognize there are no school nurses or librarians. In fact, the libraries might be closed. It's just a cascading effect."

Even if the latest cuts are approved Monday, the current state budget will still be $1.7 billion out of balance. Wright says he agrees with Senate Democrats, who voted unanimously against the latest round of spending cuts, and who believe new state revenue sources are an essential part of any budget solution.

"With the budget cuts we've already endured, I think you have to find ways to increase revenue; borrow if necessary along with some more cuts where it's unavoidable. Two billion dollars more in this particular state budget - we just can't find that through cuts alone."

In addition to a one-cent sales tax hike, Wright says lawmakers should consider other revenue-raising ideas like suspension of all state income tax credits.

"When we're imposing these kinds of budget cuts on Arizona citizens, we cannot afford the luxury of subsidizing private school tuitions through tuition tax credits, or helping school districts pay for field trips or band uniforms when they're laying off reading teachers."

The AEA also proposes rasing money by borrowing against future revenues from the state lottery, the tobacco settlement and the vehicle license tax.




get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …


Organizations fighting wage theft said it harms affected workers and surrounding communities because the money withheld is not being circulated through the local economy. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

Environment

play sound

A farm group is helping Iowa agriculture producers find ways to reduce the amount of nitrogen they use on their crops. Excess nitrates can wind up …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021