The Farley Report: January 17, 2012

January 18, 2012

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Arizona legislature is back in session, and you know what that means. Time once again for the weekly Farley Report from Rep. Steve Farley (D-Tucson).

The Governor's budget is out, and it seems to have taken its theme from the classic Spaghetti Western, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. But believe it or not, it is an improvement over the last couple of years' budgets that were purely Bad and Ugly. This one actually has some things that we in the minority can support.

Here's some good: 

–> She does ask for more funding for a few education programs, including remedial reading instruction for third graders who are behind in their performance. 

–> $10 million in community college scholarships for veterans for workforce training.

–> More money for investigators for Child Protective Services, and more pay for overburdened CPS field workers — something long overdue.

–> $39 million more for services for the seriously mentally ill, to comply with federal requirements. This helps to restore some of the cuts to these services that Brewer signed last year.

Our Brilliant (Bought-and-Paid-For and Secret-Keeping) State Legislature

January 17, 2012

Posted by Michael Bryan As if totally deaf to the historically low regard in which Americans hold their Congress, and the Arizona State Legislature, two Arizona legislators have decided that there is not enough special interest money in our politics, and too much transparency of legislator's communications. [hat tip to Alia Rau at Political Insider.] Representatives

AIRC Update: We have final maps – to the DOJ!

January 17, 2012

Posted by AzBlueMeanie: As anticipated, the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission approved the final maps for congressional and legiaslative district maps at its meeting today. The Arizona Capitol Times (subscription required) reports Arizona redistricting commission OKs legislative, congressional maps: Arizona’s redistricting commission divided along party lines Tuesday as its members approved maps of new congressional and

The Madison Revolution: Total Recall! More than one million signatures to recall Gov. Scott Walker

January 17, 2012

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Madison Revolution is almost a year old, and today United Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Democratic Party submitted more than one million petition signatures for the recall of Gov. Scott Walker. The Wisconsin State Journal reports Recall organizers file more than 1 million signatures to recall Walker:

Groups seeking to recall Gov. Scott Walker submitted nearly twice as many signatures Tuesday as required to force an election, an overwhelming number that may make a vote later this year inevitable.

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The 1 million signatures that United Wisconsin, the coalition that spearheaded the effort along with the Democratic Party, said were collected far exceeds the 540,208 needed and amounts to 23 percent of the state's eligible voters.

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Petitioners were also submitting about 305,000 more signatures than were needed to trigger a recall election against Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch, and said they also exceeded the number needed to force recall elections of four Republican state senators, including Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald.

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The Government Accountability Board has said its review will take 60 days or more and it will go to court this week to seek more than the 31 days allowed under the law.

Tate said he didn't expect a Walker recall election would happen before May. Walker has said he thinks it will be in June.