HEADLINES : Arizona

Brewer signs budget approved by Legislature

The Arizona Republic | by Alia Beard Rau | May 8, 2012

Gov. Jan Brewer has signed into law an $8.6 billion budget for next fiscal year that includes increases for certain education, public-safety and health programs but also puts $450 million into a "rainy-day fund."

"Today, I proudly signed into law a conservative and comprehensive budget plan that adds real resources to our state's most critical programs, while setting aside dollars for the fiscal challenges that lay ahead," Brewer said in a news release.

The budget was a compromise between Republican lawmakers, who wanted to save more money, and Brewer, who wanted to restore spending in certain areas.

It adds $89 million to K-12 education, including $40 million for a program to ensure that students are ready to read by third grade and $21million for universities.

There is an additional $39 million for the seriously mentally ill, $20 million for the construction of 500 new state-run maximum-security prison beds and $16 million for 1,000 new private-prison beds.

 

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