Kris Mayes, Arizona Corporation Commission chairwoman, finds herself trying to manage a budget meltdown while lawmakers feud with the governor (Tribune file photo).
I’ve been watching from afar the pending crash of the Arizona Corporation Commission because it doesn’t have the necessary funds to keep operating as intended. It’s baffles me, because Republican state lawmakers have been chanting loudly that the best economic stimulus would be to create a climate that attracts new businesses and creates more jobs. But without budget fix soon for the corporation commission, requests to do business in the state will be delayed for months. That’s a jobs killer, not a jobs creator.
So what’s up with GOP lawmakers refusing to come to the Capitol to again adopt a relatively simple solution that passed before, but was blocked by a budget veto from Gov. Jan Brewer that targeted another issue?
I keep circling back to a statement first made by House Speaker Kirk Adams, R-Mesa, on the day that Brewer issued this veto. Adams said the governor had the discretion to use federal stimulus money to cover funding shortfalls at the corporation commission and several other state agencies, rather than expecting lawmakers to come back in special session to address it.
Adams’ implied message: Brewer created the problem, so it’s up to her to fix it or to take the blame for any fiscal meltdowns.
The challenge for Brewer is if she acts as Adams’ suggests, she will look as if she cares more about business lobbyists, tax collectors and lottery players, than she does for education, health care and public safety (areas where the lion’s share of stimulus money is likely to be spent).
Just this week, lawmakers finally are talking about another budget special session because this year’s deficit now appears to be $1.5 billion. But any action could be a month or two away, and the corporation commission will slow down the wheels of business creation long before then.
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