REP. JOHN KAVANAGH (File photo by Capitol Media Services)

Calling it “the lesser evil,” a key state budget writer says Arizona will have to take on millions of dollars in additional debt to avoid any tax increases this year.

I had the privilege of taking part of a media panel discussion Thursday night at the monthly meeting for Republicans from legislative District 8 (Scottsdale and Fountain Hills). After the discussion, Rep. John Kavanagh, R-Fountain Hills, participated in a traditional legislative update. As chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, Kavanagh went straight to the issue on everyone’s mind — the budget negotiations with a projected $3 billion in deficits next year. Kavanagh said he expects a spending package covering the next two fiscal years will be unveiled in a little more than a week. Despite a call from Gov. Jan Brewer for $1 billion in temporary new taxes, Kavanagh said budget negotiators have focused on “short-term borrowing” to avoid cutting so much spending that critical services are disrupted.

Kavanagh didn’t provide details. But former Gov. Janet Napolitano suggested a numbers of ways to spend now and pay later including selling off future proceeds from the state lottery and tobacco company payouts, delaying payments to the state unversities for a few weeks and so forth.

The irony is key Republicans steadfastly refused to consider Napolitano’s ideas before she left for Washington. But now borrowing doesn’t seem so bad to them when a Republican governor says the only other alternative is to hike taxes during a recession.

In an attempt to limit that debt, Kavanagh added lawmakers are considering the sale of some sproperty such as the Grand Canyon airport, one or more state prisons or the state fairgrounds in Phoenix (the State Fair would be moved to undeveloped land owned by the state in the far West Valley).