Republican lawmaker torpedoes budget plan

GOP had sought to get Hobbs to use her veto

Republican plans to quickly pass a budget and use it to bait Gov. Katie Hobbs into issuing her first veto have stalled at the state Capitol. The unexpected roadblock came from a freshman Republican, who sided with Democrats to vote down the measure.

Rep. Liz Harris, R-Chandler, on Monday slammed the brakes on the so-called “continuation” budget, named as such because it essentially continues the current spending plan.

The Republicans have a one-vote majority in the House, so any dissent can sideline the majority’s plans.

A second attempt Tuesday also went nowhere, as legislative leaders declined to bring the budget package up for a vote, despite having scheduled it for consideration.

The failure to muster a unified GOP vote on the budget package is a setback for House leaders, at least temporarily, who want to enact a budget that Republicans say would avoid a government shutdown if they hit an impasse with Hobbs later this year. Hobbs has threatened to veto the budget saying it doesn’t address “real challenges.”

The state Senate last week approved the budget plan.

Harris declined to comment on her vote, which ground budget work to a halt Monday. “When you go to work for the Epoch Times, come talk to me,” she told an Arizona Republic reporter before climbing the stairs to her thirdfloor office. The Epoch Times is an altright newspaper founded in 2000 by a follower of the Fulan Gong spiritual group.

House Speaker Ben Toma, R-Glendale, had little to say about the failed vote, other than to note he will continue to work to get the 31 votes needed to pass the budget and send it to Hobbs. Before the vote, Toma was

seen ushering Harris into his office.

Republicans last month announced plans to pass a continuation budget on the eve of Hobbs’ budget presentation. It was an early attempt to set the stage on the one action that lawmakers must take: Pass a budget for the coming year.

Hobbs immediately rejected their plan. Republican leaders responded by quickly calling Hobbs’ $17.1 billion plan “dead on arrival.”

On Monday, Senate President Warren Petersen, R-Queen Creek, said it makes sense to pass a state budget early. Not only does it provide assurance that government will keep operating if lawmakers can’t reach a deal with Hobbs, Petersen said, it also eliminates much of the horse trading at the Legislature, where lawmakers withhold their vote on the budget until they get concessions on other measures.

It is unclear what Harris is seeking. After winning her election in November, she vowed to not vote on any bill until the November 2022 vote was redone, arguing Republicans did better than the official results showed. She has since broken that no-vote promise, voting numerous times in committee hearings as well as her budget vote Monday.