We have a budget, session has ended but what was really accomplished?

After a 165 day contentious legislative session Arizona still finds itself without sufficient revenue to adequately advance programs to help Arizonans. We now have a  budget for 2026  which  continues the status quo with only marginal progress and no attempt to stop the revenue bleed.

The ground rules for budget negotiation were set early on by the legislative GOP majority. No talks would be allowed changing the Ducey imposed 2.5% flat tax or putting guardrails on the runaway school voucher program. Both factors continue to drain the state’s resources.

Within the self-defeating framework set by the majority party Arizona will enter the 2026 fiscal year just a little better than we started.

While both parties are claiming a win due to a compromise budget (with the exception of the Maga Freedom Caucus) there are no clear winners and once again public schools lose out.

Budget highlights contain some program increases but be cautioned that many increases come after program reductions from past years. One step forward after having gone two steps back?

While the budget passed with votes from both parties many democrats did not support the budget on the principle it left untouched the revenue drain of both the flat tax and voucher give aways. The Maga Freedom Caucus voted NO as they saw the budget as too liberal. Alex  Kolodin was especially angry with the budget.

Budget highlights

5% pay raises for DPS officers.

15% pay raises for state firefighters.

4% (one time) raise for corrections officers.

$20 million to backfill federal cuts to the Victims of Crime Act, supporting victims of sexual assault, domestic violence and other violent crimes with counseling and legal services.

$44.9 million from the General Fund and $81 million in federal funds to cut the child care waitlist in half and expand childcare access.

$3.8 million (one time grant) to eliminate co-pays for reduced-price school meals

$2 million for the Governor’s Homes for Heroes initiative to reduce veteran homelessness.

Full primary residence property tax exemption for 100% disabled Veterans.

$16.5 million for coordinated housing homelessness services.

Fully funds Dept. of Developmental Disability for over 60,000 people, protecting health care for Arizonans with autism, cerebral palsy, epilepsy and intellectual disabilities.

$4 million for a Graduate Medical Education Rural Incentive Program, expanding access to health care for rural Arizonans through the development of rural residency programs.

$100K to expand Medicaid to cover Traditional Healing services for Tribal members by drawing down over $200 million in federal funds.

$4.2 million to support critical access to hospitals in rural and underserved areas.

Funds K-12 education and waives the Aggregate Expenditure Limit for two years to prevent a K-12 school funding cliff.

$297 million to build new K-12 schools and improve existing school facilities.

$24 million to support SPEED bonding that will allow ASU, NAU, and UofA to unlock $325 million in bonding capacity for capital projects, including initiatives like a new medical school and nursing school.

$54 million for the Arizona Promise Program that provides scholarships at state universities

$3 million for the Arizona Community College Promise Program, that will create a scholarship program for working class students at the state’s community colleges.”

$360 million to be taken from the general fund to backfill he whole left in education funding since no renewal of prop 123 is in sight.

$52 million to backfill overspending on ESA vouchers, with no reforms.

Yes, there is some good in the fiscal year 2026 budget. Wholehearted endorsement is hard won when looking at the token amounts given to some programs in dire need and the overwhelming omission of tackling the revenue draining elephants in the room.