Weekly legislative update: Two Democrats discuss state budget

It’s Wednesday, and that means it’s time for the weekly legislative update. This week, it’s the Democrats’ turn. Senator Anna Hernandez of District 24 and Representative Melody Hernandez of District 26 joined Arizona Horizon host Ted Simons to discuss the latest news from the capitol including updates on the budget.

“The Senate Democrats are working with the Governor’s office to make sure that we deliver on a budget with priorities that address all of Arizona and not just individual members,” said Anna Hernandez.

The current proposed plan from leadership involves each lawmaker receiving a set amount of money to spend on legislation as they see fit. This arrangement would allocate $20 million per representative and $30 million per senator.

“There are many, many numbers floating around out there, I don’t, without saying too much, I can just say that things are progressing,” said Melody Hernandez. “And they’re more positive than some reports out there, but we still have some ways to go.”

Melody Hernandez added that Democratic lawmakers are interacting with the Governor on a weekly basis to help finalize the budget. She added that Arizona’s divided government, with a Democratic governor and a republican-majority legislative body, means both parties need to compromise to reach a final agreement.

“It would be very beneficial to all the people of Arizona to really have both parties, along with the Governor’s office, to work together on a comprehensive bipartisan budget to address the real needs of the people,” said Anna Hernandez.