​Arizona Governor Jan Brewer may think that she has "did what is right" for Arizona, but an independent analysis by the financial news Web site 24/7 Wall St. disagrees.

The site has issued its "State of the States" rankings and Arizona has been ranked 48th on its list of well-run states.

The rankings are based on analysis of each state's financial situation, so if you're shocked Arizona ranked so poorly, you shouldn't be. This is the same state that was nearly forced to sell its state capitol because its budget was so out of whack.

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Will Governor Jan's prop 100 pass? Let us know in our morning poll.

​Today's the day for the public to decide on Governor Jan Brewer's miracle cure for the state budget: Proposition 100.

Brewer's been pushing for the one-percent sales-tax increase since the doom and gloom of Arizona's finances set in last summer.

Brewer's been tugging on the heartstrings of the public in her campaign to pass Prop. 100, saying it's needed to protect funding for things like education, public safety, and health and human services.

Opponents of the measure, mainly Republicans, say it's absurd to tax people more when the economy is in the tank.

People are heading to the polls right now to weigh in, and we want to know what you think: Will Brewer's plan get the public nod of approval?

Let us know what you think -- and see the results of yesterday's poll -- after the jump.

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Feel like voluntarily ponyin' up some of your hard-earned cash to help legislators dig themselves out of the budget crisis they created? Of course you don't, but that didn't stop legislators from taking time out of their day to pass a bill that asks taxpayers to do exactly that.

The "I-didn't-pay-enough fund" is the creation of numb Skull Valley Representative Judy Burges. It asks taxpayers to voluntarily donate money to the state government to help chip away at the state's $2.6 billion budget shortfall.

You may remember Burges from one of the other -- even more embarrassing -- bills she sponsored this session, the infamous "birther" bill, also making strides in the Arizona Legislature.

Burges' "I-didn't-pay-enough" bill passed the Arizona Senate on Monday and now awaits the signature or veto of Governor Jan Brewer.

We've been laughing about this bill since we first caught wind of it last December, If history tells us anything, in about 10 years, the measure will reap about $2,500 for the state.

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​Arizona lawmakers have been playing hooky at an alarming rate during this year's legislative session, with 21 state legislators missing more than 20 percent of the floor votes in both houses of the Legislature.

Eat your heart out, Ferris Bueller.


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​In an emergency cabinet meeting today, Governor Jan Brewer laid out her latest plan to help bridge the state's multi-billion-dollar budget gap: Releasing non-violent illegal immigrants held in the state's prisons.

Following the meeting, Brewer ordered the state's prison director to begin releasing prisoners -- a move that the governor believes will save the state millions.

Don't worry -- Jan's not talking about turning the Jefferey Dahmers of the world loose on the streets of Phoenix. Those to be released are inmates that have been convicted of non-violent crimes like DUI or low-level drug offenses.

The plan isn't exactly a get-out-of-jail-free card, either. Those released would be turned over to ICE officials and eventually sent back to their native countries.

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​After much agonizing and gnashing of teeth, our illustrious legislators managed to give final approval to a special session bill on Saturday that will shave an additional $193 million off Arizona's $1.6 billion state budget deficit.

Good job, guys. Now just figure out what to do with the remaining $1.4 billion, and you can each have a Christmas cookie.

The bill cuts the funding of most state agencies by 7.5 percent, and takes another $79 million chunk out of "special purpose" funds.

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​The Arizona State Legislature enters its fourth special session of the year today, with the hopes of ironing out a plan to put some sort of dent in the current $2 billion budget gap.

Good luck.

One thing will be absent from this round of bickering, however: The standard squabble over a proposed one-cent sales tax increase.

Legislators and Governor Jan Brewer have spent a lot of time in past sessions arguing over whether to send the governor's plan for the temporary sales tax increase to the ballot.

It turns out that window has closed.

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​Representative Judy Burges', um, briliant scheme to raise a few extra bucks to help bridge the state's budget gap is apparently building up some steam in the Legislature.

The "I didn't pay enough fund," a bill introduced by Burges last week, politely asks citizens to fork over more money than they are required to pay under the current tax code, and it seems as though the idea is catching on among legislators.


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​According to state Treasurer Dean Martin, the state of Arizona is only weeks away from having to pay state employees with IOUs. Considering state legislators are the ones who got Arizona into this mess, that sounds good to us.

Martin spoke to the Senate Committee on Natural Resources, Infrastructure and the Public Debt yesterday and broke the bad news to lawmakers -- if they can't iron out a budget, IOUs for government employees are right around the corner.

Martin says if there is no deal by February 1, when state schools are given their monthly $325 million operating funds, the state's cash flow will have maxed out and the schools will be out of luck.

Fortunately there is a plan B, since plan A -- where citizens elect competent people to handle the state's finances in a timely manner -- hasn't exactly worked out.

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​Arizona's lackluster Legislature is looking to call its next special session the week of December 14 to discuss ways to bridge the state's $1.6 billion budget gap.

Despite having no plan other than Governor Brewer's one-cent sales-tax increase that has failed time and time again in the Republican-led Senate -- and something called the "I didn't pay enough fund," where legislators are asking for taxpayer donations and is frankly the worst idea we've ever heard of -- legislators will duke it out once again to try to find a solution.

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