Budget before all else

Another two weeks have passed since we called on the Legislature and the governor to set aside other business and address a $3 billion budget shortfall - and they finally have fixed about a third of the problem.

The Legislature acted late Thursday to erase a predicted $1.2 billion deficit for this fiscal year, less than three months before that year will end on June 30. As we noted months ago, the lengthy delay eliminated most options to reduce spending and lawmakers had to rely heavily on short-term answers such as taking $487 million from the "rainy day" fund and $300 million from other special accounts, and an accounting trick that saves money by postponing a $272 million payment to local school districts from June to July.

State officials still must tackle next year's budget, which starts July 1, and its projected shortfall of more than $1.8 billion. The "rainy day" fund will have only $200 million left, and the only "easy" fix left is to borrow $350 million for building new schools instead of paying cash.

As lawmakers have dawdled on this fiscal crisis, they have found time to debate requests for more specialty license plates, reviving a redundant constitutional amendment on banning same-sex marriages, and dictating that public schools must teach art and music even when they don't have enough money to provide nurses and librarians.

Recent history indicates lawmakers have become incapable of reaching a serious budget accord until sometime between late April and early June, regardless of the state's overall fiscal health. Regular sessions are supposed to last only 100 days, but that deadline is now routinely waived by the Legislature.

This unnecessary delay has become a central feature of the legislative process. Leaders use the mystery of closed-door negotiations to compel rank-and-file lawmakers to stay close to the Capitol and be available for unrelated meetings and floor votes. Some legislators - often allies of the governor - dig in their heels on individual funding requests, refusing to move the budget along as they wait for the passage of weeks or months to wear down their opponents.

When public and internal pressure reaches a boiling point, the Legislature finally rushes to adopt a finished budget. Key votes often take place in the middle of the night. There's almost no opportunity for anyone who can't afford $200-an-hour lobbyists to study what has been added or subtracted in the final hours.

No successful business operates this way, as budgets adopted in haste lead to bad strategic decisions, wasteful spending and misplaced priorities.

The delay has consequences far beyond the Capitol. School districts which depend so heavily on state funding wait until the last-possible minute to adopt their own budgets. This denies local voters any real opportunities to examine the details and seek substantial changes before a school board must act.

With lawmakers unable to police themselves, drastic steps are needed to break this cycle. Arizona should pass a state law or constitutional amendment that says no bill can be introduced or voted upon until the Legislature adopts a budget.

Under such a rule, lawmakers could better focus on publicly debating the proper levels of taxation and spending without a lot of side issues to distract them. Political pressure to act would exist from the beginning of the session, as lawmakers would be itching to get to their own measures.

And perhaps, just perhaps, the Legislature would find less time on its hands to impose more restrictions on our lives and our wallets.