Jason Chavez

The signing ceremony was held to commemorate the continuation of Proposition 301 funding for the next 20 years, which supports schools, teachers, and students in Arizona. The event recognized the bipartisan efforts of elected leaders to maintain this funding stream and highlighted its importance in ensuring quality education in the state.

The fiscal year 2021 budget reflects the philosophy that government should run at the speed of business. The budget includes an overview of the economy, funding initiatives, and allocation of resources. The budget is built on the strongest cash and structural foundation of any budget in the post-recession period. The executive anticipates continued growth in the four and a half to five percent range for personal income and three percent range for employment over the next several years. The budget includes a net tax cut, proposing to use forty-five million dollars to eliminate the state income tax on veterans military pension benefits. The executive budget continues to honor the governor's commitment to being structurally balanced every year. The executive budget heavily prioritizes spending on k-12 higher education and roads and infrastructure. The budget continues the governor's commitment to provide sustainable increases to k12 in higher education funding all without raising taxes. The executive provides an increase of 38 million to fund all remaining first choice requests so that every school who submitted a complete application can hire for school safety personnel. The executive budget includes 44 million for project Rockit, a three-year pilot program to help close the achievement gap in Arizona public schools.

The briefing covered the FY2020 Arizona budget, highlighting economic growth, revenue forecasts, and key investment areas. Key discussion points included maintaining a structural balance, increasing the rainy day fund, refinancing state debt, and investing in infrastructure such as highways and broadband. The budget prioritizes education, transportation, and local government financial relief.