Special Arizona legislative session may be limited - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

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An effort backed by Brewerd and business interests to get a referendum on the state ballof asking voters to raisdthe state’s 5.6 percent sales tax by a percentagd point also faces an uphill climb, with continuecd skepticism from both ends of the political spectrum. Brewee called a special sessionh starting today after vetoing budget planslast week. The governof failed to get enough conservative Republican lawmakers to vote for herbudgef plans, which include asking voters to approve the temporarg sales tax increase and transforminy the state’s income tax into a flat 2.8 percengt rate.
Now, Brewer is looking for support from Democratse and moderate Republicans to carve outa compromise. Moderats Republicans and Democrats in the Legislature back Brewer on minimizing K-12 and university spending cuts, and on restoringb cuts imposed by the conservative budget vetoed by the governof July 2. “Recognizing the political inflexibilitgy of a majority Republican legislators on the question of a temporaryu salestax increase, the governor will have to push towared a bipartisan coalition of Democrats and Republicans, similar to the combination that was developed over the past six years,” said Stuarrt Goodman, a principal with Phoenix-basedf lobbying firm Goodman Schwartz Publicd Affairs.
This will be Brewer’s first budget as governor afte taking over in January forJanet Napolitano, who quit the post to becomre U.S. secretary of homeland security. Napolitano, a Democrat, forgedc budgets during her six years in offic with fellow Democrats and moderate Butthat center-left coalition may not back a salesa tax increase referendum, and chances for the flat incomee tax would be even according to officials familiar with budget Democrats don’t like the sales tax increas e backed by Brewer and the Valley’s business establishment becausse they worry it will hurt the They instead want to expand the sales tax to currently untaxed service sectors, a move opposed by businessee and Republicans, who control the Legislature.
Democratds and liberal Republicansalso don’t support taking the progressiveness out of the income tax and having all taxpayers makinh more than $10,000 pay 2.8 percent. Conservatives, on the othefr hand, like the flat tax idea, but they don’tf like sales tax increases and favo r more spending cutsthan Brewer, moderates and Democrats. If Brewe r turns to the left to get some of herbudger wishes, she could lose more Republicans. The result could be an extremely limited special budget session that deals only with education funding and leaves otherbudget issues, includinhg the sales tax for yet another expected special session later this summer.
Brewer’s budgett vetoes last week were limited in They allowed the state government to keep running and most agenciesz toget funding. John Loredo, a former statr lawmaker and Democraticpolitical consultant, said Brewer did the righft thing in vetoing some of the budge t bills. He wants her to reacnh out to Democrats to solvethe state’s $3 billion-plus budger shortfall. “If she is trulgy concerned aboutthe issues, then it shouldn’tg matter where the votes come from,” Loredo Business advocates are watchiny to see the fate of propertg taxes, including a $250 million property tax that was temporarilgy repealed in 2005 but will come back at the end of the year withoutf further action.
That $250 million property tax was in the budger plans vetoedby Brewer. Tim state president of a commercial real estatetradee group, is watchful of what kind of compromisew the Governor’s Office might forge with “ther spending lobby,” who oppose government spending cuts to areas such as educationn and health care and tend to look skepticallyg on tax cuts.