Not a Lexis+ subscriber? Try it out for free.
LexisNexis® CLE On-Demand features premium content from partners like American Law Institute Continuing Legal Education and Pozner & Dodd. Choose from a broad listing of topics suited for law firms, corporate legal departments, and government entities. Individual courses and subscriptions available.
Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer (R) scored a huge political victory last week as Grand Canyon State lawmakers finally endorsed her call to greatly expand access to the state's Medicaid program. The expansion, part of the $8.8 billion budget lawmakers also adopted, is expected to provide health care coverage to over 300,000 residents. Brewer is one of a handful of Republican governors who broke ranks with the GOP to endorse expanding the joint state-federal health plan, a hallmark of President Obama's Affordable Car Act. But her proposal had met fierce resistance in the GOP-controlled Legislature, particularly in the House. Brewer, however, refused to back down, vowing to veto all bills sent to her until lawmakers approved her proposal, a promise she kept in late May when she nixed five bills by Senate President Andy Biggs (R). Even so, progress was seemingly at a standstill until last Tuesday when a frustrated Brewer called lawmakers into a special session to hammer out an agreement. That drew howls of protest from many Republicans, including Rep. Eddie Farnsworth, who said he had "never seen a circumstance where a governor has rolled over her own party because she was throwing a temper tantrum." But the gambit worked, as nine House Republicans joined all 24 Democrats to support the proposal in the wee hours of Thursday morning. The Senate followed suit later that day. Brewer spokesperson Mathew Benson scoffed at Farnsworth's comments, calling the Medicaid debate the most important health issue the state had considered in three decades. "This is what the democratic process looks like," he said, "Anyone who finds that process abhorrent is in the wrong place." (ARIZONA CAPITOL TIMES [PHOENIX], EAST VALLEY TRIBUNE [MESA], BLOOMBERG BUSINESSWEEK, WASHINGTON POST)
The above article is provided by the State Net Capitol Journal. State Net is the nation's leading source of state legislative and regulatory content for all states within the United States. State Net daily monitors every bill in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and the United States Congress - as well as every state agency regulation. Virtually all of the information about individual bills and their progress through legislatures is online within 24 hours of public availability.
If you are a lexis.com subscriber, you can access State Net Bill Tracking, State Net Full Text of Bills and State Net Regulatory Text . If you are interested in learning more about State Net, contact us.
To subscribe to the Capitol Journal and access archived issue go to the State Net Capitol Journal.
For more information about LexisNexis products and solutions, connect with us through our corporate site.