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Read. Follow. Verify.Arizona Senate Resolution Proposes Constitutional Amendment for Continuing Appropriations During Budget Impasses
Last action · January 28, 2026: Senate Second ReadingSponsor: J.D. Mesnard
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What This Bill Proposed
SCR 1026 proposes a constitutional amendment to automatically continue the prior 's if a new fiscal year begins without a signed budget, subject to specific adjustments by the Joint Legislative Budget Committee and revenue limits.
Changes how state government operations are funded during budget stalemates by allowing prior funding levels to roll over automatically, provided projected revenues are not exceeded and specific inflation and enrollment adjustments are made.
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Department of Education
Budget amounts under a continuing appropriation are adjusted by the Joint Legislative Budget Committee to account for inflation and enrollment growth.
Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System
Budget amounts under a continuing appropriation are adjusted by the Joint Legislative Budget Committee to account for inflation and enrollment growth.
Department of Child Safety
Budget amounts under a continuing appropriation are adjusted by the Joint Legislative Budget Committee to account for inflation and enrollment growth.
Department of Economic Security
Budget amounts under a continuing appropriation are adjusted by the Joint Legislative Budget Committee to account for inflation and enrollment growth.
Key Facts
- The general appropriation bill shall embrace nothing but appropriations for state departments, state institutions, public schools, and interest on the public debt.
- If a new fiscal year begins without a signed general appropriation bill, the prior year's appropriation bill continues in effect until a new one is signed.
- The Joint Legislative Budget Committee must adjust the continuing appropriation amounts to remove onetime transfers and expenditures and make debt service adjustments.
- Adjustments must account for inflation and enrollment growth for the Department of Education, the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System, the Department of Child Safety, and the Department of Economic Security.
Show all 5 facts
- The Secretary of State must submit this proposition to voters at the next general election.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens if the state legislature fails to pass a budget before the new fiscal year begins?
Who decides what adjustments are made to the continuing budget?
Can the prior year's budget continue indefinitely if revenues drop?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This resolution did not become law - Died at adjournment · on the Senate floor.
Procedural history
2 actions- Jan 28, 2026SenateFloorSenate Second Reading
- Jan 27, 2026SenateIntroducedSenate First Reading
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Automated Budget Roll-over Mechanism
The measure introduces a constitutional failsafe to prevent government shutdowns by automatically extending prior spending levels with mandatory formula adjustments.
Connected Entities
Sources
apps.azleg.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance75How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy60Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz30Current news / social attention level
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