AZ Looks to Close Budget Gap

Not only is Arizona turning assets into cash through a sale-lease back approach, but Governor Jan Brewer's budget proposal is full of difficult cuts. The proposed budget would:

• eliminate the KidsCare program, which provides health coverage for nearly 47,000 children;

• reduce services for 17,000 seriously mentally ill adults - approximately half of that population;

• eliminate cash assistance for 10,000 families;

• close the Department of Juvenile Corrections, transitioning the custody of minors to county detention centers and laying off an additional 900 State employees;

• reduce State employee pay by 5%.

Expect to see more dramatic proposals as governor's nationwide begin to face the harsh reality of their budgets.