TO CLIPS INDEX Clips for February 18, 2009

Senate GOP cool to tax-hike bid
The Arizona Republic 2/18/09
Lawmakers are planning a special election for
late spring, but their plans don't include a tax
increase as floated by Gov. Jan Brewer's office.
The election, possibly in June, would ask voters
to loosen spending protections on various state
programs, from education to health care. Doing
so would free up money to help the state grapple
with its budget shortfall, which is expected to be
between $2.6 billion and $3 billion for the coming
fiscal year. This reflects half of the budget-fix plan
that Brewer confidantes floated late last week.

Harvard director to lead ASU bioscience lab
The Arizona Republic 2/18/09
Arizona State University's Biodesign Institute
has landed a Harvard Medical School scientist
to launch a cutting-edge research lab that aims
to pursue more accurate ways to diagnose
and treat diseases such as breast cancer and
diabetes. Joshua LaBaer, a Phoenix native
who now serves as director of Harvard Medical
School's Institute of Proteomics, will relocate
his lab to the Biodesign Institute as director
of the new Virginia G. Piper Center for
Personalized Diagnostics

Students, instructors try to make sense of
ASU budget cuts
The Arizona Republic 2/17/09 10:31 AM
Cuban artist Leandro Soto, artist-in-residence at
Arizona State University's West campus, showed
his students how to find that intersection of art
and commerce in the midst of an economic melt-
down. He included some performance art along
with his murals and paintings at a campus show
last week. While sketching pictures, he wore a
sandwich-board hat that read: "I need a job in the
arts. See resume." He wasn't joking. Soto is one
of hundreds of adjunct faculty being cut from the
university payroll in June. His students are among
hundreds seeing their programs "disestablished."
The fallout from $88 million in ASU budget cuts is
not just theoretically disturbing to teachers and
students, it's personally painful.

Legislators cautious on temporary tax hike
Capitol Media Services/East Valley Tribune
2/17/09 11:17PM
State lawmakers from both parties are taking
a guarded — if not outright wary — stance on
a possible special election this spring for a
temporary hike in the sales tax. House Speaker
Kirk Adams, R-Mesa, said he fears the effect of
a 1-percent hike on top of the state’s current 5.6
percent sales tax rate, even if it is only temporary.
“Raising taxes, particularly that substantial an
increase during a time of deep recession, could
be dangerous for the economy,” he said. Adams
said he wants to proceed “very carefully.” Senate
Minority Leader Jorge Garcia, D-Tucson, said
he’s not keen on hiking sales taxes while the
Republican-controlled Legislature pushes
ahead with plans to permanently eliminate the
state property tax. That move, which would forego
$250 million in revenues, would mean greater
relief for businesses than homeowners.

State may widen use of donated school funds
East Valley Tribune 2/17/09 3:33PM
A House panel voted Monday to allow donated
funds to be used to help students get into
college. But not everyone thinks that's a good
idea. The legislation, approved by the Education
Committee on an 8-2 margin, says any money
that schools get can be used both to pay for
students to take college entrance exams as
well as any costs of tests to determine if they
can get college credits for high school courses.
HB2309, which already has been approved by
the Ways and Means Committee, now goes to
the full House. State law allows individuals to
give up to $200 to public schools and get a
dollar-for-dollar credit on their state income
taxes. Couples can give twice as much.

Educators want stimulus share
Arizona Daily Sun 2/18/09
TUCSON -- Arizona educators are salivating
over the thought of millions of dollars heading
to the state as part of the federal stimulus
package. President Barack Obama signed
the $787 billion stimulus measure into law
Tuesday before heading to Arizona. Arizona
Gov. Jan Brewer must apply for Arizona's
share of the $53 billion state fiscal stabilization
fund. Most of that fund, about $39 billion, is ear-
marked to help states replace cuts made to
K-12 and higher education in the past year,
said Shay Stautz, University of Arizona
associate vice president for federal
relations.

No options foreclosed yet
Arizona Daily Sun 2/18/09
But in looking to balance the state budget, Gov.
Jan Brewer says in Flagstaff Tuesday she is
wary of federal stimulus dollars with strings
attached. Talk of the economy followed Gov.
Jan Brewer wherever she went Tuesday as
she met with community leaders in Coconino
and Navajo counties. Everyone from the
Coconino County Board of Supervisors to
Northern Arizona University President John
Haeger wanted answers to the state's
floundering economy. With details of the
federal stimulus still emerging and the 2010
state budget still being hammered out, Brewer
conceded answers are in short supply right
now. "Our office is monitoring (the federal
stimulus package) between the feds and
the state to see what is coming our way. At
this time we don't have a lot of detail on it,"
Brewer said.

Editorial: Joint Tucson, Phoenix effort goes
after jobs
Arizona Daily Star 2/18/09
Our view: But economic development also requires
a commitment to education. Arizona is spreading
an industrial size welcome mat to high-wage
industries leaving California. Tucson Mayor Bob
Walkup and Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon on Thurs-
day announced a business development campaign:
"Arizona Sun Corridor: Open for Business." It is a
six-month pilot program that is a partnership be-
tween the state's largest economic development
groups: the Greater Phoenix Economic Council
and Tucson Regional Economic Opportunities Inc.
The joint effort puts a contractor on the ground in
California to generate leads and discussions with
decision makers about bringing high-wage jobs
and investment to the Phoenix-Tucson area.

Brewer's tax silence irks some lawmakers
Arizona Daily Star 2/18/09
PHOENIX — It's been pretty typical over the past six
years for legislative Republicans to complain about
a lack of communication with the Governor's Office.
But all that was supposed to change last month
when the governor became one of their own —
Republican Jan Brewer. On Tuesday morning,
though, Senate Republicans opened their caucus
meeting by criticizing Brewer for not talking to them
about a possible special election this spring for a
temporary increase in the sales tax, an idea floated
in the media over the weekend. Republicans say
they're not upset only about not being in on the
reported plans. Some blasted the idea of a penny-
per-dollar tax boost to help balance the state's $3
billion budget deficit.

Editorial: Our Opinion: UA payments from city
raise new doubts on Rio Nuevo
Tucson Citizen 2/18/09
Tucson again has shot itself in the foot on Rio
Nuevo funding - just as the Legislature is taking
a close look at how the city has been spending
the money. In a story Monday, Tucson Citizen
reporter Carli Brosseau reported that the city
has been paying Rio Nuevo invoices submitted
by the University of Arizona without the necessary
scrutiny. That's a troubling revelation - and it
comes at an especially troubling time. Tax money
diverted from the state is the backbone of funding
for the Rio Nuevo downtown redevelopment
project. And with the state facing a multi-billion-
dollar deficit this fiscal year and next, legislators
are looking to grab every available dime. It is not
an overstatement to say the future of Rio Nuevo
hangs in the balance.

Stanton: Hands off our initiative process
Tucson Citizen 2/18/09
Gov. Jan Brewer and state Sen. Russell Pearce
have whacked open a hornet's nest and don't
even know it yet. Their proposal to run rough-
shod over Arizona's citizen initiative process will
spur protest from free-market Republicans and
progressive Democrats alike. As the conservative
Goldwater Institute noted in 2008, "Arizona's
Constitutional framers intended the initiative
process to be used as a check on government .
 . . " When legislators fail to accomplish some-
thing that citizens deem necessary - a common
occurrence in Arizona - we turn to the initiative
process, as we have since statehood in 1912.

WOW…..Say It Ain't So! Rio Nuevo Mis-Managed
or Corrupt?
Tucson Citizen 2/17/09 8:15 p.m.
The city will conduct an “internal review” of payments
to the University of Arizona for UA’s planned Science
Center complex downtown, Tucson City Manager
Mike Hein said Thursday. Hein said the review was
prompted in part by political pressure from the state
Legislature, which has threatened to revoke the tax-
increment financing district Tucson has relied on to
fund downtown and Rio Nuevo redevelopment. But
some city accountants have been questioning UA’s
invoices for months. In October, Rio Nuevo Finance
Manager Stacie Bird asked Hein to sign a memo
that said Hein approved “expenditures the City does
not allow on other District projects.” If he didn’t sign,
she wanted a meeting with him and UA officials to
talk about the spending. Hein signed it. Then on
Jan. 29, Tucson Finance Director Frank Abeyta
ordered an audit of city payments to UA and of the
outstanding bills for the Science Center, Rio
Nuevo’s flagship project.

UA suspends work on downtown science
center/museum
Tucson Citizen 2/18/09
The University of Arizona said Wednesday it
will suspend building a combined UA Science
Center and Arizona State Museum downtown
until the national and state economic crises
ease. "Our mutual commitment to a strong
partnership between the UA and the city in
downtown redevelopment remains strong,"
UA President Robert N. Shelton said. "How-
ever, the current budget crisis makes it
impossible for us to proceed with our plans
at this time." Shelton said the university will
suspend building design and development
work on the $130 million project immediately.
Some exhibit design work will continue, but
at a much slower pace, and UA will request
that the city keep the site open so work can
start when the economy improves.

States’ Stimulus Money Is Expected to Be
a Salve, Not a Panacea
The Chronicle of Higher Education 2/18/09
Stimulus Aid to States Brings Both Relief and
Worries. Among the concerns are how much
of the money will flow to colleges and how the
aid will affect state spending on higher education
in the future. The nearly $54-billion that Congress
is directing to state aid for education as part of
the stimulus bill President Obama signed on
Tuesday may stave off the worst budget cuts
proposed for public colleges. But the money is
unlikely to be able to plug all of the budget holes,
and some university officials worry the measure
could make it easier for states to spend less on
higher education in the future. And while
colleges welcome the extra money from federal
coffers, they note that the money comes with
some strings. The funds also will have to flow
through the complex political process in the
nation’s statehouses before it is appropriated
to educational institutions, giving legislators
and governors a greater opportunity to influence
who will benefit from the money.

The New Reverse Transfer
Inside Higher Ed 2/18/09
Stephanie Jamiot is a community college transfer
student, but not the kind one might expect. Instead
of following the steady flow of students who move
from two-year institutions to four-year institutions,
she is one of a growing number of so-called
“reverse transfers” who leave four-year universities
to attend community college. Cuyahoga Community
College in Cleveland — Ohio’s largest two-year
institution and the one Jamiot currently attends —
had an 11 percent increase in the number of
“reverse transfers” this spring compared to last.
These students mostly come from public and
private institutions around Ohio. Nationally, the
American Association of Community Colleges
notes that a third of all two-year students previously
attended a four-year institution. The recession has
led to surge in community college enrollments this
year, and some experts believe these “reverse
transfers” are an important and sometimes over-
looked portion of that growing student body at two-
year institutions.

Delay, questions plague UA science center
Arizona Geology 2/17/09
The University of Arizona is proposing to slow
construction of the proposed science center,
which is intended to be one of the show pieces
of the Tucson Rio Nuevo development. The
Arizona Republic reports today that UA officials
told city officials that the university's budget cuts
the state budget cuts are responsible. This
comes just a day after the Tucson Citizen ran
a lengthy investigative report that the city will
conduct an internal review of payments to UA
for the science center. The audit is a result of
pressure from the state legislature according
to city manager Mike Hein. That body is
considering cancelling the taxing district that
funds the Rio Nuevo project.

Timing for budget action an issue for legislators
Associated Press/KSWT New 13
2/17/09 2:04 PM ET
PHOENIX (AP) - With no sign that the state's
finances are improving, Arizona legislators
are debating when to approve a budget for
the fiscal year that starts July 1.Some majority
Senate Republicans on Tuesday argued for
early action on the budget, which will require
closing a projected $3 billion revenue shortfall.
Others say new Gov. Jan Brewer should get
the time she needs to engage on decisions
on possible spending cuts and other
approaches. There are both fiscal and
political implications with timing.

Legislators Leery Of New Election Idea
KPHO News 5 2/17/09 12:49 pm MST
PHOENIX -- Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer's reported
willingness to contemplate holding a spring
special election on controversial budget proposals
has something for leaders on both sides of the
Legislature's political divide to dislike. Majority
Republicans didn't draw lines in the sand but
looked askance at the possibility of a tax increase,
even just a temporary one, to help bail the state
out of its big budgetary hole. Minority Democrats,
meanwhile, voiced reservations about the notion
of relaxing protections for voter-approved spending.
The whole idea was reported over the weekend by
The Arizona Republic as being under
consideration by Brewer's office. The article
indicated that the sales tax was the tax being
eyed for a possible increase. Returning to the
Capitol on Monday, lawmakers widely regarded
the report as resulting from a trial balloon on
behalf of Brewer.

Editorial: Where’s the love?
ASU Web Devil 2/18/09
Sun Devil Athletics is pretty awesome, tanning
by the Vista del Sol pool is hot, and we can
geek out in any subject from microbiology to
Spanish linguistics. But let’s face it, without a
substantial scholarship program, a lot of us
wouldn’t be here. When $5,661 needs to come
out of our own pockets, saving a few bucks at
places like Manitoba Community College
begins to look more appealing. That’s why
we’re concerned about the discontinuation of
the AIMS scholarship program. Based on this
semester’s numbers, cutting it would take away
one more funding option for about 500 incoming
students. For some, coming up with financial
aid another way or asking their parents for
money will be no sweat. But it’s also likely that
some of those kids have no other way to pay for
school. .....As a state university, ASU needs to
make it as easy as possible for anyone who
can handle the coursework to attend. Though
choosing which programs to ax must be a
thankless and painful job, we’re wondering
if this choice was a mistake on the part of the
University.

Stimulus would provide energy, education growth
ASU Web Devil 2/18/09
Funding for solar and renewable energy will lead
Arizona to a bright future, despite current economic
woes, U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords [D-8] said to
ASU students, staff and community members in
the Memorial Union on Tuesday afternoon. Giffords
addressed how the effects of the $789 billion
stimulus package signed on Tuesday by President
Barack Obama will provide Arizona with fundamental
funding for renewable energy.

Officials say Poly students can still complete
degrees
ASU News 2/17/09
Amid the changes at the Polytechnic campus,
University officials let students know at a town-
hall meeting that they will still have the
opportunity to complete their degree programs
despite the elimination of some programs.
About 27 students attended the meeting on
Monday held by administrators and faculty to
answer questions from the University
community. “Whatever you are doing now will
continue. You will be able to continue your
degree on this campus,” said Keith Hjelmstad,
vice president and dean of the College of
Technology and Innovation. In response to
state budget cuts, programs at the Polytechnic
campus will all be brought under one college
or administered from other campuses.
Disestablished programs include professional
golf management, fire service management and
concentrations within the applied science degree.

Editorial: Student fees shouldn't be used to make
up for budget shortfall
UA Daily Wildcat 2/18/09
The bill is coming due. As UA students, staff and
faculty, we've pulled together over the past month
in amazing numbers to protest the severe cutbacks
in state funding to the university, but so far our cries
and chants have fallen on deaf ears in Phoenix. No
doubt our protests will continue in hopes of averting
even more severe cuts in future fiscal years, but for
now an uneasy stillness has fallen over campus as
President Robert Shelton and his administration try
to sort out ways to deal with the damage. That
stillness hasn't lifted yet, but it's readily apparent to
us all that in the end, UA students are going to
shoulder a larger share of the costs of operating our
university. The only questions that remain are: What
will these increased costs be, and how will they be
paid?

ASUA codes broken
U A Daily Wildcat 2/18/09
Almost all ASUA elected officials may be guilty
of Election Code violations reaching back to last
March's general election. The code states that all
Associated Students of the University of Arizona
candidates must remove their campaign materials
by a business week after the general elections.
This includes online campaign materials,
according to the 2009 ASUA Elections Code.
However, as campaigning for the current election
race officially began Monday, every sitting senator,
as well as ASUA President Tommy Bruce and
Administrative Vice President Seema Patel, still
had not taken down all of their online campaign
materials from last year's election.

Alpha Chi Omega lacks members, loses charter
UA Daily Wildcat 2/18/09
The recent whirlwind of change within the UA
Greek community continued yesterday evening
as Alpha Chi Omega made it known that its UA
chapter would be removed. The national council
of Alpha Chi Omega announced the elimination
of the Beta Lambda charter at the University of
Arizona, as stated by their press release Tuesday
evening. Members of the Alpha Chi Omega
national grand council were flown in to report the
news to Alpha Chi's 67 members, on Monday
evening. "Over the past couple of days, the
national council of Alpha Chi Omega voted to
close the Beta Lambda chapter of the University
of Arizona," said Associate Executive Director
Beth Conder. "The chapter was notified last
night about the decision, we answered any
questions they might have and walked them
through the past few years and why that
decision was made."