YUMA, Ariz. – Governor Doug Ducey spent time in Yuma offering his State of the State address to attendees at the Schoening Conference Center at Arizona Western Conference.
Ducey sat down for an exclusive one-on-one interview with ABC 5 News Reporter Christy Wilcox. During the interview the discussion included talk about budget and education concerns, as well as veterans, foster care, Prop 123, domestic violence and his thoughts on endorsing a presidential candidate for the upcoming general election.
As a new governor Ducey said he had to tighten the belt to reduce the state deficit forcing Arizona’s counties and cities to take a hit out of their own pockets. The local Yuma economy had to make up for a $10.2 million dollar loss. The governor said he needed to do this to get the state to a point where it was living economically within its means. He said with the restructure of funding the state now has a positive cash flow of $233 million in a cash carry forward state account.
Education funding was another topic he addressed. Ducey is urging the public to vote during an upcoming special election to resolve a larger education funding issue, saying it will pass more money to the teachers and students in the classroom.
“Those dollars will go to the base formula,” said Ducey.
The special election for funding education will happen on May 17, 2016. Ducey, a proponent of the bill, says he will be all over the state speaking with officials to help get the bill passed.
You can read the entire State of the State address by Governor Ducey here.