Lawmaker, State Lawmakers | featured news

Democratic lawmakers passed a rare on-time state budget Wednesday over Republican objections, but the plan — balanced with a blend of taxes, cuts and clever accounting — faces an uncertain fate at the hands of Gov. Jerry Brown.

A Wisconsin judge struck down that state's controversial new collective bargaining law Thursday, ruling that GOP legislators failed to provide sufficient public notice before passing the measure this year.

While a bill limiting collective bargaining rights was passed in the Wisconsin Assembly, the measure stalled because Senate Democrats remained out of the state.

California will enter the fourth month of its fiscal year on Friday without a state budget in place after Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and top lawmakers failed to agree on Thursday on a spending plan.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and state lawmakers ended talks Thursday night without reaching a deal on how to close California's $19 billion deficit, breaking a state record for the longest budget impasse.

In a recession, state lawmakers are taxing personal vices. It’s good for you, they say, but it’s really better for their budgets.