Janet Napolitano in 2009 Governor's State of the State speeches
On Budget & Economy:
Balance budget even during recession
When I took office, our state faced a budget deficit that many thought would sink our priorities for Arizona. Since then--in surplus and in deficit--I have always presented you with a balanced budget plan that moved Arizona forward.
That's an important lesson as we look at our situation today: We don't have to go back. We do have to go forward.As revenues increased, we set aside money in a rainy day fund, cut taxes and provided tax incentives for important areas like research
and development. We implemented 26 of the 36 recommendations of the Citizens Finance Review Commission. We reviewed all state expenditures and undertook actions such as restructuring procurement and curtailing our use of energy. All told, our efforts
have saved more than $1 billion.
We have passed a balanced budget every year, but we still need to make significant adjustments in this year's budget because of the continuing recession. I have already given you a balanced budget plan for 2009.
Source: Arizona 2009 State of the State Address
Jan 12, 2009
On Education:
Added voluntary full-day kindergarten as a new grade level
We have added--and protected--a new grade level, voluntary full-day kindergarten, that gives thousands of Arizona students a head start in education that will benefit them for the rest of their lives. By vote of the people, we have set aside critical
funding for early childhood education. We have enacted historic teacher pay raises and started a new center to train teachers in the critical fields of science, technology, engineering and math. We've quadrupled the funds going to our schools from our
state trust lands. We've increased standards in high school for math and science, and we have cut the high school dropout rate nearly in half.Yet, as always, there is more to do. We must build on what we have begun.
Expanded resources must translate into ever-increasing levels of student achievement. The proportion of our education funds spent in the classroom must increase. The professional status--and the pay--of our classroom teachers must continue to improve.
Source: Arizona 2009 State of the State Address
Jan 12, 2009
On Education:
Implement school choice via public charter schools
Our public school system educates 82% of Arizona's students. Their future has to be Arizona's number-one priority. School choice is important; we can expand and preserve that choice through the growing institution of quality public charter schools.
Today's short-term budget decisions must not harm the long-term future of Arizona's children. If this Legislature cuts classroom spending, the people of
Arizona will recognize such a cut for what it is--not a budget necessity, but a willful and unwise choice.
We must look at higher education in the same way. In the past six years, we have institutionalized the
P-20 model in Arizona, which recognizes the reality that education is not neatly segmented, but is instead a continuum of learning that begins at birth and lasts well into a chosen career path.
Source: Arizona 2009 State of the State Address
Jan 12, 2009
On Environment:
Limit our greenhouse gas emissions & focus on solar energy
Arizona must also stay on the path toward greener future. We must continue to implement forest health measures that create new industries and protect our forested communities. We also must work to limit our greenhouse gas emissions through the
Western Climate Initiative, and move forward in building a strong renewable energy sector, particularly with respect to solar energy. The entire nation is going in this direction--and Arizona has much to gain by being a leader.
Source: Arizona 2009 State of the State Address
Jan 12, 2009
On Government Reform:
We'll be remembered for what we did, not for how we budgeted
As I deliver the 2009 budget plan this week, I hearken back to a statement from my First Inaugural Address: "Generations to come will not remember us for how we balanced the budget, or how we expanded or contracted the size of government.
Instead, they will remember how we educated our children, how we protected our seniors, how we built a new economy, and how we made this wonderful state an even better place to live."
Together, we have provided better educational opportunities for our children. We have protected our seniors and built toward a new economy.
We have moved Arizona forward, and the budget I present to you will be balanced and will protect what we have achieved.
Source: Arizona 2009 State of the State Address
Jan 12, 2009
On Health Care:
Expanded access to KidsCare and AHCCCS
In these difficult times, we are called to serve the Arizona families hit hardest by the economic storm. In the past year, more than 70,000 Arizonans have enrolled in state health care through AHCCCS and KidsCare. It would be wrong to hurt those who are
ill or disabled in the name of balancing the budget. One imperative is to protect our advances in health care, including expanded access to KidsCare for families that need it, investments in health care technology to improve the delivery of care
and substantial savings on prescription drugs. Some fear that little can be done right now about these pressing problems; but Congress is likely to increase aid for state Medicaid programs. And when this happens, Arizona can continue its work
to improve health care by enacting quality-of-care measures, building our electronic health records infrastructure and implementing other reforms necessary to ensure that every Arizona family has access to a doctor when they need one.
Source: Arizona 2009 State of the State Address
Jan 12, 2009
On Immigration:
Keep up intense pressure on border criminals
There is no more fundamental function of government than to protect the public. In the past six years, crime in Arizona has gone down in nearly every category. We have built the nation's first state anti-terrorism center and prepared ourselves to be read
for any disaster. We secured increased federal resources at the border, and state task forces have arrested hundreds of human smugglers. We have used innovative methods to attack the tools of the smuggling trade, such as money laundering and fraudulent
identification. We have made Arizona the most innovative and active state in the nation in addressing--head-on--the consequences of our nation's broken borders.We have to keep up this intense pressure on the border criminals who use violence and fraud
to smuggle people and drugs into our country. This effort includes a bill I am presenting to you today that goes after those criminals by broadening the human trafficking laws we use to crack down on those who smuggle people across the border.
Source: Arizona 2009 State of the State Address
Jan 12, 2009
On Technology:
Invest in infrastructure: highways and school buildings
We must invest in our physical infrastructure. This is timely because it is likely that an infrastructure stimulus plan is on its way from the federal government. And it is important because we know this kind of investment creates jobs and creates wealth
Last year, I asked you to hold hearings and prepare a statewide transportation plan for referral to the ballot. Sadly, the Legislature failed to do this, and then a citizen's initiative was kept from the ballot.
That citizen's initiative proposal made sense, because we will need roads, highways, rail and transit to support our growth.
But infrastructure does not stop with transportation. With my budget,
I am giving you a plan for desperately needed school buildings. These new buildings will be energy efficient, they will provide an economic stimulus and they will build a legacy that is able to serve this state for decades.
Source: Arizona 2009 State of the State Address
Jan 12, 2009
Page last updated: Dec 02, 2018