REDISTRICTING COMMISSION ALMOST BROKE

posted by Michael Chihak

The Arizona Republic *repoets that the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission is almost broke.

And there's no relief in sight, despite the commission needing cash to continue operating as it works toward final implementation of the congressional and legislative district maps it has drawn.

Legislators are unsympathetic. Arizona House Speaker Andy Tobin says if the commission had cooperated with the attorney general in an Open Meeting Law investigation, it wouldn't have spent big legal bills.

That's despite the commission having prevailed in its legal fight, with a Maricopa County Superior Court judge ruling that the commission wasn't subject to the state's Open Meeting Law, because the constitutional provision that creates the commission has its own open meeting provision.

Commission Executive Director Ray Bladine says the commission's only recourse to get more money from the Legislature is to go to court. A commission meeting may be held later this week or next to discuss the possibilities, Bladine says.