News

By Howard Fischer

Phoenix, AZ – Jan Brewer has been saying for more than a month that everything
is on the table as the state figures out how to balance the
budget. Later today she gets to spell out exactly what is on her menu.

Flagstaff, AZ – Earth Notes: Hopi Orchards

Some of the fruits and vegetables we eat travel thousands of miles to reach our kitchen tables. Shipping food from such distant sources costs fuel and money. So why not raise food closer to home?

It's not a new idea. The Hopi people of northern Arizona are experts at growing food in a tough environment. For centuries farmers have raised beans, squash, and other crops including the famous Hopi blue corn on three arid, windswept mesas that are the tribe's ancestral homeland.

By Howard Fischer

Phoenix, AZ – State lawmakers are balking at a proposal that would replace
payday lending with another type of high-interest loan.

By Laurel Morales

Flagstaff, AZ – As Arizona legislators work out a plan for next fiscal year, universities are preparing for big cuts. And that's led to a sometimes fierce debate over which university programs are most essential to students. At Northern Arizona University some have proposed cutting counseling, at a time when those services have never been more in demand. Arizona Public Radio's Laurel Morales has this report.

By Howard Fischer

Phoenix, AZ – State lawmakers refused this afternoon to prevent another vote in
Tusayan to incorporate.

By Howard Fischer

Phoenix, AZ – The state House gave preliminary approval Thursday to a
controversial -- and possibly illegal -- transfer of funds from a
voter-approved initiative to keep open state parks.

By Theresa Bierer

Flagstaff/Prescott, AZ – It's a quiet afternoon at the Prescott Honda Dealership with a few customers looking at cars. The dealership is still located on Iron Springs road One of the owners, Gary Young, says he's glad they didn't move forward with plans to build a new facility because he says Prescott is feeling the recession.

By Howard Fischer

Phoenix, AZ – A new report today shows that the percentage of tax dollars that
wound up in the classroom was lower in last school year than at
any time since the state began studying the issue seven years
earlier.

By Howard Fischer

Phoenix, AZ – State officials have found a loophole in the new federal stimulus
bill that will keep the working poor parents of 15,000 children
from losing their subsized child care. Arizona Public Radio's
Howard Fischer explains.

By Laurel Morales

Flagstaff, AZ – Across the country college enrollment numbers are way up. In northern Arizona, Coconino, Mohave and Yavapai community colleges are all experiencing record breaking semesters. School administrators say they attribute their success to the unsuccessful economy, and a new breed of students they call "retrainers." Arizona Public Radio's Laurel Morales has the story.