Without a budget resolution late Tuesday, there was widespread uncertainty about how state government would function today.

Officials in Gov. Jan Brewer's office said all public-safety functions of the state would be carried out regardless of the budget situation.

Prisons, the Highway Patrol and an emergency-response team at the Arizona Department of Transportation were among the agencies likely to be included in any temporary funding. Scores of other government departments, from the Motor Vehicle Division to Child Protective Services, probably would close.
Brewer would have several ways to temporarily fund essential government functions, including using federal stimulus dollars that she alone can appropriate, said Paul Senseman, her spokesman. She also could keep some parts of government open by approving portions of any budget bills sent to her by the Legislature, using her line-item veto to remove sections she opposes.

The Department of Administration, which coordinates between state agencies, was still waiting late Tuesday to learn how to proceed in the event of a shutdown. The state directed its 41,000 employees to check azdoa.gov, the department's Web site, for updates this morning.

Other agencies planned to notify employees and the public through their own Web sites and phone trees.

State Treasurer Dean Martin said that without a budget deal or temporary fix, the state would not be able to pay bills or make appropriations.

A shutdown would harm the state's credit rating, making it more expensive for Arizona to borrow money in the future, Martin said. And if the state can't make its $85 million biweekly payroll Thursday, federal law says the state could have to pay triple the amount, up to $255 million, to state workers as a penalty.

The Arizona State Parks Department spent Tuesday afternoon rousting campers out of their tents at 13 parks with campgrounds. Of the state's 30 parks, 27 were scheduled to close at midnight Tuesday.

Fool Hollow Lake State Recreation Area in Show Low and Lake Havasu State Park will be operated temporarily by city governments.