Maricopa County taxpayers on hook again for sheriff's case

PHOENIX (AP) -- Taxpayers in metro Phoenix are a step closer to picking up an additional $13.2 million over the next year to cover the costs of a racial profiling case.

The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors tentatively approved the additional spending Monday as part of a $2.35 billion budget for fiscal year 2017.

A final vote is set for late next month.

The county already has shelled out $41 million over the past eight years in the racial profiling case.

That includes $10 million in attorney fees and $5 million for the monitoring staff.

The county must keep covering the legal costs until Sheriff Joe Arpaio's office is released from the supervision of the case judge. However, that resolution is years away.