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PHOENIX — Gov. Jan Brewer returned to Arizona on Tuesday and faced a pressing decision about a bill on her desk that has prompted a national debate over religious and gay rights.

The Republican governor has been in Washington the last five days for a governors conference, and she returns to a political climate that is much different from just a week ago.

The Arizona Legislature passed a bill last week allowing businesses whose owners cite sincerely held religious beliefs to deny service to gays. It allows any business, church or person to cite the law as a defense in any action brought by the government or individual claiming discrimination.

The chorus of opposition has grown, with the business community, the state’s Super Bowl Committee and both Republican U.S. senators calling for a veto. Former GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney was the latest prominent voice to weigh in and urge Brewer to veto the bill.

There is widespread speculation that Brewer will veto Senate Bill 1062, but she has not said how she’ll act.

“She’s no rookie to these high-profile deals — she gives both sides their due,” said Doug Cole, a political consultant whose firm has run all of Brewer’s campaigns for decades.

Some Republican senators who pushed the bill through the Legislature are now calling for a veto as well, but they cite “inaccurate” information about the measure for igniting a firestorm. Some blame the media for blowing the law out of proportion.

“We brought this to their attention five weeks ago,” said Sen. Steve Gallardo, D-Phoenix. “We said this is exactly what is going to happen. You have a bill here that’s so toxic it’s going to divide this Legislature. It’s going to be polarizing the entire state. And that’s exactly what happened.”