The U.S Forest Service announced the cancellation of the Four Forest Restoration Initiative (4FRI), prompting criticism from Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey and U.S. Senators Mark Kelly and Kyrsten Sinema. “The Forest Service blindsided Arizonans with their decision to cancel the long-awaited 4FRI contract,” Kelly said in a press release. “This is unacceptable and is only […]
Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich’s Office says it will not tolerate a federal government investigation into Arizona’s school mask policies. That’s according to a letter from Brnovich to U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona on Aug. 31. The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced Monday that they “opened directed investigations in […]
More than 4 million Arizonans over the age of 12 have now received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, while more than 3.5 million are fully vaccinated, according to a Saturday news release from the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS). “Arizonans are stepping up and doing their part to put this pandemic […]
A group of Arizonans filed the “Arizonans for Voter ID Act” ballot initiative on Monday, asking the secretary of state’s office to further ID requirements for in-person voting, individuals returning a voter’s ballots, and mail-in voting. In a news release, the political committee chaired by Arizona voter Vicki Vaughn said that the initiative would make […]
State Representative Jake Hoffman, R-Queen Creek and 25 other Republicans legislators issued a statement against school districts requiring masks in opposition to state law, arguing that under the Arizona Constitution, “local governments do not have the authority or power to usurp state law simply because they disagree.” They compared the local governments’ actions to “anarchy” […]
A Phoenix teacher filed a lawsuit against the Phoenix Union High School District (PUHSD) for requiring that students and teachers wear masks at school, arguing that state law prohibits school mask mandates. Douglas Hester, a Metro Tech High School teacher, sued the district, its governing board, and its superintendent in Maricopa County Superior Court. He requested a […]
Attorney General Mark Brnovich is leading a coalition of attorneys general in filing a petition challenging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s “Delay Rule,” which postponed the Trump Administration’s Lead and Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR). “While the Biden Administration talks a lot about preserving clean air and water for future generations, they have failed to […]
The Goldwater Institute has filed more than $23 million in claims against the Arizona city of Flagstaff on behalf of more than 50 property owners in defense of their property rights, which it holds were violated by the new High Occupancy House Plan. Flagstaff, home of Northern Arizona University, had a total of 29,569 students […]
The Goldwater Institute is challenging an Arizona Court of Appeals ruling that shooting ranges qualify as “places of amusement,” subjecting them to higher tax rates. The court ruled in April that shooting ranges are “comparable” to “amusement parks.” The Goldwater Institute filed a friend of the court brief last week, arguing that shooting ranges are […]
Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich announced he and Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt are leading a coalition of 26 states to defend Second Amendment rights at the U.S. Supreme Court. In their amicus brief in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Corlett, the state attorneys general urged the court “to declare New York’s […]
Gov. Doug Ducey signed an education transparency bill requiring public and charter schools to allow parents to opt their child into sex education and prohibiting sex education before fifth grade. “Parents should have the right to know what their children are learning in school,” Ducey said in a press release. “This is a no-brainer piece […]
The expected water cuts from the Colorado River as a result of the Drought Contingency Plan (DCP) will likely mean higher water utility rates, according to Fitch Ratings. The U.S. Congress passed the DCP in 2019 to protect water levels in Lake Powell and Lake Mead which provide water to Colorado River basin states. Arizona, […]
The National Federation of Independent Businesses’ June Job Report, a national barometer of the small-business economy, said Arizona is in a good place to beat its neighbors to full economic recovery. The report revealed that 46% of small business owners reported job openings they could not fill in the current period. This marks a two-point […]
Arizona Republicans have endorsed a plan to shield small businesses from a new tax to better fund public schools. The Senate voted along party lines Monday to pass Senate Bill 1783, which would create a new tax class for small business owners who would otherwise file as a pass-through entity. This would allow them to […]
The Arizona House of Representatives voted down an expansion of the state’s school voucher program, the Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA), one of the state’s 2021 budget amendments. The Senate voted by party line on June 23 to attach the expansion to the state’s annual budget, but HB 2898 could not get majority support in the […]
This week, the Supreme Court is likely to rule on two Arizona voting regulations which a lower court held were violations of the Voting Rights Act. The first regards a 2016 regulation that made a phenomenon known as “ballot harvesting” a felony in Arizona. HB 2023 allowed judges to impose a presumptive one-year prison term […]
On Monday, the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors approved a $3.4 billion budget for the 2022 fiscal year beginning July 1, cutting property tax rates and increasing public health and homelessness prevention funding. The $3,419,735,244 budget marks a $898,479 decrease from the board’s Tentative Budget. The board also moved to adopt its five-year capital improvement […]
State-run COVID-19 vaccination sites are closing by June 28 in Arizona, as the state’s focus shifts to increasing community-based vaccination options such as pharmacies, pop-up clinics, and doctors’ offices. State-run vaccination sites have administered 1.6 million doses of the vaccine to about 900,000 Arizonans, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS). “Starting with […]
Gov. Ducey and Sonoran Governor Claudia Pavlovich met for the last time to sign an agreement to secure Sonora’s access to water and further monitor air quality. The agreement marks the end of a six-year professional relationship between Ducey and Pavlovich, who was elected in 2015 and will leave office this year. She is the […]
Gov. Ducey has less than two months to choose between seven Supreme Court nominees to fill the vacancy of Justice Andrew Gould, who stepped down to run for State Attorney General. He was appointed by Gov. Ducey in 2016 and retired last month. The Commission on Appellate Court Appointment nominees includes five judges and two […]
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