CEBV Weekly: February 13, 2023
No budget, again. And, committee agendas featuring ten pounds of you-know-what in a five-pound bag.
Around and around we go: The Senate has passed a “skinny” budget that would maintain the status quo when our state clearly needs investment, not austerity. But in the House, the budget hit a snag: Rep. Liz Harris (R-13) is holding out for more than $5 billion in cuts to the state budget.
That daffy demand will likely never be met. And, should Harris change her mind, this status-quo budget is unlikely to pass muster with the governor. That means creating a budget will now require some (gasp!) bipartisan compromise.
Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers in both chambers are doubling down on advancing a glut of extremist culture-war bills, many of which are also breathtakingly cruel.
With more than 4 months to go before the end of the fiscal year — the drop-dead date for the Legislature to pass a budget — we may be in for a long stalemate.
This is the time for us to buckle up and focus on RTS, as it’s the last week that bills can be heard in committees in their originating chamber. Our comments and opinions are welcome input for Gov. Hobbs’ veto stamp. (Trust us on this: It does matter!!) After this week, while the full Senate and House try to pass as many bills as possible so they can start their journey through the opposite chamber, our RTS fingers will get some well-deserved R&R.
⏰ If you have 10 minutes: Use RTS on the Spotlight Bills, below.
⏰⏰ If you have 20 minutes: Call and email your representatives. Ask them to oppose SB1324 and HB2560, along with any other bills that would publish our ballots or expose our voter data to the public. If you did last week, please do it again.
⏰⏰⏰ If you have 45 minutes: Use Request to Speak on the many bills in committee.
⏰⏰⏰⏰⏰ If you have 60 minutes: Join us on Zoom at 4pm on Sunday for our next CEBV Happy Hour. Our featured speaker will be Sen. Christine Marsh (D-LD4).
Spotlight Issue 1: End Run on Gov. Hobbs
Lawmakers know Gov. Hobbs can (and probably will) veto nearly all the divisive culture-war nonsense they are sending her. That’s why they are also trying to send a number of bills directly to the ballot — circumventing Gov. Hobbs and her veto pen — and hoping that voters will play along.
This week’s committee agendas are long, so if you do nothing else this week, please use RTS to OPPOSE each of these bills:
SCR1016 - constitutional convention
SCR1018 - anti-environmental bill
SCR1023 - anti-charter cities
SCR1024 - anti-direct democracy
SCR1025 - culture war bludgeon against schools
SCR1034 - anti-bipartisan budgeting
SCR1035 - automatic tax cuts
SCR1036 - make city elections partisan
SCR1038 - constitutional convention
HCR2016 - constitutional convention
HCR2020 - anti-ranked choice voting
HCR2033 - anti-ranked choice voting
HCR2038 - anti-bipartisan budgeting
HCR2040 - bans early voting
HCR2041 - anti-direct democracy
If you need more information, simply search this document for any of these bill numbers, and you’ll find our full write-ups.
Spotlight Issue 2: Anti-Gavel Watch Bills
Last November, CEBV’s Gavel Watch (our guide to judges) unseated 3 judges on the Maricopa County Superior Court. Apparently we hit a nerve: lawmakers are now trying to stack the deck to make it harder to remove some judges and weaken the nonpartisan process for replacing them.
HB2757, sponsored by Ben Toma (R-27), would expand retention elections for appeals court judges to be statewide, rather than countywide. This is a transparent attempt to keep appellate judges from being unseated by allowing people to vote out of district for judges who don't represent them, diluting the votes. Appellate judges represent certain areas, and they're chosen that way. It's not representative democracy if people in Yuma are voting for someone who represents Flagstaff. Scheduled for House Judiciary Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SCR1026, sponsored by Justine Wadsack (R-17), would ask voters to amend the state Constitution to change the process for appointing members of the Appellate and Trial Court Nominating Commissions, as well as the Commission on Judicial Conduct. It weakens the ability of the state bar to assure nonpartisanship by opening appointing authority to any attorneys in the state without restriction. A political move whose goal seems to be to politicize the Constitutionally mandated merit selection and oversight process. Scheduled for Senate Judiciary Committee, Thursday. OPPOSE.
Yes, this section is long. But take heart: a strict calendar dictates that bills must be heard in committee in their originating chamber by the end of this week. RTS ends entirely on March 24. This week, consider doing your RTS day by day.
A number of these were held last week and are reappearing on agendas now. Your bill position will hold over, but if you want the committee to see your comments, you must re-enter them.
Monday
SB1074, sponsored by Sonny Borrelli (R-30), is subject to a striker that would ban all electronic voting equipment from primary use unless it meets Department of Defense cybersecurity standards, all pieces of it are made in the US, and the auditor general is given copies of the source codes. Inspired by a baseless conspiracy theory about (get this) vote-flipping supercomputers. A coalition of federal cybersecurity and election officials called the 2020 presidential election the “most secure in American history.” See duplicate bill HB2613, sponsored by Steve Montenegro (R-29). Scheduled for Senate Elections Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
SB1122, sponsored by David Farnsworth (R-10), asks voters to extend a longtime Maricopa County half-cent sales tax. This funding is crucial for freeways, roads and public transit across metro Phoenix. The legislature passed a similar bill last session to extend the tax for 25 years, which then-Gov. Ducey vetoed. This bill would extend the tax for 15 years. However, it also slashes funding for public transit from one-third of the total to just 5%, and specifically excludes commuter rail, light rail or streetcars — a provision that prevents the bill from truly addressing transportation needs in Arizona’s largest metro area. Note in your RTS that you oppose this exclusion. Once again scheduled for Senate Transportation & Technology Committee, Monday (last week it was discussed only). OPPOSE.
SB1140, sponsored by Jake Hoffman (R-15), would mandate that counties return to precinct-style voting. The voting center model has numerous benefits, including voter convenience, financial savings, and increased turnout. Lawmakers should be making it easier, not harder, for us to vote. See duplicate bill HB2304. Held last week, but once again scheduled for Senate Elections Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
SB1146, sponsored by Jake Hoffman (R-15), would require Arizona’s retirement system to divest from companies that “promote, facilitate or advocate for” abortions for minors, or for “the inclusion of, or the referral of students to, sexually explicit material.” This ill-considered blanket mandate would leave half a million teachers, municipal workers and other government employees with retirement accounts that are unable to invest in most major companies, and creates a minefield for investors and pension fund managers. Hoffman introduced the same bill last year. Scheduled for Senate Finance Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
SB1156, sponsored by Anthony Kern (R-27), would allow people to deduct a maximum of $40,000 in income from their state taxes for adoption, up from $3,000. Adoptive parents are a sympathetic group of people, which is the point. Lawmakers in Arizona have long used incrementalism to advance various harmful policies on school vouchers, reproductive rights, and more. Meanwhile, Arizona already gives away far more in tax loopholes and carve-outs than it spends in its state budget every year. The bill contains no fiscal note to estimate the cost. Scheduled for Senate Finance Committee, Monday and Senate Appropriations Committee, Tuesday. OPPOSE.
SB1213, sponsored by Anthony Kern (R-27), is subject to a striker that mandates the Joint Legislative Audit Committee (JLAC), in addition to the Attorney General and governor, must sign off on the Secretary of State’s official elections procedure manual. The manual became politicized when former Attorney General Brnovich, a Republican, unsuccessfully sued former Secretary of State Hobbs, a Democrat, to try to get her to publish a manual that was more to his liking. Now that both the AG and SoS are Democrats, it’s unlikely anyone will sue. Like the other legislative committees, JLAC membership is stacked, with 7 Republicans and 4 Democrats — making this bill just another transparent attempt to politicize the process. Scheduled for Senate Elections Committee, Monday; held on 2/6. OPPOSE.
SB1239, sponsored by Wendy Rogers (R-7), would allow state agencies to accept cryptocurrency as payment by partnering with a private third-party company. Cryptocurrency is an environmentally destructive bubble that is already popping and a playground for the mega-rich. Even the Wall Street Journal says crypto should be banned, calling it “a gambling contract with a nearly 100% edge for the house.” Scheduled for Senate Finance Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
SB1245, sponsored by David Farnsworth (R-10), would ban cities and counties from using vehicle license tax monies for anything except transportation. The state has no business telling cities and counties how they can use their revenues. Scheduled for Senate Transportation & Technology Committee, Monday; held on 2/6. OPPOSE.
SB1281, sponsored by Janae Shamp (R-29), is subject to a striker that would mandate state income tax rebates of $200 individual, $400 joint, for tax year 2022. The bill has no fiscal note, but roughly 2.7 million people file income taxes in Arizona every year, so this would likely cost the state a jaw-dropping sum: between $540 million and $1.1 billion. Scheduled for Senate Finance Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
SB1313, sponsored by Jake Hoffman (R-15), would ban cities from making any plans that would “reduce overall system capacity of motor vehicle traffic.” From crashes to climate, from health to finances, our car-centric society is literally killing us. Cities actively working to change this should be commended, not quashed. This bill is based on an absurd conspiracy theory that sees walkable cities as “prison dystopias” and believes the world government wants to limit people’s freedom of movement to advance a totalitarian agenda. (Yes, really.) Scheduled for Senate Transportation & Technology Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
SB1314, sponsored by Jake Hoffman (R-15), would ban the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) Transportation Planning Division from adopting a motor vehicle travel mile reduction target or any other demand management policy or project. Demand management is a proactive approach to improve transportation efficiency which doesn’t assume private cars as the best or only solution for urban mobility; its use saves money and makes our cities more livable. Another bill based on an absurd conspiracy theory that sees walkable cities as “prison dystopias.” Scheduled for Senate Transportation & Technology Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
SB1324, sponsored by Ken Bennett (R-1), would require copies of digital ballot images to be made publicly available online. This was recommended by Cyber Ninjas after their failed ballot review; nearly every question they raised has been found to be misleading, inaccurate, or false. Georgia and some Colorado counties have put ballot images online in an attempt to calm conspiracy theories. But, other than the obvious privacy concerns, this may only generate more mistrust in our democracy. Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer says not all ballots can be made public, so there's no way a random person could replicate the results of an official election count. Part of a continued wave of efforts to restrict and undermine Arizonans’ freedom to vote. See duplicate bill HB2560, sponsored by Ben Toma (R-27). Scheduled for Senate Elections Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
SB1332, sponsored by Janae Shamp (R-29), would make the “cast vote record” (a receipt of everything scanned by a voting machine) a public record. Election deniers have overwhelmed the Maricopa County Elections Department with a deluge of requests for this tedious and routine document, insisting baselessly that it will help detect fraudulent voting patterns. It’s the latest example of the endless, fruitless quest for a smoking gun that has so far yielded no proof of election wrongdoing. Scheduled for Senate Elections Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
SB1471, sponsored by John Kavanagh (R-3), would set up a “man-versus-machine test” of whether humans are better or worse than machines at counting ballots. The idea is to measure not just accuracy but also the time and resources required to implement hand counting statewide. Driven by a false belief that machine counting is inherently suspect and susceptible to fraud. Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer is supporting the bill, saying it “will build confidence in our election system by showing that machine tabulation is highly accurate, free of bias, and fast.” Scheduled for Senate Elections Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
SB1518, sponsored by Ken Bennett (R-1), would allow voters to skip the signature verification process by presenting ID when dropping their early ballots off on Election Day. Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer has said that would break the chain of ballot custody, harming election integrity. After the Friday before Election Day, the bill would also ban one person in a family from dropping off the whole family’s early ballots, which could result in more ballots being rejected. Scheduled for Senate Elections Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
SB1559, sponsored by Steve Kaiser (R-2), would exempt from state taxes all of the first-year profits for a corporation in its first year of business, half the profits in its second year, and a quarter in its third year. It would also waive all fees. Arizona already gives away far more in tax loopholes and carve-outs than it spends in its state budget every year, while most corporations in Arizona pay only the minimum tax of $50. State revenues are already forecast to crater over the next two years; this is no time to further cut taxes. Scheduled for Senate Finance Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
SB1566, sponsored by Frank Carroll (R-28), would void all voter registrations in Arizona this year, disenfranchising over 4.1 million voters, and force everyone to reregister to vote. All voters would then have to reregister every 10 years. Driven by debunked conspiracy theories regarding dead voters casting ballots. Purging the voter rolls not only flies in the face of democracy, but is a blatant violation of federal law. Scheduled for Senate Elections Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
SB1577, sponsored by JD Mesnard (R-13), would mandate that, if Arizona has a budget surplus in any given year, the state would have to automatically cut income tax rates by 50% for the following year. Arizona has just begun to dig itself out of the systemic disinvestment of the Great Recession, which left us with a state government underfunded in nearly every area that still struggles to provide the most basic of services. Meanwhile, Arizona still gives away more money every year in tax cuts, credits and carve-outs than it spends in its budget. The budget surplus isn’t evidence that we’re collecting too much revenue; it’s evidence of lawmakers’ persistent unwillingness to invest in our state and its people. Scheduled for Senate Finance Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
SB1595, sponsored by JD Mesnard (R-13), would make voters present ID in order to drop off their early ballots after 7 PM on the Friday before election day. This would complicate voting for over 1 in 5 voters, resulting in more ballots being rejected. Arizona is a national leader in voting by mail, pioneering the program over 30 years ago. Only about half of Arizona counties even have the capability to tabulate ballots on-site at polling places on Election Day. Voters just refused in November to adopt new ID restrictions for early ballots. Scheduled for Senate Elections Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
SB1596, sponsored by JD Mesnard (R-13), would require government offices, including school district offices, to serve as polling places if elections officials ask for it. The chaos of Election Day is disruptive to a school’s normal operation and could put students at risk by allowing unverified individuals into a building during school hours. Apparently intended to facilitate a return to precinct-style voting, but Arizona and the nation are already struggling to find enough elections workers. Meanwhile, voting centers offer numerous benefits, including convenience, financial savings and increased turnout. Scheduled for Senate Elections Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
SB1597, sponsored by JD Mesnard (R-13), would require elections officials to tabulate early ballots on-site at polling places no later than November 2024. Only about half of Arizona counties even have the capability to tabulate ballots on-site at polling places on Election Day. The bill comes with no appropriation for the significant investments that would be required to make this bill reality. Scheduled for Senate Elections Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
SCR1018, sponsored by Jake Hoffman (R-15), would ask voters to amend the Arizona Constitution to ban government from charging anyone based on their vehicle miles traveled or monitoring people’s vehicle miles traveled. Reducing how many miles we drive burns fewer fossil fuels and extends road life, which is good for the state. Based on an absurd conspiracy theory that believes the world government wants to limit people’s freedom of movement and advance a totalitarian agenda. (Yes, really.) Scheduled for Senate Transportation & Technology Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
SCR1035, sponsored by JD Mesnard (R-13), would ask voters to mandate that, if Arizona has a budget surplus in any given year, the state automatically cut income tax rates by 50% for the following year. Arizona has just begun to dig itself out of the Great Recession, which left us with a state government that’s underfunded in nearly every area and still struggles to provide the most basic of services. Meanwhile, Arizona still gives away more money every year in tax cuts, credits and carve-outs than it spends in its budget. The budget surplus isn’t evidence that we’re collecting too much revenue; it’s evidence of lawmakers’ systemic unwillingness to invest in our state and its people. Scheduled for Senate Finance Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
HB2284, sponsored by David Livingston (R-28), would create state-funded “tent cities” for individuals experiencing homelessness, and bans unhoused people from camping or storing property outside those areas. It would also ban “unauthorized sleeping” on state land, even as rising rents are pushing more people toward that option. Arizona has one of the worst homelessness crises in the nation. This would segregate and criminalize people without addressing the root causes, “a vicious mix of inflation, stagnant wages, limited housing, and skyrocketing rent.” Why not invest in the Housing Trust Fund (HB2256) or prioritize another, better option? Scheduled for House Health & Human Services Committee, Monday; held on 2/6. OPPOSE.
HB2309, sponsored by Rachel Jones (R-17), would ban Arizona and all its counties and cities from complying with US law if it’s inconsistent with Arizona law regarding the authority of state and local law enforcement agencies. Perhaps some legislators need pocket copies of the US Constitution? Article VI, Paragraph 2, known as the “supremacy clause,” states that the federal constitution and laws take precedence over state ones — not the other way around. Scheduled for House Military Affairs & Public Safety, Monday. OPPOSE.
HB2316, sponsored by Rachel Jones (R-17), is an alarmingly broad anti-science bill that would make it a "discriminatory practice" for anyone in the state to withhold employment, facilities, "advantages or privileges" from an unvaccinated person. It also bans vaccine requirements for schools and child care. Scheduled for House Health & Human Services Committee, Monday; held on 2/6. OPPOSE.
HB2756, sponsored by David Marshall (R-7), would penalize cities and counties if they didn’t spend “enough” on law enforcement. It would deduct state funds from local governments that violate the measure, and redistribute those funds to other cities and counties. This fear-based bill is designed to hamstring efforts to redistribute law enforcement money to address the root causes of crime and poverty, such as education, health care, mental health programs and homeless services. The same bill was also introduced last year. Scheduled for House Military Affairs & Public Safety Committee, Monday. OPPOSE.
Tuesday
SB1114, sponsored by Wendy Rogers (R-7), would appropriate $3.64 million to the existing hyperbaric oxygen therapy fund for military veterans, currently comprised of private donations and grants. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is mostly used to treat decompression sickness from scuba diving, but can also be used for serious infections, making it likely this is an attempt at state funding for fraudulent COVID treatment. Last year, lawmakers wrapped an identical bill into the state budget; Ducey used his first line-item veto on it, citing a "lack of public support" (hi, that’s us). Scheduled for Senate Appropriations Committee, Tuesday. OPPOSE.
SB1366, sponsored by Wendy Rogers (R-7), is subject to a striker that mandates medical personnel to inform women seeking abortions that health benefits may be available to her if she chooses to stay pregnant, that the father of the unborn child is required to provide child support, and that assistance and adoption services are available. They must offer her a list of alternatives to abortion, and tell her that “coercing a woman to undergo an abortion is unlawful.” Bills like this serve no medical purpose, but instead are “fetal personhood” Trojan horses that seek to dissuade people from exercising bodily autonomy. Scheduled for Senate Health & Human Services Committee, Tuesday. OPPOSE.
SB1600, sponsored by Janae Shamp (R-29), would broaden a controversial anti-abortion bill from 2017 that requires clinics, hospitals and physicians to “care for a baby delivered alive.” Physicians and parents opposed the 2017 bill for forcing unnecessary procedures on babies with no chance of survival instead of allowing these babies to die in the arms of their parents. The bill removes compromise language inserted to help the bill pass and inserts language related to the concept of fetal personhood. Any violation would be a felony and result in the loss of the medical professional’s license. Scheduled for Senate Health & Human Services Committee, Tuesday. OPPOSE.
SCR1025, sponsored by Justine Wadsack (R-17), would ask voters to insert the “parents bill of rights” into the state Constitution. This concept, pushed by the extremist Center for Arizona Policy, is often wielded as a far-right political bludgeon against schools, health care organizations and children’s advocacy groups. The measure could give extra weight to frivolous lawsuits, and would be very hard to get rid of once it was entrenched in the Constitution. Scheduled for Senate Health & Human Services Committee, Tuesday. OPPOSE.
SCR1034, sponsored by JD Mesnard (R-13), would ask voters to amend the state Constitution to automatically extend the previous year’s state budget if lawmakers don’t pass one in time. This would avoid the threat of a government shutdown if lawmakers couldn’t compromise in time, but would also remove the only real motivation for them to work together and do so. In past years, lawmakers have finished nearly every budget with days or even hours to spare before the start of the next fiscal year. Similar bill HCR2038, sponsored by David Livingston (R-28), is also in committee this week. Scheduled for Senate Appropriations Committee, Tuesday. OPPOSE.
HB2108, sponsored by David Livingston (R-28), would force unemployment recipients to submit documentation of at least 5 work search actions each week. If someone refuses a “suitable” job offer or fails to appear for a scheduled interview, the prospective employer would be required to report them to DES. The punitive bill leaves no room for correcting misinformation, instead carrying automatic criminal penalties. At a weekly maximum of just $320, Arizona ranks in the bottom 5 nationally for unemployment benefits. Currently people must lose their job through no fault of their own or a compelling personal reason in order to be eligible for unemployment. Scheduled for House Commerce Committee, Tuesday. OPPOSE.
HB2533, sponsored by John Gillette (R-30), is a rehash of a bill from last year that would require public schools to post a list of every single item teachers use or discuss with students. The burden this places on already overworked, underpaid Arizona teachers cannot be overstated. Private schools and microschools are exempt. Backed by the Goldwater Institute, and similar to legislation proposed in at least 17 other states. Scheduled for House Education Committee, Tuesday. OPPOSE.
HB2539, sponsored by Beverly Pingerelli (R-28), would force the State Board of Education to implement a “public awareness program” to prop up school choice in Arizona, including free publicity for taxpayer-funded ESA vouchers. If someone moves to Arizona and registers a car here, the information would be delivered to them along with their registration. The bill would spend $600,000 and create four full-time positions to handle this work. Scheduled for House Education Committee, Tuesday. OPPOSE.
HB2634, sponsored by Flavio Bravo (D-26), would allow buyers and sellers of real estate to donate to the Housing Trust Fund. The fund provided $10 to $20 million a year for housing for people experiencing homelessness before lawmakers diverted the money to the state's general fund during the Great Recession. (Lawmakers reinstituted it last year.) Arizona desperately needs more affordable housing; metro Phoenix ranks in the top 10 nationwide for the most severe shortages. Housing analysts have been asking for more investment in the fund for years. Scheduled for House Commerce Committee, Tuesday. SUPPORT.
HB2748, sponsored by Laura Terech (D-4), would ban district and charter schools from imposing suspension as a penalty for a student's unexcused absence or absences. It is insensible to force a kid out of school for missing school. Unlike other bills on the same subject, this leaves schools free to deal with the situation in other ways. Scheduled for House Education Committee, Tuesday. SUPPORT.
HB2786, sponsored by Justin Heap (R-10), would require school boards to notify parents of recommended or funded "training opportunities" for teachers or school administrators. The new Horne administration believes that social-emotional learning, diversity and equity are Trojan horses for "critical race theory," and has canceled planned teacher presentations on these and other "non-academic" subjects, even though they deeply affect kids' lives and ability to learn. This bill is deeply disappointing; students are not political footballs. Scheduled for House Education Committee, Tuesday. OPPOSE.
HCR2043, sponsored by Matt Gress (R-4), would ask voters to amend the Arizona Constitution to make the regulation of employee benefits, including wages, a statewide issue, and ban cities and towns from further regulating them. Legislators have been trying to penalize Flagstaff for years for setting a higher minimum wage than the state-mandated one. They imposed a $1.1 million fine for the city in the 2021 budget, which a judge blocked from taking effect. Lawmakers also introduced this bill last year. Scheduled for House Commerce Committee, Tuesday. OPPOSE.
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Wednesday
SB1030, sponsored by Anthony Kern (R-27), would mandate that counties change their zoning laws to define business that hold “drag shows” as adult-oriented, and would also ban the beloved Sunday drag brunch. The goal seems to be to mislead the public, intimidate LGBTQ people by perpetuating false, offensive narratives, and marginalize or force out of business dozens of restaurants and bookstores statewide. An amendment would strike the word “drag” from the bill Scheduled for Senate Government Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SB1040, sponsored by John Kavanagh (R-3), would ban trans kids from using the school bathrooms, changing facilities and “sleeping quarters” that align with their gender identities. It would create a situation where trans kids couldn’t use any facilities at all without undue scrutiny of their bodies, calling that a "reasonable accommodation." Anyone who “encounters” a trans person in a bathroom could file suit against public schools. A copy of a bill introduced in South Dakota. A federal court found that these policies violate the US Constitution and Title IX, so in addition to being monstrously cruel, this would open Arizona to a host of lawsuits at taxpayer expense. Kavanagh also introduced the bill last year, but it did not receive a hearing. Scheduled for Senate Education Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SB1137, sponsored by Jake Hoffman (R-15), is a rehash of last year’s plan to strip the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors of their power by splitting up the county into four smaller counties. The proposal is artfully gerrymandered, packing Democrats into one county and leaving Republicans to control the other three. This would be a vast expansion of government, creating more than 160 new departments based on nothing more than frustration that county officials refuse to embrace baseless conspiracy theories about the 2020 election. Scheduled for Senate Government Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SB1145, sponsored by Jake Hoffman (R-15), would exempt students at Arizona’s three in-state universities from student activity fees if the student says the payment would “violate their conscience” or if the student meets any of a list of reasons for exemption, including objecting on religious or moral grounds, financial hardship, and part-time status. Universities already give fee waivers for financial hardship; this is intended to enshrine culture wars into statute. Scheduled for Senate Education Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SB1167, sponsored by Steve Kaiser (R-2), would tie length of unemployment relief to Arizona’s unemployment rate. This would disproportionately harm rural areas and people of color, who typically have higher rates of unemployment compared to the state average. Reducing weeks of assistance will force some people to accept jobs that do not match their skill sets and pay less than their prior earnings, which is bad for both workers and the economy. Scheduled for Senate Commerce Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SB1300, sponsored by Wendy Rogers (R-7), would prohibit universities and community colleges from banning anyone with a concealed weapons permit — not just students — from possessing, storing, transporting guns on campus. College campuses and guns are a deadly combination, increasing the risks of suicide, homicide and sexual assault. Even our founding fathers believed guns had no place on college campuses. Getting a concealed-weapons permit in Arizona is ridiculously easy. The same bill was also introduced last year. Duplicate bill HB2667, sponsored by Rachel Jones (R-17), is also in committee this week. Scheduled for Senate Military Affairs, Public Safety and Border Security Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SB1308, sponsored by David Gowan (R-19), would legalize “aerial device” consumer fireworks. This is one of the more dangerous types, as they can injure people some distance away from where they are launched. Arizona legalized small fireworks in 2009 after industry lobbyists assured lawmakers that anything that explodes or shoots into the air would stay illegal. Gowan works for TNT Fireworks, whose lobbyists write bills for him, and has been trying to pass this concept into law for years. Scheduled for Senate Commerce Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SB1385, sponsored by John Kavanagh (R-3), would require schools to include their rules and actions on school discipline in the list of educational performance indicators, and ties school discipline to school letter grades. Schools that don't create a "school discipline profile" would not be allowed to receive a school letter grade of A or B. In his inaugural address, new Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne repeated out-of-touch, authoritarian rhetoric and signaled a discipline initiative to force schools to "keep orderly classrooms." Letter grades, and learning in general, should not be conflated with school discipline. Punitive measures like these are not what kids need to help them thrive. Scheduled for Senate Education Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SB1410, sponsored by Justine Wadsack (R-17), would extend so-called “1487 complaints” to school boards. Passed in 2016, SB1487 allows any state lawmaker to order the Attorney General to investigate whether a city is violating state law. GOP lawmakers have traditionally used 1487 complaints to block cities from enacting policies they disagree with. The same bill was also introduced last year. Scheduled for Senate Education Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SB1500, sponsored by Frank Carroll (R-28), would require state retirement funds to evaluate their investments solely based on finances. Similar to other bills this session that crusade against “pro-abortion, pro-sex-ed” banks. This culture war against an imaginary problem could create real consequences for those who depend on Arizona’s retirement system. An ill-considered blanket mandate such as this could leave half a million teachers, municipal workers and other government employees with retirement accounts that are unable to invest in most major companies, and may create a minefield for investors and pension fund managers. Scheduled for Senate Government Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SB1501, sponsored by Frank Carroll (R-28), would ban public utility companies like APS, SRP and TEP from using their revenues to build or operate EV charging stations. Government involvement in new or emerging markets, like the EV charging network, is far more common (and economically rational) than government involvement in mature markets, like gas stations. We cannot expect the private market alone to quickly create a robust charging network. The bill may also preempt the Corporation Commission’s authority. Scheduled for Senate Commerce Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SB1506, sponsored by Anna Hernandez (D-24), would ban landlords from discriminating against renters who receive government assistance. Fewer landlords are accepting housing vouchers or leasing to tenants on Social Security in Arizona, and a growing number of those people are becoming homeless. Former Attorney General Brnovich struck down a similar ordinance in Tucson several months ago after now-Speaker Ben Toma (R-27), who is also a real estate agent, requested state review. Scheduled for Senate Commerce Committee, Wednesday. SUPPORT.
SB1569, sponsored by Raquel Terán (D-26), would create a 19-member study committee on Statewide Eviction Prevention and Housing Affordability. Many positive pieces of legislation addressing serious issues are born from study committees. Scheduled for Senate Commerce Committee, Wednesday. SUPPORT.
SB1611, sponsored by Anthony Kern (R-27), would ban government from contracting with any company unless the contract specifies the company will not "discriminate" based on political affiliation or social or environmental values. Similar to a failed bill from last year and several other bills in motion this session. One recent study says such efforts could cost Arizona millions. Scheduled for Senate Government Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SB1657, sponsored by Ken Bennett (R-1), would reinstate statewide testing to graduate from high school. In 2015, when Republican lawmakers overwhelmingly chose to repeal the requirement, they stated that "the test has no meaning behind it" and that "placing all the responsibility and stress on individual students for the success of our educational system is unfair." Other states that have repealed their high-stakes test requirements caution against conflating a measure of learning with “a meaningless hoop to jump through.” This bill contains no exceptions for students with many forms of special needs who struggle to pass standardized tests. Scheduled for Senate Education Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SB1674, sponsored by Mitzi Epstein (D-12), would require the state Auditor General to complete a cost study of Arizona online instruction. Online schools have a checkered record of poor academic outcomes, low graduation rates, taxpayer waste and massive profit. A cost study is the first step at making sure students are learning and taxpayer dollars are properly spent. Scheduled for Senate Education Committee, Wednesday. SUPPORT.
SB1675, sponsored by Mitzi Epstein (D-12), would require public district and charter schools that serve students in grades 6-12 to make menstrual hygiene products available free of charge in all women's and gender-neutral restrooms in the school. Appropriates $1 million. For middle and high school girls, these products are a need, and always in short supply. Many teachers pay for them out of their own pockets. A step toward providing a healthy, dependable environment that supports student learning. Scheduled for Senate Education Committee, Wednesday. SUPPORT.
SB1694, sponsored by Jake Hoffman (R-15), would ban the state, including public schools, from requiring "diversity, equity, and inclusion programs" for its employees, spending public funds on such programs, or setting policies to influence the composition of its workforce on the basis of race, sex, or color. Any employee required to participate would be authorized to sue. Diversity, equity and inclusion is a philosophy designed to harness the differences, talents and unique qualities of all individuals. When did living in a country that looks like the world, and intentionally making space for all different kinds of people, become a bad thing? Scheduled for Senate Government Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SB1695, sponsored by Jake Hoffman (R-15), would ban Maricopa and Pima county supervisors from certifying election results if “election laws were violated and the violations resulted in the disenfranchisement of at least 1% of the eligible voters in the county.” An amendment to the bill defines this as having to wait more than 90 minutes to vote (which would happen for every election under one-day-only, in-person voting) or a break in ballot chain of custody, which would happen with the many onsite tabulation bills being proposed this session. In such cases, the county would be forced to hold a new election, and any county supervisor who opposed would lose their seat. This is driven by ridiculous conspiracy theories (and anger at county supervisors who refuse to buy in) and causing real damage to our democracy. Scheduled for Senate Government Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SB1696, sponsored by Jake Hoffman (R-15), would double down on a bill passed last year by banning district and charter schools from exposing minors to "sexually explicit materials." The incredibly broad description includes text, audio and video that references sexual contact, sexual excitement, and even physical contact with a person's clothed or unclothed buttocks. This would ban many classic works of literature, from Shakespeare to Maya Angelou. Violations would be a class 5 felony. Scheduled for Senate Government Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SB1700, sponsored by Justine Wadsack (R-17), would double down on last year's measures to ban many books from schools and institute public review of such books. Any parent would be allowed to ask a school to remove a book, the Department of Education would be required to maintain a list of banned books, and public schools would have to publish a list for 4 months before giving books to students. The bill takes aim at "gender fluidity" and "gender pronouns," and would write an inaccurate, weaponized definition of "grooming" into statute. Attempts to ban books in schools are on the rise nationwide, with a focus on local school boards. This horrifying bill not only harms the fight against child sexual abuse, but our children's ability to learn. Many of the targeted books reflect realities kids across Arizona are living; choosing to pull reality out of libraries won't create good citizens. Scheduled for Senate Education Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SB1705, sponsored by Justine Wadsack (R-17), would ban the Attorney General from participating in “any activity that may be considered contrary to the legal and civil rights of the people.” Scheduled for Senate Government Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SB1706, sponsored by Christine Marsh (D-4), creates reporting that requires the ADE to release more information about who is using ESA vouchers and how taxpayer funds are being spent. A small, positive step toward more transparency and accountability for a program that diverts $600 million in taxpayer dollars yearly to private pockets with zero accountability or regulation. Scheduled for Senate Education Committee, Wednesday. SUPPORT.
SCR1023, sponsored by Justine Wadsack (R-17), would ask voters to amend the state Constitution to repeal charter cities in Arizona. Currently larger cities can adopt a charter, which then supersedes any state law that conflicts with purely municipal affairs. State lawmakers have long hated charter cities, passing numerous laws that preempt city regulations on elections, firearms, immigration, smoking, plastic bag use, puppy mills, sugary drinks, water distribution, regulation of dark money, and so much more. Scheduled for Senate Government Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SCR1024, sponsored by Justine Wadsack (R-17), would ask voters to restrict Arizona’s initiative and referendum process by requiring ballot measures to collect signatures from a percentage of voters in each of Arizona’s 30 legislative districts: 10% for initiatives and 15% for a constitutional amendment. This anti-democracy measure would effectively give any single district veto powers over the rest, and would almost certainly end citizen initiatives in Arizona. Nearly identical measures have been proposed in at least four other sessions, including last year, but have never passed. See duplicate bills HCR2041, sponsored by David Marshall (R-7), also in committee this week, and SCR1015, sponsored by JD Mesnard (R-13). Scheduled for Senate Government Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
SCR1036, sponsored by Justine Wadsack (R-17), would ask voters to amend the state Constitution to make municipal elections, like mayors and city councils, partisan. Local government officials are not fixing Republican or Democratic potholes. They should spend their time on local issues, not partisanship. An amendment would also ban ranked-choice voting. Scheduled for Senate Government Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HB2014, sponsored by David Livingston (R-28), would quadruple over 3 years the amount Arizona spends on a specific type of STO (School Tuition Organization) voucher. STO vouchers, which topped $1 billion back in 2017, are paid for by dollar-for-dollar tax credits that siphon funds from the state coffers that fund public schools. Arizona capped STO voucher growth in 2019 due to bipartisan agreement that the exponential increases were harmful. While similar to a bill from 2 years ago, this bill also blurs the lines between ESA and STO voucher funding. Arizona’s ESA voucher program ballooned by 400% this year, with the vast majority of funding going to families who have never sent their children to public school. Scheduled for House Ways & Means Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HB2047, sponsored by Selina Bliss (R-1), would allow cities with a population of under 17,000 people to limit the number of vacation rentals based on total residential zoning, and to regulate them the same as they would hotels. This would allow cities like Sedona to manage their out-of-control AirBnB problem. Sedona banned short-term rentals in 1995, but lawmakers preempted that ban in 2017. Housing availability has since gotten so bad in Sedona that city officials are now offering up to $10,000 to short-term rental owners who lease to locals instead. Scheduled for House Government Committee, Wednesday. SUPPORT.
HB2059, sponsored by Lupe Diaz (R-19), would create the crimes of “mob intimidation” and “aggravated riot” in an attempt to stifle public protest. The bill is patterned loosely after a controversial 2021 attempt to create a new felony offense, "violent or disorderly assembly," with tougher penalties. This year’s attempt also creates new penalties for cities and their employees that do not “respond appropriately to protect persons and property,” and makes it a felony to desecrate a monument or even a park bench. Scheduled for House Judiciary Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HB2075, sponsored by Laura Terech (D-4), would exempt school blueprints from public records laws. This would make it more difficult for bad actors to plan attacks on students. In some states, like Massachusetts and Michigan, it’s already the law. Scheduled for House Government Committee, Wednesday. SUPPORT.
HB2213, sponsored by Gail Griffin (R-19), would ban sales tax on the sales of gas and electricity to residential customers. This tax break would cost over $200 million a year. Scheduled for House Government Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HB2094, sponsored by Kevin Payne (R-21), is subject to a striker that would relax regulations on food trucks. Payne, who owns a food truck, sponsored the same bill in 2019, which did not pass. Scheduled for House Regulatory Affairs Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HB2232, sponsored by Liz Harris (R-13), is a wide-ranging elections bill that would (among other things): ban most early and absentee voting, mandate voters to show ID before voting (in defiance of Prop 309, which voters just rejected in November), institute holograms and numbering for paper ballots, and mandate the hand counting of all ballots within 24 hours of an election. Too bonkers to go into. Scheduled for House Municipal Oversight & Elections Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HB2411, sponsored by David Cook (R-7), would punish the Scottsdale mayor and city council for refusing to sell water to roughly 500 residents of Rio Verde Foothills, a high-priced unincorporated area near Scottsdale. The bill mandates that the city either resume sales or assume liability for any fire damage, health problems or attorney fees in Rio Verde, along with seeing the mayor’s and city council’s own personal water services cut off. For years, Scottsdale sold water to private haulers to truck to extravagant homes without city services or working wells. Due to the extreme drought, in 2021, Scottsdale notified Rio Verde that they would begin restricting water sales only to homes within city limits. This bill is a punitive measure that lacks any actual solution to larger water issues. Scheduled for House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HB2447, sponsored by Teresa Martinez (R-16), would allow out-of-state residents to buy a vehicle tax-free as long as they first purchase a “special ten-day nonresident registration permit.” The cost on this is highly speculative, but could be around $2.6 million per year. Why should those who can afford to fly here to buy a car get to do so tax-free? Scheduled for House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HB2544, sponsored by Lupe Diaz (R-19), would exempt firearms or ammo that are "modified" in Arizona from federal regulation. These “modifications” could be cosmetic or functional, making this a giant loophole to exempt guns from safety provisions. Scheduled for House Judiciary Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HB2552, sponsored by Austin Smith (R-29), would ban the use of ranked choice voting in Arizona. Ranked choice voting, similar to an automatic runoff, would open up partisan primaries to all voters regardless of party registration, and tends to result in more centrist, less polarized victors. See duplicate measure SB1265, sponsored by Anthony Kern (R-27). Scheduled for House Municipal Oversight & Elections Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HB2586, sponsored by Neal Carter (R-15), would ban the Arizona Department of Transportation from displaying anything other than highway or AMBER alerts on the dynamic message signs over our freeways. Doubtless prompted by residual MAGA angst over 2020’s “social distancing, wash hands” messages. Scheduled for House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HB2591, sponsored by Gail Griffin (R-19), would mandate that ballot drop boxes must be located inside a county building or secured to a building or footing. This institutes more roadblocks to voting, such as precluding people from dropping off their ballots at their local polling place on Election Day. Scheduled for House Municipal Oversight & Elections Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HB2613, sponsored by Steve Montenegro (R-29), would ban all electronic voting equipment from primary use unless it meets Department of Defense cybersecurity standards, all pieces of it are made in the US, and the auditor general is given copies of the source codes. Inspired by a baseless conspiracy theory about (get this) vote-flipping supercomputers. A coalition of federal cybersecurity and election officials have called the 2020 presidential election the “most secure in American history.” See duplicate bill SB1074, sponsored by Sonny Borrelli (R-30). Scheduled for House Municipal Oversight & Elections Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HB2630, sponsored by Kevin Payne (R-27), appears to be legislation pushed by the tobacco industry that would block cities, towns and counties from regulating the sale of their products. This would override virtually every local regulation now in existence, ranging from how far tobacco shops have to be from schools to enhanced penalties for retailers who sell to anyone who is underage. Longtime readers of the Weekly will remember this issue from 2019. Scheduled for House Regulatory Affairs Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HB2667, sponsored by Rachel Jones (R-17), is a duplicate of a bill from last year that would prohibit universities and community colleges from banning anyone with a concealed weapons permit — not just students — from possessing, storing, or transporting guns on campus. College campuses and guns are a deadly combination, increasing the risks of suicide, homicide and sexual assault. Even our founding fathers believed guns had no place on college campuses. Getting a concealed-weapons permit in Arizona is ridiculously easy. Duplicate bill SB1300, sponsored by Wendy Rogers (R-7), is also in committee this week. Scheduled for House Judiciary Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HB2722, sponsored by Gail Griffin (R-19), would allow county elections officials to hand count all of the ballots for any election. In November, the courts blocked Cochise County (the sponsor’s home county) from hand-counting all midterm ballots. Elections advocates testified that such a move would put ballot security at risk, create counting errors, and damage voter confidence, ushering in a cascading series of events that would seriously undermine election integrity. Cochise County’s elections director has since resigned, citing a physically and emotionally threatening work environment. Scheduled for House Municipal Oversight & Elections Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HB2757, sponsored by Ben Toma (R-27), would expand retention elections for appeals court judges to be statewide, rather than countywide. This is a transparent attempt to keep appellate judges from being unseated by allowing people to vote out of district for judges who don't represent them, diluting the votes. Appellate judges represent certain areas, and they're chosen that way. It's not representative democracy if people in Yuma are voting for someone who represents Flagstaff. CEBV Gavel Watch unseated 3 judges in November 2022. Scheduled for House Judiciary Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HB2785, sponsored by Liz Harris (R-13), would eliminate early voting by mail in Arizona, all-mail elections, and Arizona’s active early voting list. Early voting would become vastly complicated, with notarized affidavits, and would have to be done on-site; each county would be permitted one early voting location. Scheduled for House Municipal Oversight & Elections Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HCR2016, sponsored by David Cook (R-7), would request a constitutional convention to create term limits. Governing, like any other profession, requires experience in order to be effective. Instituting term limits ensures that lobbyists and staff will possess the bulk of the expertise. It turns legislators into perpetual newbies while others pull their strings behind the scenes. Opponents (including deceased Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia) argue there is no way to limit a convention to the stated intent. Just as the 1787 convention went far beyond its stated purposes, we could end up with a whole new form of government. This is at least the 6th consecutive year this proposal has been introduced. Duplicate bill SCR1016, sponsored by JD Mesnard (R-13), is also in committee this week. Scheduled for House Government Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HCR2020, sponsored by Alexander Kolodin (R-3), is subject to a striker that would ask voters to amend the state Constitution to ban ranked choice voting in Arizona. Ranked choice voting, similar to an automatic runoff, would open up partisan primaries to all voters regardless of party registration, and tends to result in more centrist, less polarized victors. Scheduled for House Municipal Oversight & Elections Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HCR2033, sponsored by Austin Smith (R-29), would ask voters to enshrine our current direct primary system into the state Constitution. This would make it extremely difficult to ever institute meaningful reforms such as ranked-choice or top-two primary voting. If passed by both the House and Senate, this resolution would go directly to voters, without Gov. Hobbs having the chance to veto. Scheduled for House Municipal Oversight & Elections Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HCR2038, sponsored by David Livingston (R-28), would ask voters to amend the state Constitution to automatically extend the previous year’s state budget if lawmakers don’t pass one in time. This would remove the only real motivation for lawmakers to work together and avoid shutting down our state. In recent years, lawmakers have finished nearly every budget with days or even hours to spare before the start of the next fiscal year. Similar bill SCR1034, sponsored by JD Mesnard (R-13), is also in committee this week. Scheduled for House Appropriations Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HCR2040, sponsored by Rachel Jones (R-17), would ask voters to eliminate early voting and make absentee voting vastly harder. Because this goes to the voters, Gov. Hobbs can’t veto it. Scheduled for House Municipal Oversight & Elections Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
HCR2041, sponsored by David Marshall (R-7), would ask voters to restrict Arizona’s initiative and referendum process by requiring ballot measures to collect signatures from a percentage of voters in each of Arizona’s 30 legislative districts: 10% for initiatives and 15% for a constitutional amendment. This anti-democracy measure would effectively give any single district veto powers over the rest, and would almost certainly end citizen initiatives in Arizona. Nearly identical measures have been proposed in at least four other sessions, including last year, but have never passed. See duplicate bills SCR1015, sponsored by JD Mesnard (R-13), and SCR1024, sponsored by Justine Wadsack (R-17). Scheduled for House Municipal Oversight & Elections Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.
Thursday
SB1160, sponsored by Christine Marsh (D-4), would keep someone who seeks medical help for another person experiencing a drug-related overdose from being arrested for possession or use of drugs. Research shows the most common reason people don't seek medical help in these situations is fear of arrest, and also that most overdoses are witnessed. Immunizing witnesses from prosecution will reduce this fear and save lives. Scheduled for Senate Judiciary Committee, Thursday. SUPPORT.
SB1323, sponsored by Jake Hoffman (R-15), would make it a felony for any public school employee (but not an employee at an ESA-funded private school) to violate last year’s prohibition on referring students to or using any “sexually explicit” material. This has already essentially frozen the teaching of books like “The Color Purple,” “The Canterbury Tales” and “Atlas Shrugged,” preventing Arizona's students from getting a well-rounded education. State law already makes it a felony to show pornography to children. Scheduled for Senate Judiciary Committee, Thursday. OPPOSE.
SB1413, sponsored by Justine Wadsack (R-17), would require cities and counties to immediately remove any "homeless encampment" and throw away all materials found there. Homeless people on private property would be charged with trespassing. The bill does not include solutions for housing or shelter. The definition of “homeless encampment” is so broadly written as to criminalize recreational camping. In addition to being blatantly cruel, this bill criminalizes homelessness and has constitutionality issues. Scheduled for Senate Judiciary Committee, Thursday. OPPOSE.
“The law, in its majestic equality, forbids rich and poor alike to sleep under bridges, to beg in the streets, and to steal loaves of bread.” — Anatole France
SB1433, sponsored by Justine Wadsack (R-17), would mandate any employer who requires a person be vaccinated for COVID be liable for damages that result from a “significant injury” caused by receiving the vaccine, with a minimum penalty of $1 million. The COVID vaccine is proven to be safe and effective. Scheduled for Senate Judiciary Committee, Thursday. OPPOSE.
SB1698, sponsored by Justine Wadsack (R-17), adds drag shows to a state law about "dangerous crimes against children." The bill equates a drag show with an “adult-oriented performance” and makes it a crime on par with bestiality, child sex trafficking, second-degree murder, and sexual assault. A viewing of “Mulan” or “Hairspray” could result in a class 4 felony, punishable by up to 15 years in prison, and a requirement that the violator register as a sex offender. One columnist calls the bill “flat-out bonkers.” Scheduled for Senate Judiciary Committee, Thursday. OPPOSE.
SCR1016, sponsored by JD Mesnard (R-13), would request a constitutional convention to create term limits. Governing, like any other profession, requires experience in order to be effective. Instituting term limits ensures that lobbyists and staff will possess the bulk of the expertise. It turns legislators into perpetual newbies while others pull their strings behind the scenes. Opponents (including deceased Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia) argue there is no way to limit a convention to the stated intent. Just as the 1787 convention went far beyond its stated purposes, we could end up with a whole new form of government. This is at least the 6th consecutive year this proposal has been introduced. Duplicate bill HCR2016, sponsored by David Cook (R-7), is also in committee this week. Scheduled for Senate Judiciary Committee, Thursday. OPPOSE.
SCR1038, sponsored by Anthony Kern (R-27), would establish a process for a statewide special election to elect delegates to an Article V convention to amend the US Constitution. The prospect of an Article V convention targeting the Constitution itself is terrifying. Opponents (including deceased Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia) argue there is no way to limit a convention to the stated intent. Just as the 1787 convention went far beyond its stated purposes, we could end up with a whole new form of government. Scheduled for Senate Judiciary Committee, Thursday. OPPOSE.
2023 Session Timeline
Friday, 2/17 Last day for a bill to get out of committees in its originating house Monday, 2/20 Crossover Week begins (most committee hearings are suspended) Friday, 3/24 Last day for a bill to get out of committees in its crossover house Saturday, 4/22 100th Day of Session (the stated end goal; can be changed)
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Congratulations on making it to the end! Teddy has a dance to show you. Volume on 🕺🏻🎵
