CEBV Weekly: June 12, 2023
Time to kill some zombies.
On Monday, our lawmakers wrap up their fourth (!) extended recess and head back to the Capitol. Unfortunately, most of the bills that remain for consideration are "problem children" — also known as “zombies,” or the ones we’ve killed before.
Many of these are bills that struggled early in session, bills that needed amendments and negotiation just to garner enough support to advance, ideas partially stripped from larger failed proposals in an attempt to piecemeal them through, even outright “zombies” that have already failed at least one floor vote and are being brought up on reconsideration. Most of the other bills have already made it through the legislative process. This is what’s left. And the latest news has them adjourning for another extended recess, then coming back in August. August!
Enough is enough. We encourage the legislature to put down the stubborn sauce, finish the handful of legitimate issues still in front of them (Prop 400, Rio Verde), and go the heck home.
⏰ If you have 10 minutes: Call your own senator and Sen. Ken Bennett (R-1) to oppose HCR2039 (see Spotlight below).
⏰⏰ If you have 20 minutes: Call your own representatives to oppose SCR1015, which would ask voters to amend the state Constitution to restrict Arizona’s initiative and referendum process (and can’t be vetoed).
⏰⏰⏰ If you have 30 minutes: Call your own senator and representatives to oppose one or more of the other Bills on the Floor below.
⏰⏰⏰⏰ Will session ever end? Sign up for our Legislative Session Wrap-Up on June 25 (HERE) or June 29 (HERE). As always, dates are subject to change.
⏰⏰⏰⏰⏰ This weekend: No Happy Hour today. The Legislature reconvenes this Monday, so watch your email. We’ll catch up with a Happy Hour on Sunday, June 18 if needed.
Remember HCR2039? Last month, we made hundreds of calls to Ken Bennett and stopped this harmful bill in its tracks. It would force the legislature to reauthorize all of Arizona’s emergency declarations every month (even when out of session), putting federal relief funding in jeopardy. Unfortunately, it’s now back on a floor calendar for Monday, indicating a behind-the-scenes deal may have been reached.
Because it would head directly to the November 2024 ballot, Gov. Hobbs can’t veto this bill. That means it’s time for us to make calls again. Contact key senator Ken Bennett (kbennett@azleg.gov / 602-926-5874), plus your own senator, and ask them to oppose this bill.
These bills are scheduled for a floor vote on Monday. We don’t yet have information for the rest of the week; that will become available here as the week goes on. Contact your senator (for House bills) or representatives (for Senate bills) directly on bills you care about.
SB1138, sponsored by Jake Hoffman (R-15), would ban banks that do business in Arizona from "discriminating" based on political affiliation or social or environmental values. If the measure passes, most banks would not be able to work with any Arizona counties. Fourteen of Arizona's 15 county treasurers (10 of whom are Republicans) oppose the bill; as the Coconino County treasurer says, “How are teachers going to get payroll if I don’t have a bank I can work with?” Such efforts could cost Arizona millions. OPPOSE.
SB1139, sponsored by Jake Hoffman (R-15), would require state retirement funds to evaluate their investments solely based on finances, in a crusade against “woke” banks. This culture war against an imaginary problem carries real consequences for those who depend on Arizona’s retirement system. An ill-considered blanket mandate could leave half a million teachers, firefighters and government employees with retirement accounts that are unable to invest in most major companies, creating a minefield for investors and pension fund managers. This bill failed a House floor vote on April 5 and is up on reconsideration. 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.” Universities already give fee waivers for financial hardship; this is intended to enshrine culture wars into statute. This bill failed a House floor vote on April 5 and is up on reconsideration. OPPOSE.
SB1559, sponsored by Steve Kaiser (R-2), would exempt from state taxes all of the profits for a corporation in its first year of business, half the profits in its second year, and a quarter in its third year. Arizona already gives away far more in tax loopholes and carve-outs than it spends in its state budget every year. Most corporations in Arizona pay only the minimum tax of $50. State revenues are forecast to crater over the next two years; this is no time to further cut taxes. OPPOSE.
SB1577, sponsored by JD Mesnard (R-13), would mandate automatic income tax cuts of 50% if Arizona has a budget surplus. Because Arizona requires a two-thirds supermajority vote for lawmakers to raise taxes, these cuts would effectively be permanent, creating huge issues when Arizona experiences its next recession and needs those revenues. Even now, Arizona gives away more money every year in tax cuts, credits and carve-outs than it spends in its budget. OPPOSE.
SB1167, sponsored by Steve Kaiser (R-2), would tie Arizona’s 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. The sponsor did not consult any economists when writing the bill. OPPOSE.
SCR1015, sponsored by JD Mesnard (R-13), would ask voters to amend the state Constitution to restrict Arizona’s initiative and referendum process. Ballot measures would have to collect signatures from a percentage of voters in each of Arizona’s 30 legislative districts: 10% for initiatives, 15% for a constitutional amendment. This would allow the most extreme area in the state to veto measures that have broad support. Motivated by majority lawmakers’ increasing frustration with voters passing initiatives lawmakers don’t like. OPPOSE.
HB2722, sponsored by Gail Griffin (R-19), would allow county elections officials to hand count all ballots for any election. In November, the courts blocked Cochise County, where the sponsor lives, 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. OPPOSE.
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, as part of the hunt for nonexistent "critical race theory" in public school. Up for a House final reading. OPPOSE.
HCR2039, sponsored by Joseph Chaplik (R-3), would ask voters to amend the state Constitution to require lawmakers to come back to work each month, including when the legislature is out of session, to approve emergency declarations. The bill appears to be driven by angst over former Gov. Ducey’s COVID state of emergency, which some Republicans believe was an overreach. Arizona currently has 41 open state disaster declarations, which in many cases must be in place before we can receive federal funding. Changing the law would hinge that funding “on us getting together every 30 days to argue over whether or not the drought is real.” OPPOSE.
Talking heads love to discuss Arizona’s divided government and the number of nonsense bills Katie Hobbs has had to veto. We’ll spare you the blah-blah and skip straight to the point: This legislature is profoundly unserious. They’re passing bills that range from comical to horrifying. And yes, there are more vetoes to come.
Vetoes: Monday, June 5
SB1146, Hoffman (R-15), requiring Arizona’s retirement system to divest from companies that “promote” abortion or “sexually explicit material” for minors — leaving half a million government employees unable to invest in most major companies
SB1201, Kavanagh (R-3), banning official electronic polling place signatures from being used to verify early ballots
SB1265, Kern (R-27), banning the use of ranked choice voting in Arizona
SB1413, Wadsack (R-17), requiring cities and counties to immediately destroy any "homeless encampment," throw away all possessions there, and charge homeless people on private property with trespassing
SB1696, Hoffman (R-15), jailing teachers for 2 years for so much as suggesting "sexually explicit materials" like Shakespeare and Maya Angelou
Vetoes: Thursday, June 8
SB1040, Kavanagh (R-3), banning trans kids from school bathrooms, changing rooms and “sleeping quarters” that align with their gender identities
SB1213, Kern (R-27), politicizing the Secretary of State’s official elections procedure manual by mandating approval from the Joint Legislative Audit Committee — a committee appointed by Republican legislative leaders that has stacked partisan membership
SB1243, Mesnard (R-13), bolstering profit for STO (School Tuition Organization) vouchers
SB1264, Mesnard (R-13), banning elections officers from forming a PAC, in a “sore loser” swat at Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer doing just that to back pro-democracy Republicans
SB1597, Mesnard (R-13), requiring Maricopa and Pima County elections officials to set up a voting location in each legislative district to tabulate early ballots on-site — but not funding the significant costs of that mandate
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