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Resolution would make passing constitutional amendments more difficult
A GOP lawmaker wants voters to amend the Arizona Constitution to make it harder for voters in the Grand Canyon State to ever amend the Constitution again, an idea that critics say would erode Arizonans’ rights to direct democracy. The resolution would ask voters to increase the approval rate needed to pass constitutional amendments to […]
Parents of teen killed in accidental shooting hope ‘Christian’s Law’ will save lives
The lives of Bruce and Claire Petillo were forever changed on Sept. 5, 2021, when their teenage son went to spend the night with a friend and never returned after being killed in an accidental shooting. Christian, according to his mother, was impetuous, fun loving and good at every sport he tried, much to the […]
Bipartisan bill aims to use ‘magic mushrooms’ to help veterans
Arizona veterans struggling with their mental health want new solutions, and Dr. Sue Sisely believes that psilocybin, the psychedelic ingredient in “magic mushrooms,” could be the answer. But so far the only controlled trials on psilocybin to treat medical conditions have used a synthetic, one-molecule version of the substance, which is vastly different from a […]
Dems propose rent control bills amid ongoing housing crisis
Democratic lawmakers in the Arizona House of Representatives are looking to pass a suite of housing bills that aim to help renters weather the ongoing housing crisis, but their proposals have detractors in the state’s powerful landlord lobby. Four bills proposed by Rep. Analisa Ortiz and another by Rep. Judy Schwiebert would get rid of […]
Hobbs’ budget would repeal the school voucher expansion, scrap the Border Strike Force
Gov. Katie Hobbs’ budget proposal includes $17.1 billion in total spending for the 2024 fiscal year, including an end to last year’s expansion of the universal school vouchers, removing around 40,000 students from the program. The budget includes $273.7 million in new funding for education, with a total education budget of $9 billion, which includes […]
Republicans announce piecemeal plan to pass a state budget
Republicans in the Arizona legislature want to deal with the state budget, the passage of which is arguably the legislature’s most important annual task, in an unorthodox fashion this year. GOP leaders in both the state House of Representatives and Senate announced Thursday a plan to focus first on a spending plan that continues funding […]
Tom Horne focused on test scores and discipline, says ‘race is irrelevant’ in American life
Republican Tom Horne says he intends to work across the aisle to improve education in Arizona, but his views on discipline, social emotional learning and racial issues in schools are so far to the right that finding a middle ground with Democratic lawmakers and Gov. Katie Hobbs will prove challenging, if not impossible. With a […]
As Hobbs called for collaboration, some Republicans literally turned their backs
Gov. Katie Hobbs called for collaboration between Republicans and Democratic lawmakers during her first state of the state speech Monday, but the challenges facing her new administration were on full display, as some Republicans turned their backs on her and others walked out of the room to show how they felt about her policy plans. […]
Arizona’s new political reality: A split government
For nearly 14 years, Republicans have controlled the most important levers of power at the state Capitol, allowing them to increasingly become more insular in their governance and oftentimes cut Democrats out of the process entirely. That ends on Monday, when the GOP-majority 56th Legislature convenes and its 90 members take their oath of office. […]
Katie Hobbs pledges unity, Dems call for bipartisan collaboration as they assume power
On a chilly, cloud-covered Thursday morning at the Arizona Capitol, hundreds of wellwishers and spectators gathered to watch the ceremonial swearing in of the state’s newly elected top officials, including Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs. The theme of the morning, at least for several of the speakers and incoming Democratic officials, was a commitment to leaving […]
Kari Lake wants the Arizona Supreme Court to order a new election
Kari Lake still wants a “redo” of the governor’s race that she lost by more than 17,000 votes, even after Katie Hobbs was sworn in as governor Monday. Lake has called for the Arizona Court of Appeals or the Arizona Supreme Court to throw out the results of the governor’s race and for a new […]
Kris Mayes defeats Abe Hamadeh in attorney general race after recount
Democrat Kris Mayes was confirmed as Arizona’s next attorney general after the results of a recount in the race were announced Thursday morning, though her margin of victory over Republican opponent Abe Hamadeh was cut nearly in half. When initial election results were released, Mayes had a narrow 511-vote lead over Hamadeh, but after the […]