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Arizona school voucher program growth explodes to $900 million for the upcoming school year
Arizona’s universal school voucher program that was estimated to cost only $65 million is now poised to cost the state $900 million over the next year, exceeding its available funding by hundreds of millions of dollars. John Ward, chief auditor for the Arizona Department of Education, said Wednesday the skyrocketing price tag is due to […]
Hobbs issues 99th veto: Rejects election denialism, photo radar ban
Gov. Katie Hobbs on Friday issued five more vetoes, rejecting Republican-led bills that state officials warned would have undermined and overcomplicated elections in Arizona. With her five new vetoes, Hobbs has so far delivered 99 rejections in her first term as governor, the most of any of her predecessors. One of the vetoes, Senate Bill […]
Dem lawmaker faces formal reprimand for hiding Bibles as part of protest
A Democratic lawmaker videotaped hiding two Bibles for what she called a lighthearted protest of the state legislature’s violation of church and state is facing a formal censure from Republican colleagues. In April, Rep. Stephanie Stahl Hamilton, D-Tucson, was caught on video moving Bibles in the member’s lounge of the state House of Representatives, after […]
Arizona schools chief moves to defend sports ban for trans girls
Less than a dozen trans students in the entire state have asked to play on girl’s sports teams’ in the past decade, but Republican Superintendent Tom Horne said that girls across the state are facing unfair competition, which is why he is vehemently defending Arizona’s trans athlete ban. “Imagine if Dennis Rodman, who likes to […]
Hobbs shoots down anti-trans pronoun ban
Arizona Republicans seeking to restrict how trans and nonbinary students are spoken to by their teachers were sharply rebuffed by Gov. Katie Hobbs on Monday, who vetoed a measure forcing teachers to secure parental permission before students could have their pronouns and chosen names respected. “As politicians across the country continue to pass harmful legislation […]
Hobbs blocks fetal rights, health emergency, election conspiracy bills
Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs shot down more than a dozen bills on Friday, including a GOP-backed attempt to codify fetal personhood into state law. House Bill 2502 sought to make child support payments retroactive to the date of the first positive pregnancy test. But while Republican lawmakers framed it as a way to support impending […]
Katie Hobbs vetoes anti-trans, gun bills
Gov. Katie Hobbs on Tuesday used her veto stamp to reject Republican attempts to allow guns on college campuses and to permit shelters to discriminate against trans women. House Bill 2312 sought to shield domestic violence shelters from gender discrimination claims, but critics pointed out it created a loophole for shelters to turn away trans […]
Hamadeh asks for more ballot inspections to prove AG’s race was unfairly won
Abraham Hamadeh’s third appeal to nullify the results of the race for Arizona attorney general he lost last year hinges on permission to inspect more ballots, which attorneys for his Democratic opponent say proves that his claims continue to be evidence-free. On Tuesday, Mohave County Superior Court Judge Lee Jantzen heard arguments on whether or […]
A slew of GOP-backed anti-LGBTQ bills race towards Hobbs’ veto stamp
Arizona Republicans sent a spate of anti-LGBTQ proposals to Gov. Katie Hobbs on Monday, forging ahead with the discriminatory legislation despite warnings that doing so endangers the lives of trans youth. Rep. Lorena Austin, D-Mesa, admonished GOP lawmakers for voting to pass Senate Bill 1001, which would prevent teachers from respecting their students’ name changes […]
Hobbs signs budget, touts it as a ‘compromise’ by ‘pragmatic leaders’
With the stroke of a pen on Thursday, Gov. Katie Hobbs approved a $17.8 billion dollar budget, despite criticism from progressive organizations and many in her own party. In an emailed statement, the Democrat celebrated her first budget as a win for bipartisanship that reflects the split government leading Arizona. “Today, we showed what happens […]
Pro-immigrant groups disappointed with Hobbs’ budget, look to the future
Latino voters turned out in force to help deliver the state’s top position to Gov. Katie Hobbs, but pro-immigrant groups say the newly approved budget, the culmination of her first year in office, fails to live up to their hopes. The Democrat positioned herself as an advocate for Latinos across the state, earnestly courting their […]
Public school advocates decry failure to cap universal school vouchers, call for revised budget
Gov. Katie Hobbs’ failure to fulfill her promise to scale back universal school vouchers incensed public education advocates, who on Tuesday urged lawmakers and the Ninth Floor to reassess the latest budget proposal before it crosses the finish line. Late in the day on Monday, Republican lawmakers released the $17.8 billion dollar proposal crafted after […]