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Anti-LGBTQ bill barring preferred pronouns in Arizona schools inches closer to a veto
LGBTQ youth overwhelmingly feel more supported at school than at home, but Arizona Republicans want to eliminate that resource. “I was one of those children growing up that did not have the support of my parents, existing as a queer person,” Levi Bevis told lawmakers on Monday. “School was the only safe place that I […]
Hobbs’ press secretary resigns after outrage over violent tweet
A spokeswoman for Gov. Katie Hobbs has resigned after Republican backlash erupted when she tweeted an image implying violence against transphobes. On Monday, a shooting at a private Christian school in Nashville left three children and three adults dead. Later that night Josselyn Berry, Hobbs’ press secretary, tweeted a gif of a woman wielding two […]
Anti-trans school bathroom bill advances with GOP backing
Republican lawmakers are charging ahead with their attacks on transgender Arizonans, despite veto promises from Gov. Katie Hobbs, unanimously backing a measure on Tuesday that calls for separate school facilities for trans students. The House Education Committee voted 6-4, with only Republicans in favor, to pass Senate Bill 1040, which forces schools to provide separate […]
Hobbs rejects food tax ban championed by GOP
A Republican priority bill that sought to eliminate municipal food taxes was shot down by Gov. Katie Hobbs, who vetoed it Tuesday, siding with cities across the state that opposed the measure. Last week, the Republican-majority legislature passed Senate Bill 1063, which aimed to ban cities and towns from imposing sales taxes on food. The […]
AZ Republicans hope to expand religious exemption protections
Businesses in Arizona would be fined if they deny their employees religious exemptions for the flu vaccine and any vaccine with emergency authorization under a GOP proposal on its way to the governor’s desk. State law already allows employees to refuse the COVID-19 vaccine based on religious beliefs. But Senate Bill 1250, sponsored by a […]
Teachers union calls on lawmakers to invest $2.2 billion in Arizona schools
Arizona is ranked one of the worst states for school spending, and teachers are urging lawmakers to rectify that through increased funding, unveiling a $2.2 billion “Educators’ Budget” on Wednesday. Compiled by the state’s largest teacher’s union, the Arizona Education Association, it includes more money for teacher salaries, health care plans, special education, school repairs […]
Lawmakers seek to add autism, PTSD to list of medical-marijuana eligible conditions
Arizonans with autism and post-traumatic stress disorder could add marijuana to their medical toolkit under a proposal that expands who can access the drug. Currently, people with severe medical conditions such as cancer, Alzheimer’s disease or seizures can apply for a medical marijuana card. While adult recreational use is legal in the Grand Canyon state […]
Senate Republicans agree to ban books with gender fluidity, pronouns
Last year, a record wave of book bans swept across the country when the GOP moved its culture war into school libraries, and Arizona Republicans this year are pushing to expand on that by outlawing books that “promote” gender fluidity or pronouns. To do so, they want to give parents the power to request the […]
Far-right Republicans denounce push for ranked-choice voting in Arizona
With Arizona set to see a ballot initiative in 2024 to implement ranked-choice voting across the state, Republicans at the legislature sounded the alarm on Wednesday, saying the voting style is wrong for the Grand Canyon State. “Ranked-choice voting is a proven scam to further destroy integrity in our elections,” warned Rep. Austin Smith during […]
Teachers rally against complaint hotline, call for its end
Dozens of teachers took to the street on Wednesday afternoon to demand that the state superintendent’s newly established parental complaint hotline be dismantled. Two banners were held up at the front of the crowd as it marched down 16th Avenue toward the Department of Education’s building, one expressing support for educators and the other asking […]
GOP state leaders win permission to defend abortion law in court
Republican legislative leaders have been given the go-ahead by a federal judge to defend a 2021 abortion law in court after the attorney general said she wouldn’t. In early February, Senate President Warren Petersen and House Speaker Ben Toma filed a request to intervene in an ongoing challenge against the law, arguing that newly elected […]
Kris Mayes and 22 other attorneys general defend DACA
More than 30,000 Arizonans are DACA recipients, and Attorney General Kris Mayes joined nearly two dozen other states last week in defending the program on their behalf. Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, commonly referred to as DACA, is a federal policy that shields eligible recipients from deportation and affords them a work permit. The policy […]