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VA veterans crisis line to face new investigation by congressional watchdog agency
WASHINGTON — The Government Accountability Office plans to investigate multiple whistleblower allegations of “gross mismanagement” at the Department of Veterans Affairs veterans crisis line, following a request from Kansas Republican Sen. Jerry Moran, States Newsroom has learned. Moran, ranking member on the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, sent a letter to the VA secretary this week […]
More questions than answers on school vouchers as a legislative oversight committee wraps up
Many questions about how Arizona’s school voucher system will impact funding for public schools and the larger state budget remain unanswered after the likely final meeting of a temporary legislative oversight committee. But parents who receive government funding to send their children to private schools or homeschool them through the state’s Empowerment Scholarship Account program […]
U.S. House passes stopgap spending bill in bipartisan vote, in crucial test for new speaker
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House took a broadly bipartisan vote Tuesday to fund the government into the new year, though the measure must pass the Senate by the end of the week if Congress is going to avoid a partial government shutdown. The 336-95 House vote was the first major legislative test for Speaker Mike […]
Republicans unveil proposal to address Arizona teacher shortage with $4,000 raises
Arizona teachers could see a $4,000 pay raise in 2025 if a revised version of Prop. 123 championed by Republican lawmakers gets sent to the 2024 ballot and wins voter approval. The “Teacher Pay Fund,” which was unveiled Monday by GOP lawmakers, will be a top priority for the party in the upcoming legislative session. […]
‘Nationwide gun emergency’ discussed by U.S. House Democrats at roundtable meeting
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Democrats held a Monday roundtable forum on changing U.S. gun laws following a recent mass shooting in Maine, where 18 people were killed. The top Democrat on the committee, Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland, invited witnesses to discuss gun violence solutions, and said that the gun industry lobby, the National Rifle […]
U.S. Supreme Court unveils new ethics code, but critics say it doesn’t go far enough
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court released a new ethics code Monday, just days before the Democrat-led U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary again attempts to subpoena two high-profile GOP donors following revelations that justices accepted undisclosed luxury trips and engaged in other potential conflicts of interest. Despite the headlines and the committee’s springtime request […]
We asked every member of Congress about child care policy. Only 5 Republicans answered.
In September, when billions of dollars in child care funding were about to expire, a Senate subcommittee convened to discuss solutions. It was there that Sen. John Kennedy laid out the partisan tension at the heart of what’s billed as a bipartisan issue. He agreed that child care was an investment in the current and […]
Tap water is cheap, but old pipes, a shrinking Colorado could change that
With infrastructure that is aging and needs replacement, municipal water departments in the Colorado River basin are starting to invest in new systems that will help cities adapt to a future with a smaller water supply. But that means big spending, costs that will get passed along to the millions of people who use that […]
Gila River Indian Community moves foward with solar canal project, first in country
In an effort to address the ongoing drought affecting the Southwest, the Gila River Indian Community is taking an innovative step forward by launching its Solar Canal Project to construct the country’s first solar-over-canal project. “A tribe is leading the way,” Gila River Indian Community Gov. Stephen Roe Lewis said, adding that the shovel-ready project […]
Arizona legislative Democrats are divided on Israeli-Palestinian conflict
The anger, despair, sorrow and division that the escalation of the war between Israel and Hamas has caused is deeply personal to Democratic lawmakers in Arizona who lament the loss of innocent lives but disagree on how to move forward. Rep. Athena Salman, of Tempe, whose father came to the U.S from Palestine, led the […]
Democrats’ struggle to keep U.S. Senate majority complicated by Manchin decision
WASHINGTON — U.S. Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin III announced Thursday he does not plan to run for reelection come 2024, giving Republicans an opportunity to pick up a seat and increasing their chances of flipping Senate control. A centrist who has long frustrated his party’s leadership and outside advocacy groups with his views on fossil […]
Gosar pushes to reverse Biden’s Grand Canyon national monument to allow for uranium mining
Saying that stopping companies from mining uranium from lands near the Grand Canyon is a threat to national security, an Arizona Republican won preliminary approval of an amendment that would reverse President Joe Biden’s creation earlier this year of a national monument in northern Arizona. “Arizona already boasts more national monuments than any other state,” […]