This week is going to be relatively quiet (perhaps the loons are keeping a low profile until the Super Bowl, and its attendant media focus, leaves the state). However, expect a heavy cloud of smoke (coal-based, of course) to cover the Capitol on Monday.
In other words, most of the obviously rancid and "bay at the moon" stuff won't be visible this week, but look out! next week (and thereafter)...
Notes:
All committees meetings and agendas are subject to change without
notice, and frequently do. If you plan to travel to the Capitol to
observe or weigh in on the consideration of a particular measure, check
with the lege ahead of time to confirm that the meeting that you are
interesting in is still on schedule and your item(s) of interest is
still on the agenda for that meeting.
Meeting rooms designated "HHR" are in the House of Representatives building.
Meeting rooms designated "SHR" are in the Senate building.
Some agendas are summarized as "looks harmless", but if they cover an
area of interest to you, examine the agenda and the bills on it. If I
missed something significant, please leave a comment letting me know.
All House committee agendas can be found here.
All Senate committee agendas can be found here.
On the House side of the Capitol:
Elections, Monday, HHR4, 10 a.m. At this point, presentations only, but one of those should be very interesting - it's an update on the lege's lawsuit against the independent redistricting commission (the lege hates the idea that "independent" means "free from legislative control", and they have been trying change that ever since the voters enacted the independent redistricting process).
Rules, Monday, HHR4, 1 p.m. Except for one measure, relatively non-controversial. The one measure: HB2174, expanding "empowerment scholarship accounts". Better known as "school vouchers". Rubber stamp committee; expect all measures on the agenda to pass.
Ways and Means, Monday, HHR3, 2 p,m. Mostly bills that sound harmless, but would have the effect of reducing state revenue.
County and Municipal Affairs, Monday, HHR4, 2 p.m. Looks mostly harmless.
Children and Family Affairs, Monday, HHR5, 2 p.m. Looks mostly harmless.
Transportation and Infrastructure, Tuesday, HHR1, 2 p.m. Looks mostly harmless.
Rural and Economic Development, Tuesday, HHR5, 2 p.m. Presentation only.
Health, Tuesday, HHR4, 2 p.m. Looks mostly harmless.
Banking and Financial Services, Tuesday, HHR3, 2 p.m. Looks mostly harmless.
Commerce, Wednesday, HHR1, 9:30 a.m. On the agenda: HB2413, clarifying the state's statute regarding certain internet-based fraudulent activities. It also looks to be narrowing the scope of the statute, at least a little bit.
Judiciary, Wednesday, HHR3, 10 a.m. On the agenda: HB2002, expanding the state's sign tampering law to cover *all* political signs, not just those signs that are for a candidate and HB2212, creating a right to sue if a municipal, county, state, or district employee bases a licensing decision on a factor or criteria that he/she isn't specifically authorized to use.
Education, Wednesday, HHR4, 2 p.m. On the agenda: HB2066, expanding tax credits to include covering contributions to public schools in support of standardized testing (SAT, AP, ACT, IB, etc.); HB2208, expanding the circumstances under which a charter school may be established within a quarter mile of agricultural land that uses certain toxic substances; HB2353, mandating that all school districts in Arizona become part of unified school districts. There are a couple of other bills on the agenda, HB2302 and HB2303, that seem significant, but I'm not sure of the real world impact of them.
Appropriations, Wednesday, HHR1, 2 p.m. Presentations only.
Military Affairs and Public Safety, Thursday, HHR5, 9 a.m. On the agenda: HB2272, allowing law enforcement officers to purchase their government-issued service weapons at less than market value.
Government and Higher Education, Thursday, HHR1, 9 a.m. On the agenda: presentations from the state's universities and a couple of university-related bills.
Agriculture, Water and Lands, Thursday, HHR3, 9 a.m. Looks harmless so far.
On the Senate side of the Capitol:
State Debt and Budget Reform, Monday, SHR3, 9 a.m. Presentations only.
Natural Resources. Monday, SHR109 10 a.m. Presentation only. On APS' coal-based power generation.
Rules, Monday, Republican Caucus Room, 1 p.m. Rubber stamp of bills on their way to floor action.
Commerce and Workforce Development, Monday, SHR1, 1:45 p.m. Looks mostly harmless, or at least silly - one of the bills is SB1047, Sen. John Kavanagh's proposal to keep the names of lottery prizewinners secret for 90 days.
Water and Energy, Monday, SHR3, 2 p.m. Presentations only. If you go, bring your hip boots - one of them is from the American Coalition for Clean
Coal Electricity, talking about the EPA's new carbon rule. It's going to get deep in SHR3. :)
Rural Affairs and Environment, Tuesday, SHR109, 9 a.m. On the agenda: the first striker of the session. Sen. Gail Griffin is proposing to change SB1194, currently a technical correction (or vehicle) bill into one that expands the student loan repayment for doctors and dentists who practice in medically underserved areas (it's a thing, look it up) to include pharmacists, physician assistants, and behavioral health professionals.
Federalism, Mandates, and Fiscal Responsibility, Tuesday, SHR3, 9 a.m. On the agenda: SCM1005, a love letter to Congress supporting an amendment to the US Constitution requiring that any federal regulation that is opposed by 25% of Congress cannot be enacted without a majority vote by Congress.
Transportation, Tuesday, SHR1, 2 p.m. One bill on the agenda: SB1051, specifying that drivers are not required to obtain a motorcycle license to operate certain three-wheeled vehicles.
Appropriations, Tuesday, SHR109, 2 p.m. Looks harmless so far.
Public Safety, Military, and Technology, Wednesday, SHR1, 9 a.m. One bill on the agenda: SB1069, barring municipalities and counties from adopting ordinances that require retail businesses to obtain and utilize any specific security measures.
Finance, Wednesday, SHR3, 9 a.m. On the agenda: some bills relating to state employee pension plans (which I don't understand well enough to comment on) and SB1088, indexing the state's income tax brackets to the state's inflation rate. Which sounds good, until you remember that wages and salaries are not so indexed. In other words, it's a backdoor revenue cut.
Health and Human Services, Wednesday, SHR1, 2 p.m. On the agenda: SB1039, relating to the "compounding" of drugs by pharmacies in Arizona, and other related items; SB1092, requiring AHCCCS to petition the federal government for permission to implement a very specific work requirement for AHCCCS beneficiaries.
Government, Wednesday, SHR3, 2 p.m. On the agenda: SB1102, banning the sending of text messages while driving.
Financial Institutions, Wednesday, SHR109, 2 p.m. Presentation only.
Judiciary, Thursday, SHR109, 9 a.m. On the agenda: SB1116, relating to fines, fees, costs, and community service sentences.
Education, Thursday, SHR1, 9 a.m. On the agenda: SB1074, requiring public school districts with unused buildings up for sale or lease to allow charter schools to purchase or lease those facilities; SB1093, essentially requiring public schools districts to unquestioningly accept students from online schools, and their coursework; SB1131, requiring public school districts to allow students who are enrolled in online charter schools to participate in public school interscholastic activities.
As of this writing, no floor calendars have been posted. When some are posted, they will be available here.
The Capitol Events calendar is here.
Public meeting notices from the Arizona Department of Administration here.
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