And the first ones out of the gate are...

The 2025 legislative session has started; sitting legislators are "pre-filing" before the session starts (there are limits on the number of measures that any legislator can introduce *during* the session.  Before the session?  No limits.

Anyway, I digress.

Next year's HB2001 was introduced by Republican Rep. Matt Gress and is about the temporary licensing of college graduates in behavioral health.  I'm not going to take a position on this one (there may be a problematic clause or two in it) but this is the sort of topic our legislators should be discussing.

Om the other hand, next year's SB1001, introduced by Republican Sen J.D. Mesnard is a bunch of proposed restrictions on voters, particularly on early voters.  Its clauses amend 17 pages of AZ law, and most of the clauses are garbage.

IMO, a couple of the sections stand out in terms of  his express of hatred of voters -

From the bill (the blue text indicates Mesnard's proposed changes):

As is, this section would encourage county recorders and/or elections directors to decline to do their jobs and to impose restrictions on others (early voters) if they don't do their jobs.

Maybe this clause would be more palatable if it was amended to include a provision where county recorders and election directors who did such a thing (or, more to the point, *failed* to do such a thing) were deemed to have committed malfeasance in office and were removed from that office and permanently barred from any sort of public employment.

Of course, that wouldn't make another part more palatable.

Also from the bill:

With this language, Mesnard proposes to end both dropping off an early ballot at a voting location other than in the voter's own precinct and that early ballots that were dropped off per Mesnard's language would have to be delivered to the county recorder by 7 p.m. on election day.

As polling place don't close until 7 p.m., that could be a problem.

Well, at least Mesnard has demonstrated his giving spirit, perhaps in commemoration of Thanksgiving.

Of course, he's demonstrating that spirit by delivering a turkey to the people of Arizona.