Legislative schedule - week starting 3/30/2025

This week runs the gamut of bad behavior from the legislature - some bad bills, some sneakiness, and putting out propaganda while using taxpayer-funded resources.

Note: HHR refers to a hearing room in the House building; SHR refers to one in the Senate building.

Note2: Generally, I'll only specify bills that look to spread propaganda.  Other bills may be more conventionally bad (think: corrupt or other misuses of public monies and/or authority).  My recommendation is that if an agenda covers an area of interest to you, read the entire agenda.

Note3: Each chamber's respective Rules Committee meets on Monday, the House's in HHR4, generally at 1 p.m. and the Senate's in Senate Caucus Room 1, generally also at 1 p.m.  Both committees serve as rubber stamps for bills leadership wants to be advanced and gatekeepers for measures that leadership wants stopped.

Note4: Meeting start times may be listed, but are flexible.  Before journeying to the Capitol or viewing the meeting online, verify the start time.

Note5: Watch for strikers, or strike everything amendments.  Those involve inserting language that replaces the entirety of a bill.  Those can be introduced at any time and can make a previously harmless bill become a very bad one. 

On Monday, 3/3 

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House and Senate Rules meet at 1 p.m. in their respective rooms.  On the agendas: many bills.  They may meet more than once this week, but, as of now, they're on the schedule once.

House Appropriations meets at 10 a.m. in HHR1.  On the agenda: 30 proposals, 12 of which have strikers proposed for them.  Includes David Livingston's striker proposed for SB1061 that would raise pay for legislators from Maricopa County;  Matt Gress' striker to SB1299, creating the "Safe Community Enforcement Fund" from monies in the "Smart and Safe Arizona Fund," created by AZ voters when we approved recreational marijuana.  Also includes SB1369, appropriating $2M from the state's General Fund for enhancing the recruitment of law enforcement personnel...which may seem too bad, until you realize that the requirements listed for some of the money are so specific as to constitute a way to get around the fact that the legislature is barred from creating legislation to requires a state agency to enter into a single source contract.

The measure failed in House Public Safety and Law Enforcement, was withdrawn from that committee, and is now on an Appropriations agenda.  On that agenda, 13 proposals, including this one, may be subject to a mass motion.

Senate Military Affairs and Border Security meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR109.  On the agenda: no bills, one presentation.

On Tuesday, 4/1 

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Senate Appropriations meets at 9 a.m. in SHR109.  On the agenda: 15 bills.  Two bills have proposed strikers.  One is a proposal to appropriate $100K to train employees of group home to spot child sex trafficking. Also includes HB2918, which is about reducing state and local revenue; and HB2794, which is about redirecting tax money from the public to the Arizona Diamondbacks.  The fiscal note attached to the bill states the local governments wouldn't be harmed by the bill.  

Other people, not controlled by the legislature, including Phoenix mayor Kate Gallego, disagree.

On Wednesday, 3/2 - Nada.

On Thursday, 3/3 

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House Ad Hoc Committee on Blaming Governor Hobbs for All That Ails Arizona Executive Budget Mismanagement meets at 8:30 a.m. in HHR4.  On the agenda: no bills.  One presentation from JLBC on the Division of Developmental Disabilities (DDD).

Also on the agenda: inquisitions of questions for the directors of AHCCCS and DES.

There's been a lots of posturing from the legislature over their desire to cut funding that helps the underprivileged, perhaps to distract from their desire to protect funding for ESAs (school vouchers) for the wealthy.

Hobbs isn't having it.

So State Sen. Jake Hoffman is a multitasker

He HATES almost everything.

In this week's schedule post, I observed that certain bills that were going before a legislative committee would be subjected to a striker, and that the text of those strikers hadn't been posted on the lege's website at that time.

Well, the content of those strikers have been posted (mostly).

Going before Senate Government tomorrow morning...

A striker to HB2233 that seeks to hobble the ACC.  Proposed by Hoffman.

A striker to HB2872 that seeks to hobble the governor.  Proposed by Hoffman.

A striker to HCR2037 that goes after school boards, city councils, town councils, county boards of supervisors, and state officers.  Proposed by Hoffman.

(Senate Military Affairs and Border Security was supposed to hear a striker on Monday, but the underlying bill was held in committee...and the text of the striker was never posted).

Hoffman is the chair of Senate Government.

Legislative schedule - week starting 3/23/2025

Lots of strikers this week as this is the final week for bills to be heard in committee, but that comes with one big caveat: the Appropriations committees of both chamber can still meet and consider bills.  So instead of members kissing the butts of "making nice with" most committee chairs so the committees will hear a bill, it'll just be the chairs of Appropriation.

The Appropriations chairs *love* this time of year.

Caveat: All information about strikers being on  (or not being on) a particular agenda are as of this writing.  Things can, and probably will, change at a moment's notice.

Note: HHR refers to a hearing room in the House building; SHR refers to one in the Senate building.

Note2: Generally, I'll only specify bills that look to spread propaganda.  Other bills may be more conventionally bad (think: corrupt or other misuses of public monies and/or authority).  My recommendation is that if an agenda covers an area of interest to you, read the entire agenda.

Note3: Each chamber's respective Rules Committee meets on Monday, the House's in HHR4, generally at 1 p.m. and the Senate's in Senate Caucus Room 1, generally also at 1 p.m.  Both committees serve as rubber stamps for bills leadership wants to be advanced and gatekeepers for measures that leadership wants stopped.

Note4: Meeting start times may be listed, but are flexible.  Before journeying to the Capitol or viewing the meeting online, verify the start time.

Note5: Watch for strikers, or strike everything amendments.  Those involve inserting language that replaces the entirety of a bill.  Those can be introduced at any time and can make a previously harmless bill become a very bad one. 

On Monday, 3/24 

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House and Senate Rules meet at 1 p.m. in their respective rooms.  On the agendas: many bills.  They may meet more than once this week, but, as of now, they're on the schedule once.

Senate Federalism meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR2,  On the agenda: one bill.

Senate Finance meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR1.  On the agenda: 10 bills.  Includes proposed strikers for HB2125 and HB2654.

Senate Military Affairs and Border Security meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR109.  On the agenda: two bills.  HB2687 is supposed to have a striker proposed but the text isn't yet available.  According to the committee agenda, it has the rather ominous working title of "government".

House Health & Human Services meets at 2 p.m. in HHR4.  On the agenda: 15 bills.  Includes proposed strikers for SB1347 and SB1555.

House Land, Agriculture & Rural Affairs meets at 2 p.m. in HHR3.  On the agenda: 11 proposals.   Most read as if they were written by industry lobbyists. Includes proposed strikers for four bill - SB1150, SB1350, SB1706, and SB1709.

House Public Safety & Law Enforcement meets at 2 p.m. in HHR1.  On the agenda: 11 bills.  Includes proposed strikers for two bills - SB1233 and SB1714.  Also includes SB1053, Wendy Rogers' scheme to allow discharging a firearm closer to an occupied structure.

On Tuesday, 3/25 

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Senate Appropriations meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR109.  On the agenda: 10 bills, no strikers listed.  Includes HB2606, a plan to to redirect $50 million from the state's General Fund to DPS to fund bigotry "border support."

Senate Natural Resources meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR1.  On the agenda: 23 proposals,  Most read like they were written by industry lobbyists but at least a couple are pure MAGA propaganda.  Includes a proposed striker for HB2091, from the "lobbyist" genus.

House Commerce meets at 2 p.m. in HHR5.  On the agenda: 12 bills, many pure propaganda.  Includes proposed strikers for two bills - SB1229 and SB1057.

House Education meets at 2 p.m. in HHR1.  On the agenda: 12 bills, no strikers as yet.

House Natural Resources, Energy & Water meets  at 2 p.m. in HHR3.  On the agenda: 11 bills.  Most bills and amendments read like they were written by industry lobbyists.  Includes proposed strikers for three bills - SB1134, SB1444, and SB1521.

House Regulatory Oversight meets at 2 p.m. in HHR4.  On the agenda: four bills, no proposed strikers as yet.  Two of the bills are anti-LGBTQ specials from Sen. John Kavanagh.  They would impact schools, but were never assigned to the House Education Committee.  Instead, they were assigned to House Government, and in perhaps a search for a more receptive committee, withdrawn from that committee and given to this one.

Hmmm...

On Wednesday, 3/26 

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House Judiciary meets at 8 a.m.in HHR4.  On the agenda: 22 bills.  Lots of propaganda.  Includes one striker, to SB1227 (text not available as yet), working title "ACJC; continuation; revision".

Senate Government Committee of Reference meets at 8 a.m. in SHR1.  On the agenda: no bills, one sunset review.

Senate Government meets at 8:05 a.m. in SHR1.  On the agenda: 12 proposals.  Lots of propaganda.  Includes four proposed strikers (text not available as yet).  The proposed amendments for HB2233, HB2872, and HCR2037 have the same working title - "government."  The one for HB2868 is a same subject striker for a with a working title of "preferential treatment; discrimination; policies".

House International Trade meets at 8:30 a.m. in HHR1.  On the agenda: one bill.

House Government meets at 9 a.m. in HHR5.  On the agenda: 21 bills.  No strikers as yet.  *Lots* of propaganda here, but my personal favorite is SB1649, increasing legislative authority over membership of many state boards and commission and removing subject matter expertise as a criteria for membership on a lot of them.

Senate Health and Human Services meets at 9 a.m. in SHR2.  On the agenda: 10 bills.  Includes a prosed striker for HB2434 (text not available as yet), working title - "interoperability grants; health care; appropriation".

Senate Regulatory Affairs and Government Efficiency meets at 9 a.m. in SHR109.  On the agenda: seven bills.  Includes one striker, to HB2033, (text not available as yet), working title - "building permits".

House Ways & Means meets at 10 a.m. in HHR3.  On the agenda: four proposals.  No strikers.  Brief agenda, but it makes up for that by being 100% bad.

Senate Education meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR1.  On the agenda: 10 bills.  Two proposed strikers - HB2067, (text not available as yet), working title - "school district governing boards"; and HB2172, (text not available as yet), working title - "parent training; schools; K-8 students".

Senate Judiciary and Elections meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR2.  On the agenda: 20 proposals.  Lots of MAGA propaganda here.  Four proposed strikers - HB2129, (text not available as yet), working title - "election procedures"; HB2137, (text not available as yet), working title - "medical records"; HB2256, (text not available as yet), working title - "domestic proceedings"; and HB2680, (text not available as yet), working title - "sentencing enhancements; vulnerable; incapacitated; adult".

Senate Public Safety meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR109.  On the agenda: six bills.  One proposed striker - HB2894, (text not available as yet), working title - "silver alert; criteria; notification".

House Appropriations meets at 2 p.m. in HHR1. On the agenda: 11 bills, no strikers.

House Federalism, Military Affairs & Elections meets at 2 p.m. in HHR4.  On the agenda: 10 bills, no strikers.  Lots of propaganda on this one.

House Science & Technology meets at 2 p.m. in HHR5.  On the agenda: three bills, no strikers

House Transportation & Infrastructure meets at 2 p.m.in HHR3.  On the agenda: 12 bills, no strikers.

On Thursday, 3/27 - Nada.

On Friday, 3/28 

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Joint Legislative Audit Committee meets in SHR109.  On the agenda: four reviews of audits.

Legislative schedule - week starting 3/16/2025

There are some strikers this week, but more can be added at any time.

Also, an agenda for the Senate committee on Giving Jake Hoffman a Platform for Criticizing Governor Hobbs on the Taxpayer Dime on Director Nominations is not on the schedule, but given recent history, it wouldn't be a surprise to see one added.

Note: HHR refers to a hearing room in the House building; SHR refers to one in the Senate building.

Note2: Generally, I'll only specify bills that look to spread propaganda.  Other bills may be more conventionally bad (think: corrupt or other misuses of public monies and/or authority).  My recommendation is that if an agenda covers an area of interest to you, read the entire agenda.

Note3: Each chamber's respective Rules Committee meets on Monday, the House's in HHR4, generally at 1 p.m. and the Senate's in Senate Caucus Room 1, generally also at 1 p.m.  Both committees serve as rubber stamps for bills leadership wants to be advanced and gatekeepers for measures that leadership wants stopped.

Note4: Meeting start times may be listed, but are flexible.  Before journeying to the Capitol or viewing the meeting online, verify the start time.

Note5: Watch for strikers, or strike everything amendments.  Those involve inserting language that replaces the entirety of a bill.  Those can be introduced at any time and can make a previously harmless bill become a very bad one. 

On Monday, 3/17 

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Senate Federalism meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR2.  On the agenda: one proposal. HCR2049. proclaiming the sovereignty of Arizona over matters not specifically delegated to others in the U.S. Constitution.

Senate Finance meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR1.  On the agenda: 10 proposals.  Includes HB2450, reducing the amount of Unemployment Insurance a recipient can be paid.

Senate Military Affairs and Border Security meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR109.  On the agenda: four bills.  Includes HB2606, giving $50 million to DPS for "border support".

House Health & Human Services meets at 2 p.m. in HHR4.  On the agenda: 16 bills. Includes a striker to SB1081 from Selina Bliss that would implement a timeline on complaints sent to a health profession regulatory board.

House Land, Agriculture & Rural Affairs meets at 2 p.m. in HHR3.  On the agenda: four bills.  Includes SB1066 and SB1109, MAGA propaganda bills relating to foreign entities owning land here.

House Public Safety & Law Enforcement meets at 2 p.m. in HHR1.  On the agenda: six bills.  Includes a striker to SB1231, regarding the voluntary prohibited possessor list; a striker to SB1461 regarding military veteran status and prosecuting agencies; and a striker to SB1610 regarding a home buyer assistance program.

All three seem good and all three have been proposed by Democrat Aaron Marquez.  Which are two reasons why it will be something of a surprise if any of them actually pass.

On Tuesday,  3/18 

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Senate Appropriations meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR109.  On the agenda:  11 proposals.  Includes HB2389, seeking to reduce state General Fund revenue (the fiscal note attached to the bill says $73.8 million in FY2033): and HB2814 and HCR2015, which are about the legislature giving itself the authority to allocate federal Community Development Block Grants.

Senate Natural Resources meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR1.  On the agenda: 13 proposals.  Most read as if the were written by industry lobbyists.

House Commerce meets at 2 p.m. in HHR5.  On the agenda: nine bills.  Three are MAGA propaganda, one is very bad, and I'm not sure about the others.

House Education meets at 1:30 p.m.  On the agenda: 10 bills.  Includes SB1301, John Kavanagh's bill bill to include Asian American history in school curricula and SB1694, withholding state funding from higher ed schools that offers courses on DEI.

House Natural Resources, Energy & Water meets at 2 p.m. in HH3.  On the agenda: 11 bills, most of which read as if they were written by industry lobbyists.

House Regulatory Oversight meets at 2 p.m. in HHR4.  On the agenda: four bills.  Includes SB1096, a MAGA propaganda bill mandating the creation  of an "Arizona Bullion Depository"; and SB1237,  barring state employees, with certain exceptions, from doing telework.

House Regulatory Oversight meets at 3 p.m. in HHR4.  On the agenda: one bill.   SB1432 purports to bar geoengineering related to climate control, but it seems so broadly written that it would bar the use of sunscreen in Arizona (I am NOT a lawyer, so if I've misread and misinterpreted this, I expect that a reader who is one will correct me)

On Wednesday, 3/19 

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House Government meets at 9 a.m. in HHR5.  On the agenda: 10 bills.

House Judiciary meets at 9 a.m. in HHR4.  On the agenda: nine bills, many bad.  Includes SB1013, barring municipalities and counties from implementing any kind of revenue increase unless the council of a municipality or county does so by a 2/3 vote.

House Ways & Means meets at 9 a.m. in HHR3.  On the agenda: seven proposals, at least five bad ones.

Senate Government meets at 9 a.m.in SHR1.  On the agenda: 15 proposals.  13 bad and/or propaganda.

Senate Health and Human Services meet at 9 a.m. in SHR1.  On the agenda: 12 bills, at least 6 bad and/or propaganda.  Includes HB2438, barring changes to birth certificates resulting from a sex change.

Senate Regulatory Affairs and Government Efficiency meets at 9 a.m. in SHR109.  On the agenda: 11 proposals, eight bad and/or propaganda.  Includes HB2121 and HB2122, which are about imposing work requirements on SNAP recipients.

Senate Education meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR1.  On the agenda: eight bills, seven bad and/or propaganda, plus there's a presentation from the Arizona State Board for Charter Schools, which I presume will be about how lucrative the grift is how wonderful taking money from public schools and putting it into private pockets is.  Agenda includes HB2640, about the transfer of properties owned by a public school district to private hands.

Senate Judiciary and Elections meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR2.  On the agenda: 16 proposals.  Includes HCR2057, the ploy by the legislative Rs to make things more difficult for voter-based initiatives to become ballot eligible.

Senate Public Safety meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR109.  On the agenda: 13 proposals.

House Appropriations meets at 2 p.m. in HHR1.  On the agenda: four bills.

House Federalism, Military Affairs & Elections meets at 2 p.m. in HHR4..  On the agenda: 10 bills.  Eight bad and/or propaganda,

House Science & Technology meets at 2 p.m.in HHR5.  On the agenda: no bills; three industry-given presentations.

House Transportation & Infrastructure meets at 2 p.m. in HHR3.  On the agenda: six proposals.  Includes SCR1002, Wendy Rogers' scheme to get rid of photo radar traffic enforcement in AZ.

On Thursday, 3/20 

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Senate Government meets at 9 a.m.in SHR1.  On the agenda: one bill. HB2722 would add a new chapter to AZ law allowing any taxpayer to sue when that taxpayer believes that  a public entity makes an expenditure of a public resource that isn't for a public purpose.

On the hot seat Thursday: Jaclyn Rae Johnson

An update this week's legislative schedule post.

On Thursday, 3/13 

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Senate Committee on Giving Jake Hoffman a Platform for Criticizing Governor Hobbs on the Taxpayer Dime on Director Nominations meets at 9:30 a.m. in SHR109.  On the agenda: no bills.  One director nomination: Jaclyn Rae Johnson, Department of Gaming.

Legislative schedule - week starting 3/9/2025

 As with last week, there aren't any strike-everything amendments on committee agendas, but those can be introduced at any time.

Also as with last week, there's nothing on the schedule for Thursday, but last week, they added a meeting of the Committee on Giving Jake Hoffman a Platform for Criticizing Governor Hobbs on the Taxpayer Dime on Director Nominations for last Thursday.

Note: HHR refers to a hearing room in the House building; SHR refers to one in the Senate building.

Note2: Generally, I'll only specify bills that look to spread propaganda.  Other bills may be more conventionally bad (think: corrupt or other misuses of public monies and/or authority).  My recommendation is that if an agenda covers an area of interest to you, read the entire agenda.

Note3: Each chamber's respective Rules Committee meets on Monday, the House's in HHR4, generally at 1 p.m. and the Senate's in Senate Caucus Room 1, generally also at 1 p.m.  Both committees serve as rubber stamps for bills leadership wants to be advanced and gatekeepers for measures that leadership wants stopped.

Note4: Meeting start times may be listed, but are flexible.  Before journeying to the Capitol or viewing the meeting online, verify the start time.

Note5: Watch for strikers, or strike everything amendments.  Those involve inserting language that replaces the entirety of a bill.  Those can be introduced at any time and can make a previously harmless bill become a very bad one. 

On Monday, 3/10 

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House and Senate Rules meet at 1 p.m. in their respective rooms.  On the agendas: many bills, though the agendas are far shorter than they are during most weeks.  They may meet more than once this week, but, as of now, they're on the schedule once.

Senate Federalism meets at 1:30 p.m. is SHR2.  On the agenda: no bills, just a propaganda session about fire insurance.

Senate Finance meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR1.  On the agenda: 12 bills. Includes HB2082, a bill that was sponsored by Gail Griffin (but reads as if it was written by an industry lobbyist), it would exempt wastewater pipes from sales tax; and HB2601, would exempt minors with an income of less than or equal to $50K from income tax, would also exempt the first $50K of a minor's income from withholding.

Senate Military Affairs and Border Security meets at 1:30 p.m.in SHR109.  On the agenda: four proposals; two are pure propaganda

House Health & Human Services meets at 2 p.m. in HHR4.  On the agenda: eight bills.  Includes SB1268, Wendy Rogers' scheme to have hospitals ask about a patient's immigration status.

House Land, Agriculture & Rural Affairs meets at 2 p.m. in HHR3.  On the agenda: two bills.

House Public Safety & Law Enforcement meets at 2 p.m. in HHR1.  On the agenda: six bills.

On Tuesday, 3/11 

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Senate Appropriations meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR109.  On the agenda: nine proposals.  Includes HB2814 and HCR2015, ploys by the legislature to increase its authority by grabbing control of federal block grants to entities in Arizona.

Senate Natural Resources meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR1.  On the agenda: 15 proposals.  Most read as if they were written by an industry lobbyist.

House Commerce meets at 2 p.m.in HHR5.  On the agenda: four bills, one very bad, in a "shameless propaganda" sort of way.

House Education meets at 2 p.m. in HHR1.  On the agenda: nine bills.  Includes SB1091, mandating that school district budget override/bond election questions include language specifying a projected reduction in tax rates is the question is defeated.   There are many other bad bills.

House Natural Resources, Energy & Water meets at 2 p.m. in HHR3.  On the agenda: four bills.  Includes SB1119, adding a phrase to AZ law to narrow down what the Residential Utility Consumer Office is supposed to do -

House Regulatory Oversight meets at 2 p.m. in HHR4.  On the agenda; two bills.

On Wednesday, 3/12 

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House Government meets at 9 a.m. in HHR5.  On the agenda: four bills, with one being an absolute doozy - SB1164 would allow officials or agencies of the state or political subdivisions to work with the feds in order to enforce federal immigration laws.  It also would bar the same from creating and/or following policies that restrict that cooperation (IOW - no "sanctuary city" policies).  It would also allow any state legislator to have the state AG investigate any such policy.

House Judiciary meets at 9 a.m. in HHR4.  On the agenda: eight bills.  Includes SB1014, legalizing silencers and SB1020, barring governing bodies of higher education campuses from barring concealed weapons on campus.  Both are from Wendy Rogers.

House Ways &Means meets at 9 a.m. in HHR3.  On the agenda: eight bills. Includes SB1331,.increasing the income tax exemption for capital gains.

Senate Government meets at 9 a.m. in SHR1.  On the agenda: 12 proposals.  At least nine are bad.

Senate Health and Human Services meets at 9 a.m. in SHR2.  On the agenda: 10 bills.

Senate Regulatory Affairs and Government Efficiency meets at 9 a.m. in SHR109.  On the agenda  seven bills.  Includes HB2068, working title "landlord tenant; assistance animals". I admit that I don't know much about this bill, but lobbyists for the Arizona Multihousing Association have weighed in as in favor of the bill,  while disability advocates have registered as opposed to it.  So the bill is bad for real people.

Senate Education meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR1.  On the agenda: five bills.

Senate Judiciary and Elections meets at 2 p.m. in SHR2.  On the agenda: 15 bills.  Includes HB2728,  adding religious programs to the list of programs that a court can order be used for a DUI.  There are other MAGA-related bill regarding elections on this agenda.

Senate Public Safety meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR109.  On the agenda: seven bills.  Includes HB2896, appropriating General Fund monies and giving it to law enforcement agencies to buy aerial drones.

House Appropriation meets at 2 p.m. in HHR1.  On the agenda: five bills.

House Federalism, Military Affairs & Elections meets at 2 p.m. in HHR4.  On the agenda: 10 bills.  Some MAGA propaganda bills.

House Transportation & Infrastructure meets at 2 p.m. in HHR3.  On the agenda: six bills.  Includes SB1019, Wendy Rogers' scheme to ban photo radar traffic enforcement systems in Arizona.

On Thursday, 3/13 - Nada.

Sneaky bad bill alert: HB2546

It's scheduled to go before the AZ Senate's Judiciary and Elections committee this week.

It passed in the House unanimously but certain folks may not have read it.

Proposed by Lupe Diaz (R-LD19), the bill would add a section to Arizona state law to mandate that county recorders oversee school board elections.

Problem?  It completely bypasses county boards of supervisors.

And the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors and the current Maricopa County Recorder, Justin Heap, aren't best of friends.

To put it mildly.

From Votebeat, written by Jen Fifield, dated 2/27 -

In Arizona’s Maricopa County, a public ‘battle’ for control of elections

Maricopa County’s new recorder is rejecting an agreement that splits control of the county’s elections between his office and supervisors, and is threatening to sue the supervisors if they don’t give him more power.

Recorder Justin Heap’s protest puts control over elections in the state’s most populous and high-profile swing county up in the air and sets up a messy fight between prominent Republican officials that could affect voters, with local elections approaching in May and the 2026 gubernatorial election looming.

As of now, the AZ associations for school superintendents and counties oppose the bill.

Legislative schedule - week starting 3/3/2025

There aren't any strikers listed on agendas at this point, but that is something that is subject to change at a moment's notice.

Note: HHR refers to a hearing room in the House building; SHR refers to one in the Senate building.

Note2: Generally, I'll only specify bills that look to spread propaganda.  Other bills may be more conventionally bad (think: corrupt or other misuses of public monies and/or authority).  My recommendation is that if an agenda covers an area of interest to you, read the entire agenda.

Note3: Each chamber's respective Rules Committee meets on Monday, the House's in HHR4, generally at 1 p.m. and the Senate's in Senate Caucus Room 1, generally also at 1 p.m.  Both committees serve as rubber stamps for bills leadership wants to be advanced and gatekeepers for measures that leadership wants stopped.

Note4: Meeting start times may be listed, but are flexible.  Before journeying to the Capitol or viewing the meeting online, verify the start time.

Note5: Watch for strikers, or strike everything amendments.  Those involve inserting language that replaces the entirety of a bill.  Those can be introduced at any time and can make a previously harmless bill become a very bad one. 

On Monday, 3/3 

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House and Senate Rules meet at 1 p.m. in their respective rooms.  On the agendas: many bills.  They may meet more than once this week, but, as of now, they're on the schedule once.

Senate Finance meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR1.  On the agenda: 13 bills.

House Health & Human Services meets at 2 p.m. in HHR4.  On the agenda: five bills.  Includes SB1072, capping the time limit for certain complaints to the medical board at one year (if the board hasn't handed down a judgement after having the complaint for year, then the matter in considered to be closed). .

On Tuesday, 3/4 

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Senate Natural Resource meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR1.  On the agenda: five proposals and three presentations.  The presentations are slated to be from industry bigwigs, which is fair, because all of the proposals read as if they were written by industry lobbyists.

House Education meets at 2 p.m. in HHR1.  On the agenda: four bills.

On Wednesday, 3/5 

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House Government meets at 9 a.m. in HHR5.  On the agenda: three bills, all propaganda.  SB1013 would require all counties and municipalities to have a 2/3 vote of their supervising council/board in order to raise a fee or tax; SB1015 would bar a municipality or county from regulating blockchain technology; and SB1023, which would bar, with certain exceptions, all businesses and governmental entities in AZ from contracting with a company for "critical infrastructure" if that company it controlled by, or by citizens of, China, Iran, North Korea, or Russia.

Since Russia is included, I'm guessing that this isn't an idea that Cheeto wants to see take hold.

Senate Health and Human Services meets at 9 a.m.in SHR2.  On the agenda: six bills, four House bills to be voted on and two Senate bills to be discussed.

Senate Regulatory Affairs and Government Efficiency meets at 9 a.m. in SHR109.  On the agenda: seven bills, including a couple that read as if they were written by industry lobbyists.

House Ways & Means meets at 10 a.m.in HHR3.  On the agenda: one bill.

Senate Government meets at 10 a.m. in SHR1.  On the agenda: three bills.  All ugly. HB2062 is an anti-trans bill; HB2113 would bar the flying of rainbow flags et. al. over public land; and HB2221 would bar municipalities from reducing police budgets.

Senate Education meets at 1:30 p.m.in SHR1.  On the agenda: four presentations touting private education and four bills.  Includes HB2018, which would give public money to private companies who operate "degree granting private postsecondary" institutions.

Senate Judiciary and Elections meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR2.  On the agenda: 23 proposals. Includes HB2546, placing Justin Heap and other county recorders in charge of school board elections.

Mandating that someone like Heap, who is notorious for his hatred for his hatred of democracy, be in charge of ANY elections, is a bad idea that does nothing to benefit the public interest.

Senate Public Safety Committee of Reference (COR) meets at 1:30 p.m. in SHR109.  On the agenda: one presentation.

Senate Public Safety meets at 2:10 p.m. (or upon adjournment of COR) in SHR109.  On the agenda: 12 bills.  Includes HB2684, an anti-homeless people pedestrians in roadway medians bill

House Federalism, Military Affairs & Elections meets at 2 p.m. in HHR4.  On the agenda: three bills.

On Thursday, 3/6 - Nada.

GOPer legislators lied? I'm shocked! Shocked, I say!

That was sarcasm, for folks who aren't regular readers - I'm not really shocked.

From KJZZ, written by Howard Fischer of Capitol Media Services -

9th U.S. Circuit: GOP lawmakers acted with discriminatory intent when adopting new AZ voting laws

A federal appeals court concluded there is evidence Arizona legislators acted with discriminatory intent when they approved some 2022 laws requiring proof of citizenship to vote.

In a 79-page ruling, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said federal law decides who can vote in federal elections. And that, wrote Judge Ronald Gould for the majority, supersedes legislation approved by Republican lawmakers to deny a ballot to those without such proof.

In many ways, Tuesday's ruling is not a surprise. It affirms what U.S. District Court Judge Susan Bolton concluded two years ago.

"Acted with discriminatory intent" is judge-speak for "you're full of shit", but because of their wish to adhere to their profession's decorum, they couldn't say that directly.  I'm not a professional, so I can -

The GOPS in the AZ legislature were (and usually are) full of shit.

As judges are also trained attorneys, it took them 79 pages to be tactful.

I recommend reading the entire article - there are good parts of the article; too many to cite here.

Legislative schedule - week starting 2/23/2025

It's shaping up to be a relatively quiet week at the Capitol (there are some very bad bills under consideration this week, but only three committees meeting), but could change in a heartbeat.  Committee meetings could be scheduled, and bad amendments could be proposed, at any time.  As such, anything I write here comes with the caveat - 

"As of this writing."

It's something that's true every week that the Arizona State Legislature is in session, but it's truer this week than most weeks.

Note: HHR refers to a hearing room in the House building; SHR refers to one in the Senate building.

Note2: Generally, I'll only specify bills that look to spread propaganda.  Other bills may be more conventionally bad (think: corrupt or other misuses of public monies and/or authority).  My recommendation is that if an agenda covers an area of interest to you, read the entire agenda.

Note3: Each chamber's respective Rules Committee meets on Monday, the House's in HHR4, generally at 1 p.m. and the Senate's in Senate Caucus Room 1, generally also at 1 p.m.  Both committees serve as rubber stamps for bills leadership wants to be advanced and gatekeepers for measures that leadership wants stopped.

Note4: Meeting start times may be listed, but are flexible.  Before journeying to the Capitol or viewing the meeting online, verify the start time.

Note5: Watch for strikers, or strike everything amendments.  Those involve inserting language that replaces the entirety of a bill.  Those can be introduced at any time and can make a previously harmless bill become a very bad one. 

On Monday, 2/24 

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House and Senate Rules meet at 1 p.m. in their respective rooms.  On the agendas: many bills.  They may meet more than once this week, but, as of now, they're on the schedule once.

House Appropriations meets at 10 a.m. in HHR1.  On the agenda: 22 bills, five with strikers scheduled to be offered.  One, proposed by Republican Jeff Weninger, proposes to amend HB2325 to create a "pilot program" for the state's budget via blockchain technology (the requirements look to be so specific as to constitute a de facto single source contract ["de facto" means "in everything but name]); another, proposed by Republican Justin Olson, would amend HB2926 to both implement a work requirement for AHCCCS eligibility and to discontinue AHCCCS eligibility for people whose income is above the federal property level if the federal government doesn't subsidize AHCCCS to the tune of 90% (currently, it's 80%).

My guess is if that makes it the governor's desk, it'll be vetoed.  One that I don't expect to make it to the governor's desk is a striker to to HB2496, proposed by Democratic member Nancy Gutierrez.  It would turn the bill into one that would increase the penalty for leaving a firearm where it can be and/or is accessed by a minor.

On Tuesday, 2/25 

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Senate Appropriations meets at 9 a.m. in SHR109.  On the agenda: 32 bills, three with proposed strikers.  Surprisingly enough, there are some bills worthy of support; not surprisingly, all were proposed by Democratic members. SB1571, from Theresa Hatathlie, would fund a study on the communities affected by the closure of the Navajo Generating Station; SB1575, also from Hatathlie, would fund the construction and operation of a dialysis unit in a certain hospital in Apache County; and SB1671, from Sally Gonzales, which would add Native American traditional healing services to things that are covered by AHCCCS.

On Wednesday, 2/26 

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Senate Education meets at 9 a.m. in SHR1.  On the agenda: nada (for now, anyway).

On Thursday, 2/27 - nada.