Ben Quayle fails geography

Ya know, you'd think that when his father opened up his rolodex of names of competent political campaign staffers to help his son buy his way into Congress, he'd have given his son a name (or two or three) of a competent office staffer, too.

However, based on today's news, you'd think wrong.

From the Arizona Guardian (story is behind subscription paywall, so the link is to the general site):

Congressman Ben Quayle's always been accused of being a carpetbagger of sorts but the GA's thinking this is getting a bit out of hand. It seems Congress' most famous son of an ex-vice president doesn’t even know where he serves these days. It appears that Quayle thinks he works for the good people of Illinois' sixth congressional district and actually wants to nominate the kids there to one if the country's military academies. That's right, according to Quayle's congressional website he says, "I may nominate applicants who are legally domiciled within the boundaries of the sixth District of Illinois."

Well, there's a silver lining in all this for Quayle - right now, his nicknames tend to be potato-based ("li'l spud", "potatoe chip", etc.) but those are based on something his father did, not that he did himself (hmmmm...sounds a LOT like his political career... :) ).

With this, perhaps for the first time in his life, he's earned something completely on his own.

Hereafter (or at least until his next embarrassing screwup) let Ben Quayle be known to all as

Rep. Ben Quayle (R-copy and paste).

Race for Phoenix Mayor: Mulitcultural Conversation event Tuesday

Thanks for the heads-up on this to Felecia Rotellini...

Greg Stanton and the other mayoral candidates in Phoenix be part of a forum tomorrow evening at Phoenix College.

From OneCommunity.co -

Phoenix is a minority-majority city, it is imperative that our next Mayor communicates with our diverse communities. Bring your questions and join us for “A Multicultural Conversation with the Candidates for Mayor" on April 19, 2011 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Bulpitt Auditorium at Phoenix College. The format will include two general questions for each candidate and conclude with questions fielded from the audience.

A Multicultural Conversation with the Candidates for Mayor is presented by Phoenix College, ONE Community, and the Maricopa Community Colleges. Event partners include Arizona Latino Research Enterprise, Arizona Progress, Arizona Small Business Association, Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Arizona Informant, Chicanos Por La Causa, Inc., Echo Magazine, Greater Phoenix Black Chamber of Commerce, Greater Phoenix Urban League, Human Rights Campaign, Latino Perspectives Magazine, Local First Arizona, 'N Touch News Magazine, National Association of Asian American Professionals, National Association of Real Estate Brokers, Native American Connections, National Black MBA Association, Inc. Phoenix Chapter, Univision, and Valle del Sol. The forum will be taped and re-broadcast on the Maricopa Community College Television Station – MCTV.

Stanton is the one outstanding candidate in a field filled with tea baggers, corporate hacks, and pretenders.  If you want to take my word for, take the opportunity to see all of the candidates in one place.  Phoenix college is a cool place, and it's easy to get to from the freeway.

Phoenix College Bulpitt Auditorium


1202 West Thomas Road

Phoenix, AZ
April 19, 2011 - 5:30pm - 7:30pm

Sine Die on Tuesday?

MSM outlets like the Arizona Capitol Times and the Arizona Republic are reporting that Senate President Russell Pearce has said that the lege could adjourn its 2011 regular session tomorrow.

From the Republic story (from AP) -

Senate President Russell Pearce says the Arizona Legislature could end its 2011 regular session as soon as Tuesday.

Pearce offered his estimate after the conclusion of the first of several Senate floor sessions expected to be held Monday.

In honor of that plan/scheme/dream, the House is holding a marathon floor session right now, and the Senate is scheduled to begin a floor session tomorrow morning at 8:30 a.m., a full five hours earlier than the normal start time for a floor session.

If you want to be bored (they're just voting, with no debate or "explanations of votes) right now, go to this page and click on "View Live Proceedings."

Arizona legislature week in review and preview of the upcoming week

This is a long post, so grab a beer (or your favorite beverage of choice) before settling down to read this one... :)

As the legislative session enters its (expected) final days, they're getting ever more creative in the ways they push through their favored bits of legislation.

From this week's Farley Report, courtesy State. Rep. Steve Farley (courtesy Blog for Arizona):

Let me review for you some of the many ways bills can pass during the dramatic last couple of weeks of our session. All of these methods can happen all at once, creating a dizzying array of dangerous bills coming at us from all angles at blazing speed with virtually no public input. We may not be fully aware of what happened during this crazy time until weeks later. Here's just four bill enactment strategies being used right now:

1) The "simple" old fashioned way -- a bill is introduced in the House by a House member, heard in committee, passed through Rules and Committee of the Whole (COW) on the floor, and voted on in Third Read. Then that process starts over in the Senate. If it gets through the Senate unamended, it travels to the Governor for her signature or veto.

2) As a striker in committee -- The bill in example #1 can be replaced by an entirely different bill in a committee hearing -- often one that had stalled somewhere else in the process. This can be a shortcut to get around a certain legislator who may stand in the way. These can sneak up on you with little warning.

3) As an amendment to a germane bill on the floor in COW -- If a bill with an appropriate subject can be found in COW, a member can amend a bill of a similar topic to that bill so they both travel along their journey together. This happens with much greater frequency in the last couple of weeks as legislators frantically try to save bills that are otherwise on life support. Floor amendments are sometimes not available until a half hour before they are debated in floor, and can get lost in the competing noise of other amendments, so they can slip by nearly unnoticed.

4) As a conference committee amendment -- If that bill in example #1 gets amended in the Senate, it has to come back over to the House for the sponsor to either concur or refuse the amendments. If the sponsor concurs, the bill goes to Final Read and is sent to the Governor. If the sponsor refuses, however, the bill goes to a Conference Committee wherein much mischief can happen. Conference Committees have no notice requirements, and are made up of four Republicans and two Democrats. The deal is already done by the four Republicans before the gavel comes down, and the voting happens with little discussion and less testimony.

This past week, #3, the floor amendment in COW, was used a number of times.

- SB1080 passed the House almost unanimously - 55 in favor, 1 opposed (Democrat  Daniel Patterson) and 4 absent.  Relatiing to statutes regarding custodial interference, it was amended twice on the floor of the House, by Republican Reps. Eddie Farnsworth and Terri Proud.  It looks relatively non-controversial, but because of the late amendments, it will need to return to the Senate for final approval.

- SB1195 passed the House 53 - 1 (Republican Judy Burges), 6 absent.  Relating to service companies, it was amended on the floor by Republican Nancy McLain.  It was also have to return to the Senate.

- SB1303 passed the House unanimously.  Relating to school dropout recovery, it was amended on the floor by Republican Nancy McLain and will need to return to the Senate.

- SB1186 passed the House unanimously after it was amended by Republicans Andy Tobin and Jack Harper.  It's basically a "technical corrections" bill relating to tax laws, though whenever Republicans are involved, we should all be a little leery.  It now goes to a conference committee as the original sponsor of the measure, Sen. Steve Yarbrough, didn't sign off on the changes made by the House.

- HB2237 passed the Senate unanimously after it was amended by Republican Rich Crandall.  It relates to joint technical educational districts (JTEDs) and determining student counts.  It returns to the House for final approval.


The above bills were pretty non-controversial and the amendments to them pretty much furthered the intent of the underlying measure.

For the following bills, that's not so true -

- HB2067 passed the Senate almost unanimously (3 Ds opposed) after it was amended by Republican Andy Biggs.  As originally crafted, it served to limit the ability of county boards of supervisors to form and run non-profit entities.  Biggs' amendment turned it into an attack on the Arizona Board of Regents' control of University Medical Center in Tucson.  Yup, Andy Biggs wants to take control of the hospital that saved the lives of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and many of the other victims of Jared Loughner's mass shooting and give it over to a bunch of political hacks.  It now goes to a conference committee to iron out differences.
- SB1313 passed the House by a 38 - 18 - 4 vote that was mostly party line (2 Rs crossed over, 4 Ds absent).  As originally crafted, it requires the voters of a county to approve the establishment of a public health district in that county.  Currently laws allows the county's board of supervisors to do so by a unanimous vote.  Republican Jack Harper, long a favorite of mine (for those readers unfamiliar with the concept, that last bit was sarcasm :) ) however, has amended the bill to mandate what sort of procurement procedures public health districts utilize.

Other bills that passed one or both chambers last week:

- HB2177, Arizona's "birther" bill, passed both the House and the Senate on party line votes.  It now sits on Jan Brewer's desk.  Expectations are that the state is going to need to issue an RFP for all of the pens she will use to sign it into law.

- HB2191, barring the award of punitive damages to undocumented immigrants for any reason, passed the House on a nearly party line vote (1 D crossed over).  It's on the governor's desk awaiting her signature.

- HB2002, barring school districts from expending money to join organizations that "attempt to influence the outcome of an election" passed the House on a party line vote after being amended in the Senate to remove an exemption for joining a chamber of commerce.  On the governor's desk.

- SB1169, taking the Board of Nursing's authority to decide scope of practice matters regarding abortion and giving it to the lege itself, gained final approval in the Senate on a party line vote.  On the governor's desk.

- SB1188, granting a perference in adoption to married heterosexual couples; single people have to jump through serious hoops, and same sex couples need not apply, passed the Senate on a party line vote.  Governor's desk.

- SB1453, creating a set of "rights" saying that parents have almost absolute authority* to control their children's school work - call it the "Algebra is the Devil's Work" bill - passed the Senate on a party line vote.  Signed by the governor on Friday.  * = This is a little over the top.  It allows parents to censor any course material they consider to be too profane, vulgar, sexual, or violent.  On the other hand, you'd be surprised by how many people consider basic math or science to be objectionable.

- HB2565, creating a similar set of rights for post-secondary students, passed the Senate on a party line vote.  Back to the House for final approval.

- HB2193, relating to municipal wastewater charges, passed the Senate on a mostly party line vote (1 R and 2 Ds crossed over).  Back to the House for approval of Senate changes.

- HB2006, allowing firearms within game refuges, passed the Senate on a mostly party line vote (1 D crossing over, 1 D and 1 R absent).  Back to the House for approval of Senate changes.

- HB2102, barring the issuance of professional licenses or fingerprint clearance cards , passed the Senate on a party line vote.  Back to the House for a conference committee.  Republican nativist John Kavanagh is part of the conference, so there is a distinct possibility of serious mayhem here.

- SB1116, barring the state's universities from establishing or participating in institutes that advocate specific public policies, passed the Senate on a party line vote.  Looks to be targeted at ASU's Morrison Institute for Public Policy and U of A's Udall Center for Studies in Public Policy.  On the governor's desk.

- SB1521, relating to the establishment of head injury and concussion policies for scholastic athletes, passed the Senate unanimously.  On the governor's desk.  Originally pushed by Democratic State Rep. Ben Arredondo, his proposal died because the Republicans liked it (mostly) but refused to move any measure that made a Democrat look good.  The Republicans in the Senate demanded that any version passed by them feature a Republican name as the primary sponsor.  Hence, SB1521 passed with Republican Rich Crandall as the lead sponsor.  On the governor's desk.

- SB1167, placing all sort of restrictions on legal challenges to the ballot status of measures referred to the ballot by the legislature, passed the Senate by a party line vote.  On the governor's desk.

- SB1201, a "firearms omnibus" bill, passed the Senate on a party line vote.  Ugly, and on the governor's desk.

- SB1472, mandating certain information be included in judicial retention election publicity pamphlets, passed the Senate on a party line vote.  On the governor's desk.

- SB1593, allowing out of state insurers to sell health insurance in Arizona and not be subject to Arizona regulations (what few there are), passed the Senate on a party line vote.  On the governor's desk.

- SB1598, restricting the ability of municipalities and counties to regulate within their jurisdictions, passed the Senate by a mostly party line vote (1 D crossed over).

- SB1166, exempting corporate self-leases from sales tax, passed the House on a mostly party line vote (1 R crossed over).  On the governor's desk.

- SB1171, mandating that Pima County transfer any county-owned and operated sewage facilities located in Marana to Marana , passed the House by a mostly party line vote (4 Rs crossed over).  On the governor's desk.

- SB1326,  making the Gadsden flag, the "Don't Tread On Me" flag commandeered by the tea party movement as its symbol, exempt from HOA regulations, passed the House on a mostly party line vote (1 D crossed over).  On the governor's desk.

- SB1592, directing the governor to enter into a new Confederacy alliance/interstate compact regarding health care, passed the House on a party line vote.


That's a lot of [insert your own perjorative term here], and the coming week should be even crazier -

On Monday's House Third Read (final passage) Calendar -

- SB1088, amended in House COW to become a new Confederacy alliance/interstate compact act related to health care.  Will need to return to the Senate when passed by the House.

- SB1200, serving to reduce the use of ignition interlock systems for drivers convicted on DUI.  Amended on the House floor by Republican Vic Williams here and here, so it will need to return to the Senate when passed by the House.

- SB1226, limiting the ability of municipalities to levy secondary property taxes.  This was part of a committee striker in the House, so it will need to return to the Senate for them to approve the changes.

- SB1334, allowing hunting within city limits and barring municipalities from regulating it.  Amended on the House floor by Republicans Eddie Farnsworth and Amanda Reeve, so it will need to return to the Senate after passage by the House.

- SB1357, creating a $25 fee that must be paid by AHCCCS patients for missed appointments before they can make another appointment with a doctor/health care provider.  Also, there's a provision that would allow political subdivisions (counties, municipalities, etc.) to pony up the necessary money for health care to qualify for federal matching funds.  There's nothing in it to say where those subdivisions will find the money, but that's just a minor detail, right?

- SB1365, barring, under most circumstances, payroll deductions for political purposes.  Aimed at unions.  Amended on the House floor by Republican Andy Tobin, so it will need to return to the Senate for approval of the changes.

- SB1406, relating to a new Confederacy alliance/interstate compact relating to the construction of a fence across the border with Mexico.  Amended on the House floor by Republican Russ Jones to create a border security commission designed only to include nativist sheriffs such as Joe Arpaio and Paul Babeu.  When passed by the House, will need to return to the Senate.

- SB1465, barring the acceptance of consular-issued cards as valid identification.  Doesn't look to have been amended, so it will go to the governor upon passage.

- SB1495, establishing an armed military force separate from the national guard, answerable only to the Governor of Arizona, and funded by money siphoned from the national guard.  Goes to the governor upon passage.


The Senate's Third Read Calendar for Monday is here.

The Senate Rules Committee will meet on Monday at 11:15 a.m. in Caucus Room 1.  They'll be seeking permission for the late introduction of a bill relating to "Arizona Ombudsman-Citizens' Aide."  Has a similar basic title as HB2382, which never moved forward.  It was sponsored by Democrats.  However, the text of the late bill hasn't been posted as yet, so it may be a totally different measure.

If the measure is introduced, it will be heard in Senate Government Reform on Monday at 4 p.m or upon adjournment of the floor session, in SHR1.



Other events this week: 

The Legislature's Capitol Events calendar is here.  Tone-deaf highlight of the week:  Just a few weeks after the revelations that Fiesta Bowl lobbyists plied legislators with laundered campaign contributions and junkets to college football games, legislators and lobbyists are getting together Monday to party play a game of softball in honor of a late lobbyist.

The Arizona Capitol Times' Capitol Calendar is here.

Whew!

Top Secret!

Know the definition of "good" satire? 

You read it and think "this could really be true."

This is VERY good.


By Brent Abrahamson, of The Massachusetts Observer.  Gratefully reprinted with permission.

For Your Eyes Only


Gentlemen, thank you for joining me here today. For obvious reasons, I must ask that no notes of any kind be taken during our discussions. Recording devices of any kind are prohibited. Before you leave, you will pass through a scanner to ascertain that you have complied with our requests. Cell phones, of course, were to have been left outside this boardroom. Any questions before we begin? Good.


Now, Gentlemen, we know the problem. Our laboring class only has a certain number of productive years. Beyond that, they become a burden. As we plan for the future, we must capitalize on labor’s productive years while reducing each laborer’s longevity. Only then can we realize the maximum profits our shareholders demand.


Fortunately, we have greatly improved the landscape with our Tea Party promotions. This was a brilliant idea. Through strategic financing we have created what appears to be a grass roots movement from among the laboring class itself. There has been some minor vocal opposition, but this can be handled. Our advertizing folks tell us that just a bit of tweaking will make the Tea Partiers emerge as the voices of reason, the voices of morality, the voices of fiscal restraint, and the voices of patriotism. This is perfect.


It is therefore imperative, Gentlemen, that every proposal have those four elements. Each proposal must be seen as being reasonable, moral, fiscally responsible, and patriotic. And from our point of view, Gentlemen, each proposal must raise labor’s productivity while reducing labor’s longevity. When Wall Street teams up with Madison Avenue, nothing is impossible.


Here’s an example. Think tobacco. Think smoking. We need to reverse our policies here. We know, Gentlemen, that cigarette smoking can reduce the lifespan of the participant; yet public money is spent trying to get people to quit smoking. This works at cross-purposes with our goal, Gentlemen. The good news is that we can reverse this.


First, we must drop all taxes on cigarettes and other tobacco products. This will be seen as a victory for freedom. Then we must subsidize our tobacco industry so that buying a pack of cigarettes will be possible for even the poorest laborer. We must eliminate any age restriction on its purchase and use. And, Gentlemen, we must repeal restrictions on where the product may be used. It must be welcomed in restaurants and bars and clubs. Faculty rooms, break rooms. Anywhere people gather. Now some of you Gentlemen may be objecting that you might be subject to this second-hand smoke. Think about it for a moment, Gentlemen. You aren’t going to be going to those places and the places that you do frequent are out of labor’s price range.


We must allow for free enterprise by removing all restrictions on advertising cigarettes. Smoking must be “sold” in a variety of ways. It’s fun. It’s sexy. It’s macho. It’s for the modern woman. Above all, it is patriotic. Americans will be supporting an American industry.


People who are anti-smoking are anti-American. No public funds may be expended to determine health effects because we have already settled the case. Smoking is American. It’s cheap. It’s a way to help your country while helping yourself.


Don’t you see, Gentlemen, how perfect this is? When we couple this with no access to real health care, we can’t lose. (note: We need to allow free access to euthanasia. We must sell this option as “patriotic” and as a “family value.” “Lingering on robs your kids”).


This is only one example of so much more we can do, Gentlemen. I hope you great thinkers will get things rolling. The time to strike is now. Here’s a toast, Gentlemen. Long live our class.


©2011 The Massachusetts Observer

Guest Column: Stop! Thief!

Written by friend of the blog, and friend of the blogger, Jerry Gettinger.

Stop! Thief!

They are stealing from your children. I mean they are taking away an important item from your child. Why aren’t you angry? If you came home one night after seeing a movie and discovered that your new flat screen TV had been taken by a thief, you probably would be quite angry. You would be even angrier if you found out that the person who took the TV was the same person you asked to watch your house while you were out that evening.


In a manner of speaking, that is what is happening to your child. They are taking away his or her knowledge that they will most surely need when they have to compete against those whose parents didn’t allow anything to be taken from their children. Why have you allowed them to do what they said they would not do…take your children’s education away. Oh sure, the schools are still open. But they are rapidly becoming warehouses where young people go to spend a day trying to get the teacher’s attention because they didn’t have a solution to a problem. 35 kids in a kindergarten classroom! What a nightmare!


What did they do with the money that they took from our children? They gave some to a sheriff to use to defend his county against illegal immigrants. Oh, by the way, his county isn’t on the border. They also gave Sheriff Joe some of that money to rescue a dog. I’m not against dogs; it’s just that we need to get our priorities straight.


My children are grown. I had six and they all received a good education. It shows now that they are adults. They are able to compete for good jobs, they learned how to reason and arrive at conclusions that aid them in making decisions. Sure, I paid higher taxes. But they went to school with a pencil box and 4 pencils. Everything else was supplied.


Think about it. They have taken from your children an education, they have taken the ability to compete, and most of all, and they have stolen the ability to reason.




Why aren’t you angry? You elected these people to represent you and what they did was take from you and yours. Why aren’t you angry?


Somebody yell “stop thief!”

Nearly $100 million is missing!! Somebody call the sheriff! Oh wait...

From AP, via the Washington Post -

An examination in Arizona’s Maricopa County has found that the sheriff’s office, widely known for efforts against illegal immigrants, inappropriately spent $99 million from two jail funds over the last eight years to pay for other law enforcement operations — including immigration patrols.


The $99 million figure released Wednesday is an update to an estimate made in September by budget officials who said the sheriff’s office was believed to have used $60 million and $80 million over four or five years from a jail tax on other purposes. Since then, officials said they discovered that the sheriff’s office had inappropriately spent money from a second jail account.

Hmmm...it seems that calling the sheriff to investigate this case would be like calling the fox to investigate a missing hen.

...On second thought, at $100 million, it's more like calling the fox to investigate a missing hen house.

...Actually, on third thought, at that price, make that "the missing hen house at the Taj Mahal".

SB1460: A "birther" bill aimed at neighborhood activists

Some people, including a few that I'm related to, scoff when others, including me, make the argument that the Republican Party's real agenda is, and has been for years, the protection and furtherance of the interests of Big Business and the wealthy (yeah, that's a little redundant, but just go with it  :) ).

Sometimes they don't hide that fact - witness the never-ending stream of tax cuts for corporations and the wealthiest 1%.

Other times, they try to hide it by burying it deep in "housekeeping" bills such as omnibus measures that make a lot of small changes to law.

Witness SB1460 (House floor amendment here), which passed House Committee of the Whole (COW) consideration on Monday.

It started its legislative existence as a short measure with the innocuous-sounding subject of "liquor licensees; records." 

And it actually *was* innocuous, being little more than a technical change.

Then it was amended in the Senate into a "liquor omnibus" bill, pushed by current state senator and likely future Congressional candidate Michele Reagan (R-North Scottsdale).


Buried among all manner of small revisions to liquor law is one rather stinky nugget regarding the ability of neighborhood groups to have input on proposed liquor licenses in their neighborhood (from the House amendment) -

"...the written argument shall contain the natural person’s complete name, street address or post office box address and written or electronic signature. If the written arguments are filed by a person on behalf of a corporation or other legal entity or association, the written arguments must be accompanied by a copy of the entities organizing document, a designation of the office or position that the person holds within the organization and a copy of the written appointment of the person to speak on behalf of the organization."

Current law contains no such provisions, and in the case of many neighborhood organizations, the required documents may not now be available, if they ever even existed.

It's sort of like the birthers' insistence on the presentation of a mythical "long form" birth certificate to prove eligibility for office.

Other facets of this that are designed to inhibit neighborhood input and opposition efforts:

- The requirements for arguments against a particular liquor license don't apply to those submitting arguments in support of that license

- Under the provisions of the bill, people couldn't argue against a permit application based on the applicant, only the location.  The late Jeffrey Dahmer could apply for a liquor license and neighbors could only speak about the place, not the cannibal

- If the ownership of a facility holding a non-transferable license changes and it becomes necessary for there to be a hearing on the issuance of a new license for a new owner, there will be a presumption that the license is needed and appropriate.  The burden of proof will then be on the neighborhood to prove otherwise if they have problems with the license location

All of the above provisions from Reagan/the liquor industry seem to be designed to promote profitability at the expense of community input.

However, these aren't the only provisions that sacrifice good governance in favor of industry whims.

One provision allows the expansion of previously existing licensed businesses that are within 300 feet of schools, churches, and recreational areas adjacent to schools.  Others remove the ability of cities and towns to manage local zoning or to collect administrative fees relating to liquor license applications, even when the municipality incurs costs relating to liquor licenses.

I know that Sen. Reagan is the chair of the Senate's Economic Development and Jobs Creation, but it seems that the only "economy" she is trying to develop is the economy of an "industry" that does nothing to enhance society (and I say this as someone who has been known to imbibe occasionally).

SB1460 is scheduled for Third Read (final passage) in the House on Tuesday.  If it passes, and I presume that it will, it will then need to go back to the Senate for approval of the changes made by the House.  It should then reach the Senate floor on Thursday or early next week.

Arizona legislature: Week in review and preview of the coming week

In a development this past week that is both "review" and "preview," Senate President Russell Pearce threatened/promised to bring back some of his anti-immigrant measures that failed to pass earlier in the session.

From a Howard Fischer-written story, courtesy the East Valley Tribune -

Unwilling to accept defeat, Senate President Russell Pearce is going to make one last bid to convince Republican colleagues to approve new state laws aimed at illegal immigrants.

{snip}

But Pearce said there are "enforcement provisions" in his SB 1611, one of the defeated bills, that he believes can get sufficient support for approval.

One section, for example, would require public housing authorities to evict any family where even just one member is an illegal immigrant. Other provisions would make it a crime for an illegal immigrant to drive a vehicle in Arizona and restrict the ability of those not here legally to register a vehicle.

There also is another bid to deny illegal immigrants admission into any state university or community college.

That will probably pop up later in the week, as most of Monday's agendas have already been posted:

- On Monday's House's "Final Read" calendar, signing off on changes to previously approved House bills that the Senate added before forwarding the measures to the Governor -

HB2103, exempting "baked and confectionary goods from the Arizona Department of Health Services (DHS) rules relating to food safety, if the product is made in a private home for commercial purposes, is not potentially hazardous and is properly labeled.  Requires DHS to establish an online registry of persons who are authorized to prepare the exempt product." (Quoting the legislative summary for this measure)

HB2191, a retroactive "emergency" measure (meaning that it will go into effect immediately upon the signature of the Governor, if passed by a 2/3 vote), barring the award of punitive damages to undocumented immigrants.  This is essentially a "private" bill to help out a rancher who held a number of immigrants at gunpoint and lost a lawsuit over the incident.  However, it's a private bill with long-term public effects.


- On the House's Third Read (final passage) calendar for Monday -

SB1166, exempting from sales taxes commercial leases between two entities of the same corporation

SB1171, allowing Marana to take over a wastewater treatment facility run by Pima County.  Dueling op-eds on the issue here and here

SB1326, barring HOAs from restricting the display of the "Gadsden" flag (the one that says "Don't tread on me") that has been commandeered by tea party types


- The House COW (Committee of the Whole) calendars for Monday are here, here, here, here, and here.

- The House Rules Committee agenda for Monday (1 p.m. in HHR4) is here.

Both of the above categories can serve as a preview of House action later in the week.


- Over in the Senate, they haven't posted a Third Read calendar as yet, but their Monday COW calendar is here.

- Monday's agenda for the Senate Rules Committee (10:30 a.m., Caucus Room 1) is here.

- Four Senate committees are scheduled to meet on Monday to consider executive nominations - Natural Resources and Transportation (SHR109), Education (SHR3), Judiciary (SHR1), Commerce and Energy (SHR109, after Natural Resources and Transportation) - and one, Water, Land Use, and Rural Development, is scheduled to meet on Wednesday in SHR109 at 11 a.m. or upon adjournment of the floor session, also to consider an executive nomination.

The legislature's Capitol Events calendar for the week is here (highlight: on Monday, they're going to travel to the Ben Avery Shooting Range and play with their guns); the Arizona Capitol Times' Capitol Calendar is here.


Last week was relatively quiet on the bill passage front..."relatively" being the key word here - lots of bad bills passed, one already being signed into law by Jan Brewer:

SB1288, allowing "professionals" a free pass on unprofessional conduct that is based on their religious beliefs.  Passed the House on a mostly party line vote (1 R crossed over, 1 D absent)

SB1403, barring any state agency or political subdivision (counties, municipalities, school districts, etc.) from conditioning the award of public works contracts on the use of union labor, passed the House on a party line vote on Monday and signed into law by the Governor on Wednesday

SB1165, prohibiting "municipalities from contracting with or employing auditors on a contingent fee basis for the purpose of auditing any transaction privilege tax (TPT) or affiliated taxes levied and from contracting with a third party for the collection, administration or processing of those taxes, with exceptions" (quoting the legislative summary), passed the House on a somewhat party line vote (8 of 20 Ds supported, 3 of 40 Rs opposed, 1 D absent)

SB1412, revisions to early voting rules, passed the House on a party line vote Tuesday and the Senate concurred with House amendments on Wednesday in a mixed vote (2 Ds and 1 R opposed, 2 Ds absent).  The key provision makes it a Class 5 felony to offer or provide, or receive or agree to receive, a "consideration" in exchange for an early ballot, be it voted or unvoted.  "Consideration" is not defined.  This bill was and is targeted at Democratic efforts to elevate voter turnout by accepting voted early ballots and delivering them to polling places/county elections.  I'm not sure, but offering to help someone save time or gas or anything else needed to turn in a ballot could now be a felony

HB2064, prohibiting the application of a foreign laws by Arizona's courts, agencies, or political subdivisions, but specifically exempting businesses and business associations from the prohibition, passed the Senate on a mostly party line vote (1 D supporting, 2 Ds absent) on Tuesday with the House concurring with Senate amendments by a party line vote on Thursday

HB2384, banning public monies from being used for providing training in the performance of abortions, passed the Senate on a party line vote.  Could result in the decertification of Maricopa Medical Center as a teaching hospital, resulting in the loss of its federal funding, a significant chunk of its annual revenue

HB2581, greatly expanding the school tuition tax credit for businesses, passed the Senate on a party line vote.  Should be called the "Steve Yarbrough Needs More Revenue" act

SB1553, school vouchers, now euphemistically called "Arizona Empowerment Accounts," passed the House on a party line vote Tuesday and House amendments to the measure were appoved by the Senate Thursday on a party line vote

HB2002, barring school districts from spending money on membership in organizations that attempt to "influence the outcome of an election", passed the Senate on a party line vote and now returns to the House for approval of Senate amendments to the bill

HB2301, allowing school districts to redirect funding for "soft capital" (books, desks, and other classroom needs) and using those monies to pay for operations and maintenance expenses, funding for which has been severely cut by the legislature , passed the Senate on a mostly party line vote (1 D supporting, 2 Ds absent) and now returns to the House for approval of Senate amendments ot the bill


Later...

What's the difference between the Tea Party and a black hole?

One is incredibly dense and sucks all of the light and energy from a collapsing stars and other things around them, and the other is an astonomical phenomenon.  :)

First, today's politics lesson from Republican House Speaker John Boehner, courtesy ABC News' George Stephanopoulos -

Speaker of the House John Boehner said he is in lockstep with the Tea Party on budget negotiations despite claims from Democrats that there could be a deal if only he could buck the Tea Party.


“Listen, there’s no daylight between the Tea Party and me,” Boehner told me today during our exclusive interview.

Now, today's science lesson, courtesy NationalGeographic.com -

Black holes are the cold remnants of former stars, so dense that no matter—not even light—is able to escape their powerful gravitational pull.


While most stars end up as white dwarfs or neutron stars, black holes are the last evolutionary stage in the lifetimes of enormous stars that had been at least 10 or 15 times as massive as our own sun.

Prediction time: Sine Die late next week

Yes, I basically predicted this weekend that this would be the last week of the regular legislative session, but that has turned out to be a little optimistic.

The adjusted prediction is based on a few factors -

1. The Rs screwed up the budget that they railroaded through last week, so they have to fix it this week.

2. A conversation this past weekend with a member, who predicted 2 - 3 more weeks.  The end of next week will be two legislative weeks after that conversation.

3. Some Senate committees are scheduled to meet Monday afternoon to consider a number of executive nominations.  It would be difficult to do that if the legislature has adjourned.  :)

As the committee meeting will end late in the afternoon, it will probably be too late in the day for the full Senate to approve the appointments on Monday.  Therefore, my new and improved sine die prediction is: 

Wednesday, April 13 at 2 p.m.


Note:  tomorrow, Wednesday, April 6 at 9 a.m., House Rules will meet in HHR3 to consider/rubberstamp a long agenda.

Is Jan Brewer a governor moonlighting as a lobbyist, or a lobbyist moonlighting as a governor?

Either way, she seems spend her days helping out Chuck Coughlin...

From the Arizona Republic, written by Ginger Rough -

Gov. Jan Brewer on Monday issued a statement in which she expressed "great disappointment and sadness" over the Fiesta Bowl scandal and pledged to convene a panel of Arizona business and athletic leaders to help the bowl repair its image.

"This panel will work in cooperation and consultation with the Fiesta Bowl Board of Directors so that steps are taken to ensure that the bowl emerges from this painful process a stronger, more accountable institution," Brewer's statement said.

Coughlin's Brewer's complete statement is here.

So you ask "What's the relationship here?"

- Chuck Coughlin is the head of what is likely Arizona's most influential lobbying firm, HighGround.

- Chuck Coughlin was and is Jan Brewer's biggest political "advisor," so influential that many consider him to be less an "advisor" and more a "puppeteer."

- Chuck Coughlin lists the Fiesta Bowl as a client on his website and is, in fact, hip deep in the growing scandal surrounding the Fiesta Bowl and its "gifts" and laundered campaign contributions to Arizona politicians.  From page 178 of the Fiesta Bowl's own report (emphasis mine) -

In October 2005, the Fiesta Bowl spent at least $18,453.95 on a legislative "dignitary" trip to Chicago.934 On October 28-30, 2005, Aguilar, Junker and Christine Martin traveled to Chicago with Arizona State Senators Linda Aguirre, Robert Blendu, Russell Pearce, and Linda Lopez from the Arizona House of Representatives. Accompanying these legislators were family members and guests John Aguirre, Robert Blendu, Jr., Toni Lopez, Dominic Evans, and LuAnn Pearce. General Counsel and Board member Williams was also part of this trip, as were members of Husk Partners and HighGround, including Gary and Cara Husk, Doug Cole, and Chuck Coughlin.935

Note: Doug Cole's name is highlighted because he works for Coughlin at HighGround.

Just one question:  Does Brewer fill out a time sheet?  We really shouldn't be paying her for the time she spends working on behalf of Coughlin's clients.

The end is near: Arizona Legislature week in review and the coming week

When both of the weekly legislative posts, both review and preview, can be combined, it's clear that the end of the legislative session is nigh.

- The biggest news last week was the railroading of a budget through the House on minimal notice.

Utilizing a lack of notice (nobody outside of the Speaker and Republican leadership seemed to know what was in the budget bills before the start of committee consideration) and an all-night session, they effectively forestalled public response to a budget that -

     - Cuts over $270 million from higher education

     - Tuition at the state's universities has already increased by 18% - 20% since FY08, with more large hikes on tap this year

     - Eliminates the requirement that the legislature provide a "match" for university financial aid monies raised from students
     - Cuts $180 million from K-12 education, leading to a likely increase in average class size to 40+

     - Increases funding support for charter schools

     - Shifts more than $130 million in costs to cities and counties, likely forcing cities and counties to raise taxes (unless the lege passes one of its proposals to bar cities and counties from doing just that

     -  Eliminates child care for poor working families

     - Reduces the time limit for temporary assistance to needy families to 24 months, a 33% reduction, and makes that time limit retroactive.  Families who have already received 24 months of assistance are immediately cut off

     - Balances the budget by drastically cutting AHCCCS and imposing some illegal copays on poor patients.  Arizona has tried this in the past, and the courts have struck down the move

     - Devastates Arizona's hospitals with cuts to reimbursement rates and cuts to "Prop 204" eligibility (covering people with an income of up to 100% of the federal property level - FPL).  On average, rural hospitals will lose more than 2/3 of their revenue ( "rural" = "outside of Maricopa and Pima counties)

     - Eliminates state General Fund support of the state's Water Protection Fund, pushing the costs for that to cities and towns

     - Eliminates the Arizona Department of Housing

     - Allows the director of the department of corrections to impose a fee/tax on deposits made to "prisoner spendable accounts"

     - Allows the director of the department of corrections to impose a fee for background checks for people visiting prisons (yes, this means that people are going to have to pay to visit imprisoned family members)

     - And more.  They wreaked a LOT of devastation upon Arizona in that one long session.

The budget bills were passed by both the House and Senate on party line votes and it now sits on the Governor's desk, awaiting her signature.

Other "highlight" -

- Jan Brewer signed the latest anti-abortion measure into law in a celebration/ceremony at the Center for Arizona Theocracy's Policy's annual fundraising dinner.  Among other things,  HB2416  compels a woman who seeks an abortion to view an ultrasound of her fetus and to listen to a heartbeat before an abortion procedure can be performed.


Things to look forward to in the coming week -

- Sine die, or the end of the legislative session.

There's no specific day set aside for that but with the passage of the budget and temperatures in Phoenix already hitting triple digits (the the growing Fiesta Bowl junkets/campaign contributions scandal), the legislative types want to get out of town ASAP.  Speculation is running that it will happen this week, possibly by Thursday.

Which leads to...

Long COW (Committee of the Whole) and Third Read (final approval) calendars in both chambers as things devolve into a mad scramble to pass a few more pieces of legislation before they all head for the hills.

Monday's House Third Read calendar is here; Tuesday's House COW calendars are here and here.

The House Rules Committee will meet Monday at 1 p.m. in HHR4.  Very long agenda of bills to be rubberstamped for floor consideration later in the week.

Monday's Senate COW calendar is here.

The Senate's Healthcare and Medical Liability Reform Committee will meet Wednesday at 2 p.m. in SHR1 to consider the appointment of Susan C. Stevens to the Psychiatric Security Review Board.

From the Governor's office's description of the Board -

"The Board maintains jurisdiction over persons who are committed to a secure state mental health facility; holds hearings to determine if a person committed to a secure state mental health facility is eligible for release or conditional release; devises a plan for the conditional release of a person in conjunction with the secure mental health facility and other appropriate community agencies or persons; confidentially maintains all medical, social, and criminal history records of persons who are committed to its jurisdiction; holds a hearing to determine if the conditions of release should be continued, modified, or terminated..."

Ms. Stevens appears to be an attorney/professional lobbyist, though a name like that makes for a lot of search results.

The Legislature's Events Calendar for the week is here.

The Arizona Capitol Times' Capitol Events Calendar is here.

Familiar names running for Phoenix City Council

Edited on 4/3 to add info that came to my attention after this post went up...

Proving once again that even in a city as large as Phoenix - 11th largest geographically, 6th largest in terms of population - in many ways it's a small town.

Some very familiar names have opened up campaign committees for Phoenix City Council this year (the District 2 committees are speculative - Peggy Neely would have to resign to run for mayor for that seat to be up for election this year) -

Janet Contreras, a former candidate for Congress in CD4, is running for the District 7 Council seat

Jim Waring, Republican former state senator and candidate for Congress in CD3, is running for District 2 (I think.  The form is handwritten and sloppy)

LeAnn Hull, Republican former candidate for Congress, also in CD3, is also running for District 2

Brenda Sperduti, a Republican communications consultant, is running for District 5

Thelda Williams, current member of the Phoenix City Council, is running for reelection in District 1

David N. Jones, CEO of the Arizona Contractors Association, running in District 2

Arthur Olivas, Republican/tea party type , is running in District 7

Charlie Ellis, Republican/tea party type, District 5

Tom Simplot, current member of the Phoenix City Council, has an open committee in  District 4, but his seat isn't up this year

Zakary Perry, a high school senior, running in District 5

Paul Yoder, Republican former candidate for LD15 House , is running for Distict 5

Michael Salman, a big fan of Sal DiCiccio , is running for District 5

Gary Whalen, Republican/tea party type, running in District 1

Daniel Valenzuela, firefighter, running in District 5

Eric Frederick, a really religious insurance saleman, District 1

Bryan Jeffries, firefighter, District 1

Eric Sloan, District 5.  Not sure what he's about, but Jeanne Lunn, a former Democratic candidate for LD7 House wrote to attest that Sloan is a "solid" guy.  He was employed by the Arizona Department of Veterans Services where he developed a wide range of friends and contacts from across the political spectrum.
Bill Barker, running as a $500 Threshold Exemption candidate in District 1

Bill Gates, current member of the Phoenix City Council, running in District 3

Steven Gross, running as a $500 Threshold Exemption candidate in District 3

Michael Nowakowski, current member of the Phoenix City Council, running in District 7

Ben Bethel, running as a $500 Threshold Exemption candidate in District 7


Note: It may just be a coincidence, but the $500 Threshold candidates all filed within 1 day of each other.

The complete candidate list is here.

The Fiesta Bowl Scandal and Russell Pearce

The news that a number of Arizona politicos may have improperly accepted gifts and illegal campaign contributions broke this week with the release of a report from the Fiesta Bowl investigating its own practices.

The investigators examined a number of campaign finance reports looking for contributions from Fiesta Bowl employees that were later reimbursed by the organization.  They also looked at Fiesta Bowl records to determine where, when, and how much was spent to influence public officials.

A few (7?) Democrats (Harry Mitchell, Linda Lopez, Ben Arredondo, etc.) were implicated in one or another aspect of the burgeoning scandal, as were a large number of Republicans (25+), both electeds (Russell Pearce, Carolyn Allen, Thayer Verschoor, etc.) and behind-the-scenes "fixers" - aka "lobbyists" or "consultants" (Chuck Coughlin, Doug Cole, Gary Husk, etc.).

As I'm not a lawyer, I'm not qualified to comment on the legal implications for the politicos implicated.  However, I can speak a little bit about the political implications for the electeds.

Many, such as Ds Mitchell and Mary Manross (former mayor of Scottsdale) and Rs Verschoor and Allen, aren't in office right now and may not seek office again, so the political impact will be minimal.

Note: I've been told that, at least, neither Manross nor Allen are interested in future runs for office, but that info is many months old, and may have changed.

A few of the others have quietly reimbursed the Fiesta Bowl for any "gifts" that they received but most are otherwise maintaining a low profile, waiting to see how this develops.

However, Senate President Russell Pearce (R-Blacklist) has never been known for being quiet.

Or even for learning lessons from the missteps of others.

His colleague and ally, Senate majority leader Scott Bundgaard was involved in a domestic violence incident in February, which was bad enough.

However, Bundgaard aggravated the scandal when he just wouldn't shut up, issuing press releases left and right, blaming his now ex-girlfriend and pleading for everyone to respect his privacy, to concocting a story that his ex pulled a gun on him (one that turned out to be his own) in spite of a police report that doesn't mention a gun anywhere in it.

Now, he's no longer Senate majority leader, and his political future is murky at best (OK, he's probably toast in the next primary, but journalists, even quasi-journalists like bloggers, have "weasel word" standards to meet :) ).

Pearce obviously hasn't been paying attention to Bungaard's mishandling of his own misconduct.

Pearce has claimed that he paid for his own tickets to some of the football games for which the Fiesta Bowl groups organized legislative junkets.

From the Arizona Republic article, written by Ginger Rough and Alia Beard Rau, linked to "news" above -

Pearce had been mostly silent on his involvement until Friday, when he told The Republic that he had paid for his tickets and that he was "very disappointed" in the bowl and its activities.

Asked when he paid for his tickets, Pearce said: "Immediately, at the time."

But Pearce's comments conflict with a portion of the report that states Fiesta Bowl employees paid for, and then were reimbursed by the bowl for, non-Fiesta Bowl tickets given to Pearce in 2007 and 2008.

Hmmm....

Now, not having access to Pearce's personal financial records (or anyone else's, for that matter), I cannot state unequivocally that Pearce did not pay for the tickets himself.  However, based on public records, I can say that he definitely didn't report a junket and a game in 2005 (page 178 of the Fiesta Bowl report) in his 2006 Financial Disclosure Statement, covering the 2005 calendar year.

Submitted in early January 2006 and amended at the end of January 2006, he reported gifts valued in excess of $500 from the American Legislative Exchange Council, Republican Club of (illegible), Western Growers Association, Brookings Institute, and NCSL (National Conference of State Legislatures).

Nothing related to the Fiesta Bowl or college football was reported.

Hmmm2...

Here are some relevent financial disclosure reports for the electeds named in the report as being part of the 2005 trip, courtesy the Center for Public Integrity (the reports cover the prior calendar year) -


Pearce 2005 2004 2003 2002

Bob Blendu 2006 2005 2004

Linda Lopez 2006 2005 2004

Linda Aguirre 2006 2005 2004


Of the four named specifically, only two are still legislators.

 Linda Lopez reported the trip in her 2006 disclosure. 

Pearce?  Not a mention.

Hmmm3...


There's also a sign that perhaps investigators should not have looked at only reports of campaign contributions, but also at reported expenses.

On page 179 of the Fiesta Bowl report, a junket to Boston was documented, one that Pearce attended.  Part of the junket: a college football game between Boston College and Virginia Tech on October 18.

In Russell Pearce's post-general election campaign finance report from 2008, covering October 16 thru November 24 of that year, he reported a "miscellaneous" expenditure of $675.00, dated November 4, 2008.

If that one turns out to be junket-related, it could be problematical for Pearce - he accepted Clean Elections funding that year, and they take a rather dim view of candidates who use the money in ways that are other than directly related to the campaign.

To be fair, the Fiesta Bowl investigators were mostly interested in the activities of their own organization, not those of the elected officials.

Future investigators, both journalistic and law enforcement, will certainly pay more attention to how the electeds reported their associations with the Fiesta Bowl.

The upshot of it all is that everyone involved is hoping this blows over, that current events distract the public from the past misconduct - the business administrators of college football don't want investigations of the other bowls, who almost certainly operate in a manner similar to the Fiesta Bowl, and the electeds don't want to be on the receiving end of any political repercussions.

Does anyone think it's a coincidence that the report was released during the final week of the NCAA basketball tournament, when college sports fans, even casual ones, are thoroughly focused on that?

Or that the House this week rushed through a horrific budget allowing them to end the legislative session and get out of town and out of the reach of reporters, as quickly as possible?

Tedski at Rum, Romanism, and Rebellion offers his perspective on this mess here; AZBlueMeanie of Blog for Arizona has his here.


Note:  The Center for Public Integrity only has the financial disclosure reports for the first half of the decade.  I could not find the reports from later in the decade online, and the Republic story reports that they are having difficulty obtaining those reports from the Secretary of State's office. 

Anybody really surprised by that?