Showing posts with label MCCCD. Show all posts
Showing posts with label MCCCD. Show all posts

Sunday, August 10, 2014

Will tea party types/Republicans succeed in turning the governing board of Maricopa County's community colleges into a bigger version of the governing board of Gilbert's public school district?

Yesterday, I wrote a bit about some of the school board races here in Maricopa County; today, the subject is one of the other low-profile races here.

It isn't news (to observers in AZ, anyway) that the governing board of the Gilbert Public Schools District has been taken over by tea party types and what was once one of the few crown jewels of public education in Arizona has been devastated.

With the damage done there, the tea party types have set their sights on a bigger target -

The governing board of the Maricopa County Community College District (MCCCD):

- At-large seat, five candidates for two seats (pending litigation; the board's membership was expanded by the Republicans in the legislature who were looking to make this board more "Republican".  The move was so brazen that a lawsuit seeking to overturn the law that created the new seats is winding its way through the court system)

Candidates:

- Augustine Bartning, Republican, ran for LD24 state senate in 2012 (lost).  Interesting note: 1000 signatures are required on nominating petitions for this office.   He turned in 1074.  If his petitions are challenged, that probably isn't enough of a buffer to survive a challenge.

Note: he may not be part of the takeover attempt; in LD24 in 2012, he seemed to be an almost reasonable human being.

Note2: he also may have been toning it down for the audience in a moderate, D-leaning district.

- Mario E. Diaz, Democrat, a well-respected (and well-connected) political consultant

- John Heep, Republican, also running for the Sun City West fire district board

- Tracy Livingston, Republican, wife of hardcore winger state legislator David Livingston

- Eddie Tiggs, don't know much about him

Assuming that the board's expansion survives the court challenge, the candidate receiving the most votes will serve a four-year term while the candidate receiving the second-most votes will serve a two-year term.  Future elections will be for four-year terms.


District 3, three candidates for one seat:

- Johanna Haver, whole-hearted RWNJ (pretty much an "English first, last, and only" type; that characterization may be oversimplified a bit, but only a bit)

- Reyes Medrano, Sr., don't know much about him.

- Fred Zook, don't know much about him.


District 4, two candidates for one seat:

- Randolph Lumm, incumbent, and a good one

- Jean McGrath, former legislator and current perennial candidate.  Highlight of her legislative stint: she ran a bill that would have barred overnight visits by the opposite sex in the dorms of Arizona's public universities


District 5 (two-year term; the others are four years), two candidates for one seat:

- Rick Eastman, don't know much about him

- Alfredo Gutierrez, noted author and incumbent.  Appointed to fill a vacancy.


Normally, I refrain from engaging to too much commentary in posts like this one (this started out as a strictly informative post), but it sure looks like that there is a low-profile but concerted effort to turn the MCCCD governing board into a countywide version of the governing board of the Gilbert school district.

And with the likes of Livingston, Heep (maybe), Bartning (maybe), McGrath, and Haver, they aren't being subtle about it.


General information on the MCCCD board here.
 

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Maricopa County Community College District to consider increasing tuition and fees

The Governing Board of the Maricopa County Community College District (MCCCD) is meeting Tuesday night to consider increasing tuition $5 per credit hour (7.04%) and individual course fees by various amounts.  The proposed increases are due to rising costs and dwindling resources, including drastically lower state aid.

The meeting will take place at the District's office, 2411 W. 14th Street in Tempe at 6:30 p.m.

The agenda for the meeting is a "normal" one.  Most of the items on it that are "consent" items that will be approved as a bloc. 

The tuition and fee hike items are "information" items only, meaning that no final vote will be taken though there may be some discussion.  The final vote is scheduled for the Board's March 22 meeting.

The current tuition is $71 per credit hour, with a $241 per credit hour surcharge for out-of-state students.  There isn't a proposal to increase the surcharge.

The proposed increase would make the cost for a typical full-time student (30 credit hours per academic year) $2,280, with the cost for out-of-state residents $9,510 per student (tuition and surcharge).

The course fee changes are expected to impact different campuses differently, with Phoenix College and Rio Salado College experiencing the greatest net increase, while Scottsdale Community College and South Mountain Community College expected to feel the least impact.  Actually, Scottsdale CC is expected to see a small net decrease in course fee-related revenue

The tuition increase is expected to bring in additional revenue of $12.9 million.  The course fee hikes are expected to net a total of $346K. 

The last time the Board considered a tuition hike (two years ago), it defeated the move over the urgings of students who supported a small hike to support and maintain the quality of the education provided across the district.  The Board majority at the time was led by Colleen Clark and Jerry Walker who opposed any tuition hikes as a way to force deeper cuts to the District. 

Clark as since resigned (replaced by Doyle Burke) and Jerry Walker lost his reelection bid (to Dana Saar), so I cannot predict the fate of the proposed increases.

The tuition increase item is here, its associated attachment with a schedule of current and proposed tuition and general fees is here.

The course fee changes item is here, its associated attachments are here and here.

I'll try to attend the meeting Tuesday evening, but there will be a very long meeting of the Senate Appropriations Committee at the State Capitol starting a 2 p.m.-ish, and I expect to be there for the duration.  In other words, unless a LOT of bad bills are pulled from that agenda, I should be there until at least 6 or 7 p.m.  Folks interested in the MCCCD meeting should make arrangements to attend the meeting themselves or to have one of the attendees give an update.

Sunday, January 16, 2011

The coming week: everybody else edition

All info gathered from the websites of the relevent public bodies/agencies, and is subject to change without notice.

Federal level -

In the House, the agenda for the week is focused on the Republicans' H.R. 2, "Repealing the Job-Killing Health Care Law Act."  Related: H. Res. 9, "Instructing certain committees to report legislation replacing the job-killing health care law."

The Senate isn't in session this week.


Arizona level -

The Arizona Corporation Commission doesn't have a full meeting scheduled for this week.  It's hearing schedule is here.

The Citizens Clean Elections Commission doesn't have a meeting this week, either.  They are seeking applicants for an open spot on the Commission. Interested folks who aren't registered as Democrats or Republicans and who do NOT reside in Maricopa County can apply (there are other requirements, but those are the big ones).

The Board of Directors of the Central Arizona Project is meeting on Thursday to select new officers, hold an orientation for new members on the topic of internal audit, and hold a meeting of the Finance, Audit, and Power Committee.

The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors has a Special Meeting scheduled for Wednesday at 9 a.m.  The agenda looks quiet, but as is usual for this bunch, there's an executive session planned.

The Tempe City Council doesn't have a meeting scheduled for this week.  The City's City Council Calendar is here.

The Scottsdale City Council doesn't have a meeting scheduled for this week.  The City's Community Meeting Notice is here.

Saturday, October 09, 2010

Dana Saar for Maricopa County Community College District Governing Board

The District 2 (most of Mesa, Scottsdale, and Fountain Hills) seat on the MCCCD Governing Board currently held by Jerry Walker (R-embarrassment) in on this year's ballot.  It's not my district (I live in SD-1), so I haven't commented on it much before now.

There is a challenger for the job, Dana Saar.  He is a long-time school board member in Fountain Hills and has been a teacher and technical trainer.  He has the intelligence, education, and temperment to be an outstanding member of the MCCCD Governing Board.  Given the recent tribulations of the Board, he may be exactly what it (and the faculty, staff, and over 100K students of the District) need.

Of course, even if Saar was a moss-covered tree stump, he would be an improvement over the current officeholder, Walker. 

Laurie Roberts of the Arizona Republic has a great summary of some of Mr. Walker's more "colorful" activities here.

From the column -
While Walker may not have violated any policies, the investigations paint a picture of a public official who demonstrates an astonishing lack of restraint in the things he says and a willingness – maybe even an eagerness -- to throw his weight around, all while standing on the broad shoulders of the First Amendment.


A few examples:

In 2006, he forwarded an e-mail to an aide, mocking the accent and intelligence of Mexicans. When Chancellor Rufus Glasper mentioned that the aide worried she might be targeted for dismissal because she complained, Walker's reported response was to say that she should feel that her job is threatened, as should Glasper, for bringing it up. He then told staffers that Glasper was going to be fired.

In 2009, he was expounding on his views about Democrats to a contract security guard when a second guard asked him to stop, calling his remarks offensive. Walker then turned on that 21-year-old guard, saying she was just like other Democrats, “ignorant and dumb.” The next day, he asked that she be fired.

That same year, he accompanied students to Washington, where they lobbied Congress on education issues. As one student spoke about the DREAM Act, Walker repeatedly interrupted her and later berated her as she walked down a hallway. “He saw fit to belittle and demean the student in a most public, inappropriate and embarrassing manner,” the investigator wrote.

Walker contends he did nothing wrong.
Note: An AZRep article on the "investigation" mentioned by Roberts is here.  Saar's endorsement by the Arizona Republic (predating both the investigation article and the Roberts column) here.

Roberts describes Walker's behavior as that of a "boob."  While the rest of her column was dead on (it was actually a discussion of how supporting the First Amendment and free speech can be inconvenient sometimes, when folks like Walker misuse that right so egregiously), she used the wrong body part to describe Walker and his behavior. 

He's an ass.

And it is time to kick the resident ass of the MCCCD Governing Board to the electoral curb.

Vote for Dana Saar

Monday, August 30, 2010

Maricopa County community colleges sued for discriminating against *legal* immigrants

Ummm...don't the defenders of SB1070 in the legislature and the other nativists in Arizona like to say that they aren't opposed to all immigrants, just "illegal" ones?

From AP via the Arizona Republic (I don't normally quote MSM articles in their entirety, but this one is very short) -
The Justice Department has filed a lawsuit against the Maricopa County Community College District alleging it engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination in hiring authorized non-citizens.

The Justice Department says its investigation revealed that Maricopa Community Colleges required all newly hired non-citizens to present additional work authorization documents beyond those required by law, but did not require U.S. citizens to do so.

The Immigration and Nationality Act requires employers to treat authorized workers in the same manner during the hiring process, regardless of their citizenship status.

District spokesman Tom Gariepy says the district has no comment because the matter is in litigation
This development, on top of last week's resignation of MCCCD Governing Board member Colleen Clark (interesting timing, that) should make for some interesting discussions at the Board's next meeting, whether that occurs at the next regularly scheduled meeting on September 28 or if one is scheduled  in the interim.

Now the attitude of contempt toward the "the other" that suffuses political discourse and practical governance at the upper reaches of Arizona's political food chain (state and county versions) has made its way to lower levels.
It seems that in Arizona, the Republicans embrace both "trickle down economics" and "trickle down bigotry."

Sunday, May 30, 2010

The coming week...

As usual, all info gathered from the websites of the relevent political bodies/agencies, except where noted, and subject to change without notice.

...At the federal level, both the U.S. House and Senate are on a break. They'll be back in session next week.

...Back here in Arizona...


- The Arizona Corporation Commission doesn't have any regular meetings scheduled, however they will be travelling to gather public comment on specific issues.

-- On Wednesday at 1 p.m., they will be holding a special meeting in Tucson to solicit public comments on line extension policies for Arizona utilities.

-- Later on Wednesday, they will hold two public meetings in Nogales. The first will start at 6 p.m. and will concern Rio Rico Utilities rates; the second is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. and will concern Valle Verde Water Company rates.

-- The ACC's hearing schedule is here. Most of this week's hearing activity involves Arizona American Water (a name near and not-so-dear to Scottsdale readers :) ).


- The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors will meet on Tuesday at 11:30 a.m. It's a special meeting with one topic - a settlement with the Department of Labor over MCSO's forcing detention officers to work unpaid overtime. AZ Republic coverage of the matter here.


- The Board of Directors of the Central Arizona Project will have a busy week.

-- On Tuesday at 1 p.m., there will be a meeting of the Project ADD Water group.

-- On Thursday at 9 a.m., the Board's Public Policy Committee will meet.

-- After the committee meeting, the full Board with hold a regular meeting. The highlights of this meeting will be the setting of property tax and service rates.


- The Tempe City Council isn't meeting this week; the Council Calendar of events is here.


- The Scottsdale City Council also isn't meeting this week; the City of Scottsdale's Community Meeting Notice is here.

Note: When memorial service arrangements for late Councilman Tony Nelssen are announced, an update will be posted.


Not meeting this week: Citizens Clean Elections Commission, Governing Board of the Maricopa County Community College District, Board of Directors of the Maricopa Integrated Health System, Arizona Board of Regents

Sunday, May 23, 2010

The coming week...

As usual, all info gathered from the websites of the relevent political bodies/agencies, except where noted, and subject to change without notice.

These schedule posts have become intermittent, due in part to the lack of interesting tidbits to cover, as well as election year deadlines in Arizona (sigs are due Wednesday!) cutting into available blogging time. However, this week, there will be a *lot* of budget-related action and other interesting matters up for consideration, especially in D.C. and with the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors.

Stuff that is definitely post-worthy.

On to the important stuff...

On the federal level -

- The U.S. House will be handling a number of bills this week as they get ready for the holiday break next week. The highlight this week will be H.R. 5136, the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2011 (CRS summary here). There will be a massive amount of election-year posturing over this one, whether of the "fiscal responsibility" or the "I'm a patriot" variety. Still, it's only an authorization bill, not an appropriations bill, and they all will want to make the earliest possible flights out of town on Friday. The posturing will be loud, but efficient.

Also on the agenda: Consideration of a Senate amendment to H.R. 4213, the American Workers, State, and Business Relief Act of 2010 (most current CRS summary here); H.R. 5175, the DISCLOSE Act (CRS summary here - it's designed to limit corporate control of election campaigns); and further consideration of H.R. 5116, the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010 (previously blocked by the House GOP when the measure came to the House floor under "suspension of the rules," requiring a 2/3 majority to pass, it's coming back in a way that will require only a simple majority to pass).

- The U.S. Senate will be doing, you know, "Senate" stuff this week. That includes a committee schedule with hearings on the massive BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, impacts of consolidation on the airline industry, and more (lots of executive branch nominations). There will also be floor consideration of H.R. 4899, the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2010.

...Back here in Arizona -

- The Arizona Corporation Commission will be holding a public comment session in Prescott Valley on Tuesday. The subject will be
Public Comment in the Matter of the Application of the Commission’s, Docket No. E-00000J-10-0044, inquiry and potential rulemaking regarding line extension policies of electric utilities, including but not limited to, alternative rate designs related to apportionment and rate recovery of cost of construction and installation of electric utility line extensions, the use of free footage and/or dollar allowances in line extension tariffs, the treatment of proceeds associated with line extensions as contributions in aid of construction (CIAC) and/or revenue, and the ability for third-party vendors to contract to install line extensions for electric utilities.
The ACC will be holding a regular "Utilities" meeting on Wednesday and Thursday, agenda here.
The Commission's regular hearing schedule is here.

- The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors has a busy and "colorful" week on tap.

-- Monday's Informal meeting is dedicated to budget matters, including the tentative adoption of next year's budget.

-- Later on Monday, the Supes will be holding a Special meeting dedicated to a financial review of the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office. This one could include a contempt hearing over Sheriff Joe Arpaio's refusal to turn over financial records for the review. There is some question about the procedures for the contempt hearing, so the hearing schedule may yet be changed or be cancelled entirely. More AZ Republic coverage here. This one could be the most interesting event of the week, or it could fizzle completely.

- - On Wednesday, the Supes have a Formal meeting scheduled. The agenda is a long one.

- The Board of Directors of the Maricopa Integrated Health System will be holding an executive session on Monday (relating to legal matters and contracts - the agenda items are rather vague, intentionally so, I think) and a regular meeting on Wednesday (highlight: budget-related stuff). MIHS' Legislative summary will also be on the agenda. Like most of us, their primary focus is on the state's budget situation.

- The Governing Board of the Maricopa County Community College District is scheduled to meet on Tuesday, agenda here. It looks pretty mundane thus far, though there is an item to change the length of the terms of the Board President and Secretary from one to two years. After the regular meeting will be an executive session regarding employment of the Chancellor of the District, Rufus Glasper. There have been issues of contention between the Chancellor and certain board members, so this particular exec session could be one that most MCCCD observers wish was a public session. Look for public fallout from this meeting to reach an agenda in June.

- The City Councils of Tempe and Scottsdale aren't scheduled to hold regular meetings this week, though Tempe will hold a special meeting on Friday to accept the results from last week's election. Tempe's Council Calendar is here; Scottsdale's Community Meetings Notice is here.

Not scheduled to meet this week: Citizens Clean Elections Commission, Arizona Board of Regents, Board of Directors of the Central Arizona Project

Later...

Saturday, May 01, 2010

The coming week....

As usual, all info gathered from the websites of the relevent political bodies/agencies, except where noted, and subject to change without notice.

Ahhhh...the first lege-free week of the year...ahhhhhhhhhhhh


...In D.C. -

- The House looks to have a relatively quiet week this week. The agenda is very heavy on memorials and congratulations and such, while light on substantive legislation.

- The Senate will continue to consider reform of financial regulations. In addition, the Senate's committee schedule is here. The item of most interest to Arizonans could be Wednesday's hearing of the United States Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control. The topic will be "Drug Trafficking Violence in Mexico: Implications for the U.S."

Edit on 5/2 to add: The AZ Republic has an article up documenting that while nativist rhetoric about cross-border violence is up, there hasn't actually been an increase in border-related violence in Arizona.

End edit.


...Back here in Arizona...

- The Arizona Corporation Commission won't be meeting this week, but their hearing schedule is here.

- The Board of Directors of the Central Arizona Project will be meeting on Thursday. Rate-related items and the Navajo Generating Station dominate the agenda this time around. CAP's Public Policy Committee agenda (preceding the full Board meeting) is here.

- The Tempe City Council will have an active week. They will be part of a special meeting on Thursday to seek public comment on and give preliminary approval to Tempe's budget for the coming fiscal year. Budget-related coverage from the AZ Republic here. The agenda for the Council's regular meeting is here. The Council's calendar is here.

- The Scottsdale City Council will be meeting Tuesday. The agenda includes the likely hiring of the City's next future ex-City Manager. AZ Republic coverage here.

Not scheduled to meet this week: Arizona Board of Regents, Citizens Clean Elections Commission, Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, Board of Directors of the Maricopa Integrated Health System, Governing Board of the Maricopa County Community College District.

Sunday, April 25, 2010

The Coming Week - Everybody Else Edition

As usual, all info gathered from the websites of the relevent political bodies/agencies, and subject to change without notice...

In DC...

...The House's agenda is here. It looks fairly quiet thus far, though H.R. 2499 (Puerto Rico Democracy Act of 2009) and H.R. 5013 (Implementing Management for Performance and Related Reforms to Obtain Value in Every Acquisition Act of 2010, aka IMPROVE Act) may generate some controversy.

It looks like that after the healthcare reform dust-up earlier this year, the leadership; in the House is going to take it easy on the really controversial stuff.

...Over in the Senate, much of their week will be consumed by consideration of financial regulation overhaul (S. 3217). Call me cynical, but much of the contention on this one seems to be over deciding between faux reform (Senate Ds) and no reform (Senate Rs). The Senate's committee schedule is here.


Here in Arizona...

...The Arizona Corporation Commission is holding a utilities-related meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday, agenda here. On Friday, they'll be holding a special open meeting in Globe to solicit public comment on line extension policies of electric utilities.

The ACC's hearing schedule is here.

...The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors is meeting this week. Their "informal" meeting on Monday has been cancelled, however, Wednesday's "formal" meeting is still on tap.

...The Citizens Clean Election Commission is meeting on Thursday. No agenda posted as yet.

...The Governing Board of the Maricopa County Community College District will meet on Tuesday, with an executive session at 5:30 p.m. and the regular session at 6:30 p.m. Agenda here.

...The Board of Directors of the Maricopa Integrated Health System is meeting on Wednesday. The executive session agenda is here; regular session agenda here.

...The Tempe City Council isn't meeting this week. Their calendar of events is here.

...The Scottsdale City Council has a regular meeting scheduled for Tuesday and a special meeting scheduled for noon on Friday to interview finalists for the City Manager's position. The City's Community Meeting Notice is here.

Not meeting this week: Arizona Board of Regents, Board of Directors of the Central Arizona Project

Sunday, April 11, 2010

The coming week - everybody else edition

As usual, all info gathered from the websites of the relevent political bodies/agencies, except where noted, and subject to change without notice.

...The post regarding the planned activities of the Arizona Legislature this week is here.

...In D.C., both chambers of Congress will be back in session this week, and should be until the week of Memorial Day at the end of May/beginning of June.

- The House's floor schedule is here. As might be expected during a week where they will be getting back up to speed after two weeks off (and most of a year devoted to health care reform), the schedule is kind of light. Only one bill looks like it might generate some serious controversy, H.R. 4715, the "Clean Estuaries Act of 2010." It amends the Clean Water Act, and the only "amendment" to that Act that the Rs will accept is a complete repeal. They aren't getting it with this.

- The Senate's website is unavailable at this writing, but they are expected to take up an extension of unemployment benefits, one that expired for hundreds of thousands of Americans due to Republican obstructionism.

...Back here in AZ -

- The Arizona Corporation Commission will hold a Securities, Safety, and Utilities meeting on Tuesday. They are holding "special" meetings on Wednesday and Thursday, and Thursday and Friday. Lastly, the ACC's regular hearing schedule is here.

- The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors has two regularly scheduled meetings on tap this week. Monday's "informal" session will be focusing on renewable energy contracts for the Jefferson St. Garage and the Downtown Justice Center. Wednesday's "formal" meeting looks to be longer but pretty mundane.

- The Governing Board of the Maricopa County Community College District is holding a "work session" on Tuesday evening. The scheduled topic of the meeting is "EFFECTIVE TEACHING & LEARNING – ON-LINE/IN-CLASS/HYBRID?"

- The Board of Directors of the Central Arizona Project will hold a rate setting workshop for its customers on Thursday. Preliminary rate schedule here.

- The Tempe City Council isn't scheduled to meet this week. The Council's Calendar is here.

- The Scottsdale City Council is scheduled to meet on Tuesday. Things look pretty mundane so far. The agenda has been revised to announced the appointment of John Washington to the Channel 11 Programming Commission by Councilman Tony Nelssen. Info on Washington is here. He was a write-in candidate for mayor in 2008 and is acting as the treasurer for Nelssen's reelection committee. The City's Community Meeting Notice is here.


Not meeting this week: Citizens Clean Elections Commission, Board of Directors of the Maricopa Integrated Health System, Arizona Board of Regents

Sunday, April 04, 2010

The coming week - everybody but the lege edition

As usual, all info gathered from the websites of the relevent political bodies/agencies (except where noted) and subject to change without notice.

Changing up the order this week (normally, the lege schedule is posted first), because, well, mostly because I feel like it.

Oh, and one of the most interesting events of the week won't be at the lege. :)

On to the post...

...Both chambers of the U.S. Congress are still in recess this week.

...The Arizona Corporation Commission doesn't have any regular meetings scheduled for this week, but it will have a special meeting on energy preparedness for this summer on Thursday and Friday. The ACC's hearing schedule is here. The only item of interest, in fact the only item on the docket this week, is a public comment session on some rate hike proposals from Arizona American Water. If you live in the Anthem Water District, Sun City Water District, Anthem/Agua Fria Wastewater District, Sun City Wastewater District, or Sun City West Wastewater District and do business with AAWC, you may want to attend the meeting in Anthem on Wednesday evening.

...The highlight of the week has to be Monday's special meeting of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors to discuss and take action on Andy Thomas' resignation as County Attorney. They are expected to initiate the process for naming an interim CA to replace Thomas in the office.

Expect *lots* of smiles on West Jefferson (where many county offices are located). :)

...The Tempe City Council isn't meeting this week. Their Council Calendar is here.

...The Scottsdale City Council will meet on Tuesday. The agenda includes the City's monthly financial report, issuing the official call for this fall's elections (OK, the primary will be in August, but that's close enough for blogging :) ), and discussion of possible projects to include in the 2010 bond election. The City's Community Meeting Notice is here.

An AZ Republic article on the City's proposed budget is here.

...Not meeting this week: Arizona Board of Regents, Citizens Clean Elections Commission, Governing Board of the Maricopa County Community College District, Boards of Directors of the Central Arizona Project and Maricopa Integrated Health System.

Later...

Monday, March 29, 2010

The coming week - everybody else edition

As usual, all info gathered from the websites of the relevent political bodies/agencies, except where noted, and subject to change without notice.

...The schedule of activities at the Arizona Legislature was covered in an earlier post here.

...In D.C., both chambers of Congress are in recess/district work period for a couple of weeks.


...Back here in Arizona...

- The Arizona Corporation Commission has a regularly scheduled utilities meeting on Wednesday and Thursday. The agenda is here. The ACC's hearing schedule is here.

- The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors has two regularly scheduled meetings on tap this week.

At Monday's "informal" meeting, the normally quiet agenda has a couple of items of possible controversy - an update and some contractual items regarding the Downtown Court Tower project, and a move to initiate litigation over Sheriff Joe Arpaio's purchase of a really expensive inmate transport bus. AZRepublic coverage of that last item here.

The agenda for Wednesday's "formal" meeting includes an item for a settlement in the case of "Robert Cole v. Maricopa County and Joseph Arpaio."

- The Board of Directors of the Central Arizona Project will meet on Thursday. Its agenda is here; its Public Policy Committee meeting agenda is here.

- The Tempe City Council isn't scheduled to hold any regular meetings this week. The Council Calendar of activity is here.

- The Scottsdale City Council isn't scheduled to hold any regular meetings this week. The City's Community Meeting Notice is here.

Also not meeting this week: Arizona Board of Regents, Citizens Clean Elections Commission, Board of Directors of the Maricopa Integrated Health System, Governing Board of Maricopa County Community College District

Later...

Sunday, March 21, 2010

The coming week - everybody else edition

As usual, all info gathered from the websites of the relevent political bodies/agencies except where noted, and subject to change without notice...

...In the U.S. House of Representatives, last week is blending into next week as they are still in session even as I write this, working toward a vote on the latest health care reform package. As such, no agenda has been posted online as yet. Once that agenda is posted, expect a quiet week as the members look to recover from this week's exertions.

...Over in the U.S. Senate, a lot of their time will be taken up (presumably, assuming passage by the House) with consideration of a reconciliation bill relating to HCR. On the Senate's committee schedule, there is one item of direct interest to Arizonans - the Armed Services Committee's consideration on Tuesday of the nomination of Katherine Hammack to the post of Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations and Environment. Ms. Hammack is a senior manager at Ernst & Young in Phoenix.


...Back in Arizona...

- The legislature's committee schedule is covered here.

- The Arizona Corporation Commission doesn't have any full meetings scheduled this week, but their hearing schedule is here.

- The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors has a special meeting scheduled for Tuesday at 10 a.m. No agenda available online as yet.

- The Governing Board of the Maricopa County Community College District will meet on Tuesday, with an executive session planned for 5:30 p.m. and a regular meeting scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Agenda here. Looks relatively quiet thus far, though there is one item of interest to political geeks like me - a consent agenda item to participate in a program from First Things First to pay fees at the Children's Learning Center at Gateway Community College for qualifying parents.

The same First Things First that the legislature wants to eliminate.

- The Board of Directors of the Maricopa Integrated Health System has two meetings this week. On Monday, there is a special session scheduled, with an executive session component. On Wednesday, there will be a full meeting. The agenda includes consideration of proposed rate changes for services.

- The Tempe City Council will meet on Thursday. The agenda is here, and it includes approval of the results of Tempe's election from two weeks ago. The Council Calendar is here.

- The Scottsdale City Council will meet on Tuesday. First up will be a special meeting devoted to appointments to some of the City's Boards and Commissions. The agenda for the regular meeting includes, as with Tempe, approval of the election results from earlier this month. The City's Community Meeting Notice is here.


...Not scheduled to meet this week: Citizens Clean Elections Commission, Arizona Board of Regents, and the Board of Directors of the Central Arizona Project.

Sunday, March 07, 2010

The Coming Week - Everybody Else Edition

As usual, all info gathered from the websites of the relevent political bodies/agencies, except where noted, and subject to change without notice...

...In Congress, most of the MSM attention will be on health care reform but there are other matters on the agenda this week.

- In the House of Representatives, their agenda includes many of the usual memorial, congratulatory, building naming and similar "window dressing" motions.

However, there are also a few items that could generate some heat.

- H.R. 4621, the Prevent Deceptive Census Look Alike Mailings Act. This one is targeted at groups and organizations that have sent out fundraising mailers that look like official Census documents. Like the GOP.

- H. Con. Res. 248, a privileged resolution by Dennis Kucinich to compel the President to remove American troops from Afghanistan by the end of the year. It won't pass, but it will take hours of debate to not pass it. Unless leadership decrees that is should just be tabled. Only the most progressive Democrats will support this one and all Rs will oppose it. Where things could get cute is if there is a move to table the resolution or to refer it to committee, the Rs could vote to keep it on the floor. As a privileged resolution, the measure takes precedence over almost everything else so they will have to deal with it before any other measure (like HCR) can be considered.

- H. Res. 1031, to impeach federal judge G. Thomas Porteous of Louisiana for ethics breaches. More info here.

...The Senate's committee schedule is here.


...Here in Arizona:

...The Arizona Board of Regents will meet on Thursday and Friday at U of A in Tucson. The agenda includes setting tuition and fees (there are other items related to tuition, but the link is the big one).

...The Arizona Corporation Commission doesn't have a full meeting this week. Their hearing schedule is here, however.

...The Board of Directors of the Maricopa Integrated Health System don't have a meeting this week, but they are scheduled to be at MIHS' employee picnic on Friday.

...The Board of Directors of the Central Arizona Project will hold a joint meeting with the Arizona Municipal Water Users Association on Friday in Phoenix.

...The Scottsdale City Council isn't meeting this week. The City's Community Meeting Notice is here.

...The Tempe City Council also isn't meeting this week. The Council Calendar for the week is here.

Also not scheduled to meet this week: Citizens Clean Election Commission, Governing Board of the Maricopa County Community College District, Maricopa County Board of Supervisors.

Sunday, February 28, 2010

The coming week - the everything but the lege edition

The lege's schedule this week - almost no committee hearings while the lege "focuses" on the budget - has been covered here, in a post at Blog for Arizona.

...As usual, all info gathered from the websites of the relevent political bodies/agencies except where noted, and subject to change without notice...

In Congress, most of the week will be spent on committee hearings and behind-the-scenes work on health care reform and jobs bills. The short agenda for the House's floor activity mostly covers a number of non-controversial memorial and congratulatory resolutions. Even the one meaningful bill, HR4247, the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (CRS summary here; an AP article on the need for the proposed legislation, via AZCentral.com, here) should pass easily...after the Rs oppose even bringing the measure to the floor, of course (they oppose everything these days, no matter the worthiness of the legislation),

The Senate also has a long committee schedule (media highlight: the Commerce Committee's hearing looking into Toyota's recalls). Floor work may include consideration of the jobs bill recently passed by the House and an extension of the Patriot Act.

...Here in Arizona...

...The Arizona Corporation Commission will be holding a "utilities" meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday. The ACC's hearing schedule is here.

...The Board of Directors of the Central Arizona Project will be meeting on Thursday in Casa Grande. CAP's Public Policy Committee will also meet on Thursday, as will its Central Arizona Groundwater Replenishment District & Underground Storage Committee.

...The Tempe City Council is scheduled to meet Thursday evening for a regular meeting (agenda here); earlier on Thursday, they are going to hold a special meeting on balancing the city's budget (agenda here). On Friday, they'll hold an executive session as part of the process of choosing a new City Clerk for Tempe (agenda here). The Council's calendar is here.

...The Scottsdale City Council is scheduled to meet on Tuesday (agenda here). The Council's Community Meeting Notice is here.

Not scheduled to meet this week: Arizona Board of Regents, Board of Directors of the Maricopa Integrated Health System, Maricopa Board of Supervisors, Governing Board of the Maricopa County Community College District (though they have some kind of "retreat" scheduled for Tuesday evening), Citizens Clean Elections Commission.

Sunday, February 07, 2010

The coming week - everybody else edition

After a one-week hiatus due to other things needing my attention, it's time for another one of these. A separate post on the activities of the AZ legislature is here.

As usual, all info gathered from the websites of the relevent political bodies/agencies, except where noted, and subject to change without notice.

First up: Congress, where they have a short week with nothing scheduled for Monday or expected on Friday, followed by a week of district work next week.

In the U.S. House, the agenda seems to be short, but colorful.

- H.R. 2701, Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010. This act involves money (even though it is only an "authorization", not an "appropriation") which always means arguments. What is curious is that not only are we well into FY2010 already (and trust me, they've been spending $$$ on "Intelligence" activities), but this bill was introduced last June and not acted upon since then.

Why are they just getting to it now?

- Also on the agenda is an as-yet-unnumbered bill titled the "Health Insurance Industry Fair Competition Act." I don't have any details on the bill, but if it in any way lives up to the title, expect some serious screaming from the Republicans in the House.

...The Senate's hearing schedule is here. Nothing seems to be specific to Arizona, though hearings on Don't Ask, Don't Tell and global warming (Thursday, though no link is available as of this writing) may generate some interest.

...Back here in AZ, the Arizona Corporation Commission isn't holding any formal meetings this week, but their hearing schedule is here.

...The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors has two regularly scheduled meetings this week.

- Monday at 9 a.m., they'll be holding their "informal meeting." The agenda includes the appointment of a state senator for LD6, budget presentations from the various county officials and the judicial branch.

Oh yeah - there's an executive session component, too. No, I'm not shocked by that either.

- Wednesday at 9 a.m., they'll be holding their "formal meeting." Looks pretty mundane so far, but things are sort of fluid with the supes and the Sheriff and County Attorney. Changes to the agenda could happen anytime.

...The Tempe City Council isn't meeting this week, but their Council Calendar is here.

...On Tuesday at 5 p.m., the Scottsdale City Council has a joint meeting with the McDowell Corridor/South Scottsdale Economic Development Task Force, followed by a short agenda Special Meeting. The City's Community Meeting Notice is here.

...Not scheduled to meet this week: Arizona Board of Regents, Citizens Clean Elections Commission, the Boards of Directors of the Central Arizona Project and the Maricopa Integrated Health System, and the Governing Board of the Maricopa County Community College District.

...Later...

The coming week...legislative edition

As usual, all info gathered from the website of the Arizona legislature, except where noted, and subject to change without notice...

A busy week ahead, marked by proposed encroachments on the availability of safe and legal abortion services, messing with teachers' ability to plan for their professional future, requiring the federal government to prove the constitutionality of its mandates before the state will accept them, a move to shield Joe Arpaio and Andy Thomas from any sort of fiscal oversight and accountability, and more.


In special session activity, there is a House COW calendar posted for Monday, as is a Third Read calendar. Neither calendar includes SB1002 or SB1003, so my guess is that there is still some arm-twisting going on by the House leadership to try to "encourage" Senate President Bob Burns to push thru their corporate tax cut bill before a balanced budget is passed.

In non-Capitol based lege activity this week, on Monday, the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors is scheduled to appoint a replacement for the recently-resigned Sen. Pam Gorman (R-LD6). Not scheduled as yet but likely to come this week will be a meeting to appoint someone to fill the LD-7 Senate seat vacated by Jim Waring, who like Gorman has resigned to run for Congress. Monday evening, the Rep PCs of LD6 will be meeting to nominate three candidates to fill Sam Crump's seat in the House, who also vacated it in order to run for Congress. The supes could fill that seat this week or early next week.


On to the regular session of the lege -

In House committee activities this week...

- Rules will meet on Monday at 1 p.m. in HHR4. Long agenda, but they have the rubber stamp big enough to cover it.

- Ways and Means is meeting on Monday at 2 p.m. in HHR1. Highlights/lowlights: There are five bills on this agenda, all of which are significant - HB2160 (tax credit review committee recommendations, summary here); HB2496 (changing which tax year school tuition tax credits can be taken); HB2512 (barring municipalities from using third parties to collect municipal sales taxes); HB2663 (changing STOs' corporate tax credit requirements, summary here); and HB2664 (changing STOs/tax credit requirements in general, summary here.)

- Education is meeting on Monday at 2 p.m. in HHR3. The agenda is long, and every bill on it is written by a Republican. There may be some real gold mixed in with the iron pyrite, but most of the bills are like HB2227, cutting the amount of time teachers have to accept a contract for the next school year from 30 days to 10.

- Banking and Insurance will meet on Monday at 2 p.m. in HHR5. Looks quiet so far.

- Public Employees, Retirement, and Entitlement Reform will meet on Tuesday at 2 p.m. in HHR3. Quiet so far.

- Government is meeting on Tuesday at 2 p.m. in HHR4. Winger election year posturing alert: HB2538.

From the bill -
The legislature shall not enact any statute that appropriates state monies pursuant to a federal mandate or that complies with a federal mandate unless the federal mandate contains a report or document prescribing reasonable and logical arguments based on United States constitutional law that the federal mandate is a function of the federal government and will pass a constitutional challenge if contested in a court of law.
Yeah....



- Environment will meet on Tuesday at 2 p.m. in HHR5. Looks quiet so far.

- Military Affairs and Public Safety is meeting on Wednesday at 9 a.m. in HHR3. Looks pretty quiet so far, though HB2526, exempting from taxation trap and skeet shooting clubs that are "educational" in purpose and use, definitely has a whiff of "winger special" wafting from it.

- Health and Human Services is meeting on Wednesday at 9 a.m. in HHR4. This one has globs of ugly awaiting Arizona.

HB2649 seeks to inhibit the accessibility of legal abortions by burying medical providers under overly onerous reporting requirements.


HB2650 would enact a six-month waiting period for getting a divorce (current requirement: 60 days) and adds an unfunded mandate on the state's court system by requiring that the courts establish an "educational" program on the effects of divorce.

- Commerce will meet on Wednesday at 9 a.m. in HHR5. Looks quiet thus far, but I don't understand some of this stuff.

- Water and Energy is scheduled to meet on Thursday at 9 a.m. in HHR5. Quiet thus far.

- Transportation and Infrastructure will meet Thursday at 9 a.m. in HHR3. Also quiet thus far.

- Judiciary will meet on Thursday at 9 a.m. in HHR4. Looks quiet thus far, though a striker may be offered regarding "guardianship of foreign citizens." No text available yet.



Over on the Senate side...

- Rules will meet on Monday upon adjournment of the Senate's floor session in Caucus Room 1 (aka the old press room). Rubber stamp time.

- Natural Resources, Infrastructure, and Public Debt will meet on Monday at 1:30 p.m. in SHR109. Quiet thus far.

- Judiciary is meeting on Monday at 1:30 p.m. The agenda includes SB1362, increasing the fees that may be assessed by courts in eminent domain cases; and SB1365, expanding notification requirements in eminent domain condemnation cases and deleting a clause that specifies how juries assess damages that included consideration of the benefits to uncondemned property from the underlying project.


- Commerce and Economic Development is meeting on Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. in SHR1. The nugget of really ugly here is SB1242, enacting all sorts of restrictions on labor unions during work actions and giving special protections to employers during the same.

- Appropriations is meeting on Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. in SHR109. As might be expected, the agenda of this committee chaired by Russell Pearce is possibly the worst of the week. It has -

SB1017, requiring that county boards of supervisors appropriate budget money to other county officers in lump sums and removes any kind of fiscal oversight of those officers' operations. AKA the "don't mess with mah man Joe [Arpaio]" bill.

A striker to SCR1032 that would permanently micromanage school districts with a requirement that they spend 70% of their budgets on "classroom instruction." The word "permanently" fits here because as an SCR it would have to be approved by the voters and then couldn't be adjusted by future legislatures unless the Reps succeed in their efforts to overturn the Voter Protection Act.

And this agenda could have been worse - the original agenda had a striker to SB1104 that referred to "taxpayer bill of rights." Know this now - Pearce et. al. will try to spring TABOR on the state this year, probably after the latest budget mess simmers down.


- Public Safety and Human Services will meet on Wednesday at 9 a.m. This one has some bills on photo radar (procedures, banning the use on freeways, more procedures.)

- Healthcare and Medical Liability Reform will meet Wednesday at 9 a.m. in SHR1. This one has SCM1004, a letter to Congress demanding that the federal government pay for any health care programs that are required for the states.

- Veterans and Military Affairs will meet on Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. in SHR2. Quiet thus far.

- Finance meets on Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. in SHR3. One item of interest here is SB1402, Russell Pearce's limits on the secondary property taxes imposed by special taxing districts (including fire districts, library districts, county jail districts, and/or county public health services districts). *Exactly* how it does that is a little unclear to me.

This bill should be an exhibit in the case showing why lawyers should never be allowed to write laws; English majors or journalists should.

The latter groups, by training and disposition, prefer to write sentences that actually clearly communicate information and ideas. The former?

Not so much. :)

- Education Accountability and Reform will meet on Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. in SHR1. Whether it's through the huge gashes inflicted by the Reps' meat-cleaver approach during the budget process or through the nicks and papercuts inflicted by the bills on this agenda, the bleeding of the state's education system continues. Some of the agendized items include:

SB1175, expanding the membership of the Governing Board of the Maricopa County Community College District by adding two members who will be elected on a county-wide basis. Aka "the keep the MCCCD Board dominated by Republicans" bill.

SB1280, making sure that home-schooled students are notified of the scholarship requirements and criteria of the Arizona Board of Regents (actually, this one doesn't seem to be too bad, but I want to see what it looks like after going through the entire legislative process before being totally at ease with it).

SB1284, messing with school financing rules. One of the highlights: language that makes cuts to funding imposed during the year, such as those we've seen from the various special sessions of the lege this year, retroactive to the beginning of the fiscal year. In other words, cuts to state funding won't just impact school districts going forward, they'll force school districts to return money.

SB1286, changing the grading of schools from words like "excelling" and "highly performing" to letter grades (the traditional A thru F). Probably not a bad thing in itself, but the changes to the formula determining how that grade is arrived at may be. Somebody with more experience in this area should look at that (David Safier, that's you. :) )

- Government Institutions will meet on Thursday at 9:30 a.m. in SHR1.

Nuggets here include:

SB1143, creating the ability for counties to change their borders via "local initiative." Another bill I don't completely understand as yet, but it's from Jack Harper - it's presumed to be a bad one.

SB1348, Senate President Bob Burns' proposal to slow down new regulations of business, such as requirements that specific medical procedures/conditions be covered by health insurers, and to speed up the discard of older regulations. There are other similar clauses in this bill, enough for it to be named "The Bob Burns is setting up a run for Corporation Commission and wants to secure business financing for his run" bill.

...Check back on the lege's website later in the week for any changes to committee agendas.

Later!

Sunday, January 24, 2010

The coming week...

As usual, all info gathered from the websites of the relevent political bodies/agencies, and subject to change without notice...


...In Congress, it will be a rather brief week due to the President's State of the Union address on Wednesday.

Possibly controversial items on the House's scheduled agenda -

- An as-yet-unnumbered bill titled "Emergency Aid to American Survivors of the Haiti Earthquake Act" from Rep. Charlie Rangel

- An as-yet-unnumbered bill regarding "additional temporary extension of programs under the Small Business Act and the Small Business Investment Act of 1958" from Rep. Nydia Velazquez

There won't be any business conducted in the House on Thursday and Friday so that the House Republicans may meet in an issues conference.

Over in the Senate, they'll be attending the State of the Union address with the members of the House, but before and after that, they'll be conducting business. Their committee schedule is here. There doesn't seem to be anything of specific interest to Arizona this week, though something could crop up.


...The committee schedule for the Arizona legislature was covered in a separate post here. There is one additional meeting to add: the Joint Committee on Capital Review will meet on Tuesday at 8 a.m. in HHR4.


...The Arizona Corporation Commission will be holding a Public Comment Meeting in Litchfield Park on Monday at 6:30 p.m. They will be soliciting public input on a rate increase request from Liberty Water, formerly known at Litchfield Park Service Co. ACC's full hearing schedule is here.


...The Citizens Clean Elections Commission will meet on Thursday at 9 a.m. No agenda posted as yet, but expect at least an informal discussion of the recent court ruling outlawing CE's matching funds provisions. (Note: CE is appealing the decision.)


...The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors will hold an informal meeting on Monday and a formal meeting on Wednesday (agenda available on this page).


...The Board of Directors of the Maricopa Integrated Health System will have a busy week -

- An executive session on Monday at 1 p.m.

- A formal meeting on Monday at 3 p.m.

- Another formal meeting on Wednesday at 1 p.m.


...The Governing Board of the Maricopa County Community College District will meet on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m., with an executive session at 5:30 p.m.


...The Tempe City Council's Calendar is here. No formal council meetings are scheduled for this week. However, since last week's meeting was postponed due to the weather issues in the area, it may be rescheduled for this week. Stay tuned.


...The Scottsdale City Council will have a busy Tuesday -

- A 3:30 p.m. Executive Session

- A 4 p.m. Special Meeting on Board and Commission appointments

- A 5 p.m. Regular Meeting, assuming that all will still be running according to schedule.

The City's Community Meeting Notice is here.

On Monday, the City's Charter Review Task Force will be meeting on Monday evening. An AZRepublic preview of the meeting is here.


Not meeting this week: Arizona Board of Regents, Board of Directors of the Central Arizona Project

Saturday, January 23, 2010

The Coming Week: Legislative Edition

As usual, all info gathered from the website of the Arizona legislature, except where noted, and subject to change.

The lege has a very full committee schedule this week, so only the real highlights/lowlights will be specifically covered here.

OK, so it will be just lowlights. We're talking about the *Arizona* legislature, so there aren't any highlights. :)

Over in the House...

...The Rules Committee will meet on Monday at 1 p.m. in HHR4.

...The Ways and Means Committee will meet on Monday at 2 p.m. in HHR1. The "highlight" here is consideration of HB2250. The Rep authors of the piece have named it "Arizona's Job Recovery Act." I name it the "Arizona's Big Businesses Get HugeTax Gifts While Average Arizonans Get Shafted" Act. Legislative summary here.

...Natural Resources and Rural Affairs will meet Monday at 2 p.m. in HHR4. This agenda has HB2290, a scheme to dump discarded tires into abandoned mines, and HCR2008, Jerry Weiers' proposed amendment to the Arizona Constitution to protect Arizona's oppressed but avid hunters and fishermen.

...Education will meet on Monday at 2 p.m. in HHR3. The agenda includes the first "striker", or strike-everything amendment. The amendment would turn HB2127 into a measure pertaining to joint enrollment and funding apportionment between school districts and joint technical education districts (JTEDs). Legislative summary here.

...Banking and Insurance will meet on Monday at 2 p.m. in HHR5. The item of interest here is HB2161, Rep. Andy Tobin's (R-LD1) scheme to override the voters' decision to end payday loans in Arizona. Ugh.

...Public Employees, Retirement, and Entitlement Reform will meet on Tuesday at 2 p.m. in HHR3.

...Government will meet on Tuesday at 2 p.m. in HHR4. The nugget of nastiness here is HB2395, which would bar school boards from authorizing payroll deductions for teachers to pay union dues. Punitive payback for all of the rallies, letters, and phone calls organized by teachers in support of public education over the last year.

...Environment will meet on Tuesday at 2 p.m. in HHR5. Here they will consider HB2248, a bill to bar Arizona from participating in the Western Climate Initiative.

...Military Affairs and Public Safety will meet on Wednesday at 9 a.m. in HHR3. This one has a couple of bad bills up - HB2347, a massive loosening of gun laws, including the removal of any requirements of silly things like safety education for concealed weapons permit applicants/holders or that possessors of such a permit actually carry it on their persons when they are carrying a weapon, and HB2383, allowing the governor to declare a state of emergency in Arizona due to illegal immigration and upon such declaration, require that the National Guard be mobilized and deployed to the border with Mexico.

...Health and Human Services will meet on Wednesday at 9 a.m. in HHR4.

...Commerce will meet on Wednesday at 9 a.m. in HHR5. They will consider HB2228, allowing the state to outsource/privatize elevator safety inspections to "third party" inspectors (aka - corporations more interested in profit than safety...not that I'm cynical or anything :) ); HB2246, basically deregulating "consumer fireworks," aka "handy dandy finger removers"; HB2260, making it much tougher for a state agency to implement a new regulatory rule or even to maintain existing ones.

...Appropriations will meet on Wednesday at 2 p.m. in HHR1. It's early in the session, so the highlight of this agenda appears to be a couple of presentations, including one by JLBC.

...Water and Energy will meet on Thursday at 9 a.m. in HHR5.

...Transportation and Infrastructure will meet on Thursday at 9 a.m. in HHR3. On the agenda: HB2034, requiring stickers on gas pumps that list all state and federal taxes on a gallon of gas; and HB2338, micromanaging traffic lights and photo enforcement of the same at four-way intersections.

...Judiciary will meet on Thursday in HHR4. This one has HB2384, barring cities and counties from implementing "sanctuary city" (or "sanctuary county") policies and turning local law enforcement officials into ICE agents.


Over in the Senate...

...Rules will meet on Monday upon adjournment of the floor session in Caucus Room 1.

...Natural Resources, Infrastructure, and Public Debt will meet at 1:30 p.m. in SHR109.

...Judiciary will meet on Monday at 1:30 p.m. in SHR1. Their agenda is just chock full o' ugly from Russell Pearce this week. Let's see:

SB1021, which would make it legal for firearms possessors who feel scared enough of someone else to show their weapons (defensive display) to kill those who have scared them.

SB1098, which states that firearms manufactured and possessed in Arizona are exempt from federal laws. Wonder if any of the authors have asked the feds about this one?

SB1101, exempts current and former law enforcement officials from needing a permit to carry a concealed firearm. I can understand the allowance for active-duty personnel, but *former*? No.

SB1102, similar to HB2347 above.

SB1153, prohibits cities, towns, and counties from enacting laws governing the possession and use of knives (aka - no banning of them from city parks, schools, or government buildings).


...Commerce and Economic Development will meet Tuesday at 1:30 in SHR1.

...Appropriations will meet on Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. in SHR109. This one has more Pearce-spawned ugliness in the form of SB1103, forcing the Arizona Department of Corrections to purchase new prison beds that meet a specific pricing criteria before purchasing higher-priced beds. There's nothing in the bill about the new beds meeting any sort of building or health standards.

...Public Safety and Human Services will meet on Wednesday at 9 a.m. in SHR3.

...Healthcare and Medical Liability Reform will meet on Wednesday at 9 a.m. in SHR1.

...Finance will meet on Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. in SHR3.

...Education Acccountability and Reform will meet on Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. in SHR1. Proceedings will include consideration of SB1175, expanding the Governing Board of the Maricopa County Community College District to seven by adding two members elected countywide.

...Government Institutions will meet on Thursday at 10:30 a.m. in SHR1. This one has my nominee for "Worst Bill of the Week" - SB1100. This one would remove records related to audits of county officers from the realm of public records subject to public disclosure. This one is also from Russell Pearce. Apparently he is Joe Arpaio's personal state senator these days, because this one is set up to shield Arpaio's (mis)management of MCSO from public scrutiny.


If you are interested in one or more of the bills listed here or on any of the agendas, check the posted agendas for updates before traveling to the Capitol. Things are subject to change at the lege.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

The Coming Week... - Everybody but the lege edition

As usual, all info gathered from the websites of the relevant political bodies/agencies, except where noted, and subject to change without notice.

...In the halls of Congress, expect developments regarding health care reform, though those could be accelerated/slowed by the results of the special Senate election in Massachusetts.

There are other matters on the agenda, regardless of the outcome in MA.

- - The House agenda has a few items of interest to Arizonans.

- H.R. 725, Indian Arts and Crafts Amendments Act of 2009, sponsored by Rep. Ed Pastor (D-AZ4). CRS summary here. Heard under "suspension of the rules," so a 2/3 vote is required for passage.

- H.R. 1065, White Mountain Apache Tribe Water Rights Quantification Act of 2009, sponsored by Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick (D-AZ1) and cosponsored by the rest of the Arizona delegation. CRS summary here. Subject to Rules Committee consideration.

- - Over in the Senate, they will be getting back to work on Wednesday. Their committee schedule is here.

Highlights of that list include a Wednesday hearing of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs that will look into the failed Christmas Day explosive underwear attack. Former Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano, the current Secretary of Homeland Security, is scheduled to appear. There will also be a Thursday meeting of the Armed Services Committee to look at the findings of an independent review of the Fort Hood shootings. An FBI press release on the shootings, dated January 15, 2010, here.


...Back here in Arizona, the legislative session is in full swing; their committee schedule for the week was covered in this post.


...The Arizona Corporation Commission isn't meeting this week. Their hearing schedule is here, however.


...The Board of Directors of the Central Arizona Project isn't formally meeting this week, but their Finance, Audit, and Power Committee will meet on Thursday. In addition, they will be holding a Work/Study session on "ADD Water."


...The Tempe City Council is scheduled to meet on Thursday. The agenda is here. The Council Calendar is here.


...The Scottsdale City Council won't formally meet this week. However, they will be part of a joint meeting and dinner with the Tempe City Council at the District 1 Police Station on McKellips Road. That is scheduled for Tuesday evening. The City's Community Meeting Notice is here.


...Not scheduled to meet this week: Citizens Clean Elections Commission, Arizona Board of Regents, Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, Board of Directors of the Maricopa Integrated Health System, Governing Board of the Maricopa County Community College District.