Weekly Legislative Reports

The Arizona Senate started the week with a contentious vote on a resolution to hold the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors (Board) in contempt regarding the dispute over a proposed audit of the 2020 general election. Despite signing onto the resolution as a co-sponsor, the effort failed after Republican Senator Paul Boyer (R-Glendale) sided with Senate Democrats voting against the measure. Citing his desire to continue to work with the Board and resolve the dispute amicably, Sen. Boyer indicated he opposed the proposal to give the Board (which is also a 4-1 majority Republican body) more time to work together to find a resolution instead of holding the County Supervisors in contempt. The Arizona House of Representatives bill introduction deadline passed this week following the Senate’s same bill introduction limitation last week. Next week will be the final week for bills to be considered in their chamber of origin, so any remaining legislation needs to be heard by the end of the week to move forward in its current form without a waiver of rules or a strike-everything amendment (with some limited exceptions). As of today, 1,707 bills have been introduced (exceeding the prior year record high by 100) in addition to another 113 memorials or resolutions.

The 55th Arizona Legislature had its first resignation this week as Democrat Representative Arlando Teller of Chinle announced he would be resigning his seat to join President Biden’s administration as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Tribal Affairs at the U.S. Department of Transportation. The Apache County Board of Supervisors will now appoint a Democrat to fill the outgoing legislator’s seat. The Arizona Senate and House are both proceeding quickly by streamlining many previous measures that did not quite cross the finish line last year as a result of the global pandemic and abrupt finish to session. Governor Ducey signed his first bill of the new session on Thursday afternoon, HB 2045 (civil rights; amendments), sponsored by Rep. Jeff Weninger, which codifies federal law in prohibiting workplace discrimination against pregnant women. With some exceptions, this past Monday (February 1) was the final day for Senators to introduce bills and next Monday, February 8 is the last day for House members to introduce legislation. The Arizona Legislature is getting closer to its “crossover” week, considered to be the traditional “half-way” point of the session. Friday, February 18 is the final day for bills to be considered in their house of origin, so any bills currently in the queue need to be heard within the next two weeks, or face dim prospects for advancement. As of Friday morning, over 1,750 bills, memorials, or resolutions have now been introduced and we expect many more to be dropped in the House prior to Monday’s deadline.

The Arizona Legislature is in the third week of session and had several lengthy hearings this week consisting mostly of repeat bills that did not cross the finish line last year due to the abrupt end of session as a result of the global pandemic. Additionally, there were a host of new measures targeted at reining in the powers of the Governor during a state of emergency, as well as distinguishing the Arizona Legislature as the energy policy making body, and limiting the Arizona Corporation Commission to its ratemaking authority. The Senate Republicans released their budget framework, with the main area of contention from the Governor’s proposal being the amount of tax cuts, and over what length of time. Senate Republicans are proposing $450 million in tax cuts (though few details were provided) but only $200 million would be ongoing. Meanwhile, Governor Ducey’s proposal would cut income taxes by $200 million the first year and increase to $600 million by the third year, for a total tax reduction of $1.2 billion over the next three years. Also differing from the Governor, the Senate Republicans proposal fully funds virtual learning for the 2020-2021 school year, allocates $200 million to the state’s depleting Unemployment Trust Fund, a 5% pay increase for state personnel, and a $200 million set aside for yet to be determined highway infrastructure projects.

Governor Ducey released his budget last Friday and his staff presented his proposal this week to the joint House and Senate Appropriations Committees to start the short/MLK holiday week. Governor Ducey attended the inauguration for President Biden on Wednesday in Washington D.C. and stated that he looks forward to working with the new administration, but that he also will not be afraid to push back on policies that may negatively impact Arizonans. The House started the week on Tuesday with the inability to garner a quorum of 31 members on the House floor to conduct any business. Many suspected that COVID-19 was the cause as they announced at least a couple staffers tested positive for the virus and others were quarantining/self-isolating out of caution because of a possible exposure. Thus, several afternoon committees scheduled to hear bills on a wide range of topics were cancelled (or delayed) until the bills could be First Read and assigned to their respective committees on the full House floor. Many of these bills were carried over to next week’s committee agendas already. While the House rumors were plenty, others suggested that legislators were staying away due to security concerns or threats at all U.S. capitals on Inauguration Day. However, the House was able to muster enough representatives for a quorum on Wednesday to return to business.

The 55th Arizona Legislature, 2nd Regular Session, officially began Monday, January 11 with Governor Doug Ducey delivering his seventh and shortest (only 22 minutes) State of the State address to the Legislature. As a result of the ongoing pandemic and taking extra precautions, Governor Ducey spoke from his Executive Tower via video as opposed to the typical address on the House floor in front of all 90 legislators and distinguished guests. His speech focused on the State’s grappling with the pandemic and that he believes Arizona is better positioned than any other state to come out of this stronger and more resilient. Light on full policy details compared to prior years, the Governor focused on condemning the recent insurrection and violence in Washington D.C., the significant and ongoing threat of the pandemic, getting kids back in the classroom for learning, reducing taxes, and decreasing overly burdensome regulations.

Arizona’s Primary Election, held yesterday, contained several surprise outcomes in state legislative races with several key races still too close to call. Below is a brief summary of the key races at the federal, statewide (Arizona Corporation Commission) and legislative level. We will provide an updated/finalized election outcomes report once the remaining ballots are counted and reflected in the official report.