On the same day he announced increased steps to open the state, Governor Doug Ducey announced the retirement of one of the key players in state’s efforts to tackle the pandemic, Maj. Gen. Michael T. McGuire. McGuire serves on the Governor’s cabinet as both the Director of the Arizona Department of Emergency and Military Affairs and as the Adjutant General for the state.
“General McGuire’s solid leadership and expertise has been critical, especially during the COVID-19 emergency response,” said Governor Ducey in the announcement. “Arizona is grateful for General McGuire’s exceptional service to the state and nation.”
McGuire has served in the role since 2013. He planned to retire last year but extended his service because of the pandemic. His last day will be April 10.
McGuire is responsible for managing the day-to-day activities of a nearly 8,300-member department, which includes the Arizona’s Army and Air National Guard, Joint Programs, and the Division of Emergency Management.
More than 100,000 Arizona voters on the Permanent Early Voting List (PEVL) have not voted by early ballot in the past four years.
Think about that for a moment. These are people who asked to be on the PEVL but are choosing not to use the system. Not only does this waste taxpayers like you money by sending out unwanted ballots, but it compromises the integrity of our elections.
If someone isn’t using the system, they shouldn’t continue to receive an early ballot by mail. Thankfully, the Arizona Senate addressed the PEVL on Tuesday by passing SB1485, a bill sponsored by Senator Michelle Ugenti-Rita (R-LD23). And predictably, as the bill heads to the Arizona House, Democrats are losing their minds. While most of them are mischaracterizing this bill as “voter suppression,” others have called it a “full-on assault on Democracy,” and Representative Athena Salman (D-LD26) couldn’t help but label it as “racist.”
But while Arizona Democrats proceeded to hurl unhinged attacks and insults at proponents of the legislation, it’s important to look at what this bill actually does. And it’s not that complicated.
SB1485 simply changes the name of the list from the PEVL to the Early Voting List (EVL). That means voters can continue to vote early and by mail as long as they are on the list. But if an individual doesn’t vote by early ballot in both the primary election and the general election for two consecutive cycles, he or she will receive a notice from their county recorder. Failure to respond to the notice means the voter will be removed from the list.
As you can see, this isn’t some sinister conspiracy like Democrats are making it out to be.
There’s nothing in the bill that prevents a voter from being placed back on the list. And it certainly has no impact on someone’s voter registration status.
Gov. Doug Ducey has issued a lot of statements during his time in office, but the one he made Friday to allow most businesses across Arizona to reopen without capacity restrictions may be the most welcome of all.
“We’ve learned a lot over the past year,” Ducey said in his announcement. “Our businesses have done an excellent job at responding to this pandemic in a safe and responsible way. We will always admire the sacrifice they and their employees have made and their vigilance to protect against the virus.”
For businesses, physical distancing and mask protocols must still remain in place. In addition, Ducey will continue to order that mayor, counties, and municipalities cannot implement “extreme measures” over and above the state’s order.
Ducey and other state officials point to seven weeks of declining new COVID19 cases in Arizona, and the distribution of more than 2 million vaccines. Friday’s announcement that capacity restrictions will be removed for restaurants, gyms, theaters, water parks, bowling alleys, and bars providing dine-in service came just days after the Arizona Free Enterprise Club called for a reopening sooner than later.
The AFEC’s March 2 statement noted Arizonans were on “day 351” of what was announced at the time as a 15-day closure effort to show the spread of COVID19, but instead many businesses were still under very restrictive capacity limits…”
Several bills introduced this legislative session aimed to help Arizonans recapture a sense of normalcy by getting kids back to school and employees back to work. Rep. Bret Roberts (R-LD14) has sponsored or co-sponsored several of those bills, including one that defines the limits of a governor’s emergency powers.
Roberts said he is glad Ducey made the announcement but is mindful that more is needed.
“I would prefer we repeal it all in one fell swoop as other states are doing,” Roberts said. “However, I am happy to see were moving in that direction albeit incrementally. It’s a good first step…but we need to do more.”
Ducey’s new order will likely also have a huge impact on Arizona’s struggling tourism industry. He will now allow Major League Baseball and other major sports organizations to seek approval from the Arizona Department of Health Services of a crowd-public health plan that demonstrates implementation of safety precautions and physical distancing.
“Today’s announcement is a measured approach; we are not in the clear yet,” Ducey added. “We need to continue practicing personal responsibility.”
The Arizona Supreme Court announced Thursday it will hear oral arguments on April 20 in an attempt to quickly address whether a lower court judge should have put Proposition 208 on hold pending a trial on the measure’s constitutionality.
“Small business owners are already leaving the state due to this poorly crafted measure, and we are hopeful that the Supreme Court will do the right thing and stop this illegal law from going into effect before more damage is done,” Scot Mussi, President of the Arizona Free Enterprise Club, said after the announcement.
Prop 208 mandates a 3.5 percent surcharge tax on income above $250,000 (single filers) or $500,000 (joint filers) in addition to whatever regular income tax is due. The Arizona Free Enterprise Club, Senate President Karen Fann, House Speaker Russell Bowers, and others impacted by the surcharge are asking the Supreme Court to invalidate the measure approved in November with less than 52 percent of the vote.
Attorneys affiliated with the Goldwater Institute, including Timothy Sandefur, are among those representing the plaintiffs. He welcomed Thursday’s news that oral arguments will be held in less than seven weeks on the plaintiff’s previously rejected request for a temporary restraining order.
“Today’s order shows that the Supreme Court understands how important these constitutional challenges are,” said Sandefur, the organization’s vice-president of litigation. “Rather than having the case go through the slower procedures for appeals, the Court announced that it will hear the case right away.”
In February, Judge John Hannah of the Maricopa County Superior Court refused to put Prop 208 on hold pending a trial on several constitutional challenges. His ruling requires the Arizona Department of Revenue to prepare to collect the surcharge, although the judge noted the funds could be refunded if Prop 208 is later invalidated.
Among the legal issues is whether a tax surcharge is simply a tax increase in disguise, and if so, whether it can be enacted without the same two-thirds majority required when the legislature wants to hike taxes. That two-thirds requirement was added to the Arizona Constitution in more than 20 years ago.
“But you can’t override the Constitution except by a constitutional amendment, and Proposition 208 isn’t a constitutional amendment,” said Sandefur, who appealed Hannah’s denial of the restraining order to the Arizona Court of Appeals per normal court rules. He also took the unusual path of simultaneously seeking expedited consideration from the Supreme Court.
Among those who encouraged the Supreme Court to hear the matter was Gov. Doug Ducey, who campaigned against Prop 208 as a “crippling” tax increase with no guarantee of much of the funds would reach teachers. Estimates that $800 million or more in additional annual K-12 funding would be generated under Prop 208 have been recently called into question in light of post-COVID income impacts.
The oral arguments proceeding will be closed to in-person attendance, but a livestream will be available via www.azcourts.gov/AZSupremeCourt/LiveArchivedVideo.
Parents, like those in the Peoria Unified School District, are praising a bill, SB1058, which requires district and charter schools to post a list of procedures used to review and approve learning materials and procedures by which a parent can review learning materials in advance.
If the district does not have procedures used to review and approve learning materials, the bill requires them to post a “clear statement that no such procedures or processes are in effect at the school.”
While the bill has been stripped of meaningful reforms, supporters say the bill is a baby step in the right direction even if it only brings much needed attention to what is going on in Arizona’s K-12 classrooms.
Last week, Peoria parents attempted to share their concerns with district officials about lesson plans that involve and appeared to be based on the principles forwarded by the political organization, Black Lives Matter.
Not only were parents not advised that students would be exposed to curriculum of a highly controversial and clearly partisan nature, they were denied access to review the learning materials.
Barto’s bill at least provides them with a clear path to curriculum review, say education experts.
This week, the Arizona Department of Education released a report showing a dramatic decrease in public school enrollments compared to last year. Public enrollment is down by approximately 38,000 students for the 2020-2021 school year compared to last year.
