A state government agency is earning accolades for its positive workplace environment.
On Tuesday, the Arizona Department of Revenue made the 11th annual list of 2023 Top Companies to Work for in Arizona, giving the agency this honor for the second straight year. The list comes from the Arizona Capitol Times, Best Companies Group, and BestCompaniesAZ.
According to the Department of Revenue, “this highly selective list is the result of comprehensive, anonymous employee surveys measuring culture, work environment, leadership, and employee pride and satisfaction, combined with rigorous evaluations of workplace practices, policies, benefits, and demographics.”
“The Arizona Department of Revenue is honored to receive this award for the second year in a row, and all the credit goes to our incredible people,” said Rob Woods, Director of the Arizona Department of Revenue. “We have a diverse team with a culture of inclusion who daily display that they care about one another, lift each other up personally and professionally, and are consistently seeking excellence in their service to Arizona’s taxpayers. We are grateful that our people and culture have been recognized and are looking forward to the coming year as we celebrate this achievement and incorporate new initiatives for our team members.”
Woods was “appointed as Director of the Arizona Department of Revenue in March 2021, having joined the Department in January 2020 as Deputy Director.” He previously “founded the Government Transformation Office for the State of Arizona, led the development of the Arizona Management System, and served as Vice President at JP Morgan Chase.”
After then-Governor Doug Ducey appointed Woods to the Director’s position, Ducey said, “He continues to find innovative ways to improve operations and enhance efficiency, and he stepped up to a leadership role during a crucial time for our state.”
On January 17, Governor Katie Hobbs announced that Woods would remain as the Department’s Director. Hobbs released a statement about Woods (and two other members of her expanding cabinet included in the release), saying, “I have the utmost confidence that these directors have the expertise and wherewithal to take on the challenges and opportunities in their department.”
The Department also took time to share some features about itself in the news release about its inclusion in the exclusive list, writing, “ADOR offers a healthy work-life balance and a culture of personal and professional development, with educational opportunities and in-house training. The Department excels at helping our team members find meaningful, fulfilling careers with us. We recognize our people in several ways, highlighting those who exemplify our agency’s Core Values of Commit to Excellence, Care About Each Other, and Do the Right Thing. ADOR truly thrives in our collaboration and open communication. We excel in being transparent with each other and bringing everyone to the table. Our leaders are coaches, encouraging input from all and helping teams discover solutions to foster our culture of continuous improvement. At ADOR, we know we aren’t just developing employees; we’re developing leaders.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
The U.S. Supreme Court saved one of the biggest opinions of the term for its second-to-last day, and its decision triggered reactions on both sides of the aisle in Arizona.
When the nation’s high court handed down its highly anticipated ruling in Students for Fair Admissions v. President and Fellows of Harvard College, it made a significant correction in the standards for admissions systems used by public universities around the United States. The Court held that race-based standards in Harvard’s and UNC’s admissions programs “violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.”
Writing for the majority coalition of the Court, Chief Justice John Roberts stated, “…the student must be treated based on his or her experiences as an individual – not on the basis of race. Many universities have for too long done just the opposite. And in doing so, they have concluded, wrongly, that the touchstone of an individual’s identity is not challenges bested, skills built, or lessons learned but the color of their skin. Our constitutional history does not tolerate that choice.”
The historic decision by the Supreme Court, drew reactions from Arizona’s politicians on both side of the aisle.
In response to an inquiry from AZ Free News, Senate President Warren Petersen replied, “This is a great decision for the fight against discrimination. The highest court in the land agreed with Martin Luther King Jr. in that you should not be judged by the color of your skin. An individual should be considered for college admissions based on academics, experience, qualifications and character—not by race. I’m thrilled this ruling will bring some sanity back to institutions of higher learning.”
Senate President Pro Tempore T.J. Shope told AZ Free News, “SCOTUS made the right decision today. As the proud son of a Mexican American mother and a white father of German ancestry, our family always knew that we should be judged on our character and not our color. We’re all Americans and we all share a responsibility in keeping this country free of racism & bigotry.”
Sadly, this isn’t a parody account. Just a Biden Field Organizer telling us how she feels… https://t.co/SIAnwArZeR
Democrats, however, took issue with the Court’s ruling. Senate Democratic Leader Mitzi Epstein released a statement after the opinion’s revelation, saying, “Affirmative Action has never been about jumping to the front of the line without any merit. It has been about providing a ladder of equity to help those who have faced adversity in education, the workplace, housing, and every aspect of American life. Affirmative Action has been about providing opportunities for students who are Black and Brown to attend colleges, and for college students to live, love and learn among diverse peers. The same people celebrating this bad Court decision have been actively trying to whitewash history and walk America back to the book-burning past. SCOTUS did not rule against legacy admissions, employee and family recommendations, and grandiose donor admissions. The Court ruled to allow favoritism, but not favoritism for those who have faced racist obstacles. The Court ruled for the favored to get more favors, just as Republican politicians have pushed ways for the rich to get richer, and for the powerful to get more power.”
“The Court ruled for the favored to get more favors, just as Republican politicians have pushed ways for the rich to get richer, and for the powerful to get more power." -Senate Democratic Leader @MitziEpsteinpic.twitter.com/C985mrcA0O
— Arizona Senate Democrats (@AZSenateDems) June 30, 2023
Democrat Representative Analise Ortiz called the Court’s opinion “devastating,” adding that “this ruling upholds white supremacy in higher education and the workforce. Simultaneously, the efforts to privatize K-12 education and drain public schools of funding achieve the same end. We must fight back to ensure racial equity in education.”
Devastating. This ruling upholds white supremacy in higher education and the workforce. Simultaneously, the efforts to privatize K-12 education and drain public schools of funding achieve the same end. We must fight back to ensure racial equity in education. https://t.co/r5iKn6WTB5
— Rep. Analise Ortiz (@RepAnaliseOrtiz) June 29, 2023
Kimberly Yee, the State’s Republican Treasurer, also weighed in on the news of the day, writing, “I applaud the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to keep merit, character and academic achievement the center point of college admissions. The American Dream is attained by putting in the honest, hard work. No one should be able to cut ahead of the line in the name of affirmative action, based on the color of their skin. This decision upholds the core Constitutional principle that no institution in America is allowed to discriminate based on race.”
Today I issued the following statement upon the U.S. Supreme Court's historic decision to overturn affirmative action in the college admissions process. pic.twitter.com/ZY3QfNwjMk
Arizona’s Republican Legislative Leaders continue to fight in federal court on behalf of state laws.
On Monday, House Speaker Ben Toma and Senate President Warren Petersen filed an amicus brief for the case Toomey v. State of Arizona, seeking “to protect Arizona’s recently-enacted statute prohibiting gender reassignment surgeries for minors.”
— Arizona House Republicans (@AZHouseGOP) July 11, 2023
In a statement about the amicus brief, Speaker Toma said, “Although Governor Hobbs and I may disagree on matters of policy, state statute prevails over any statements or executive orders from the Governor. Given that Arizona law prohibits gender reassignment surgeries for anyone under 18, Governor Hobbs cannot expressly or implicitly undo Arizona’s statutory prohibition, through litigation or otherwise. It was critical that the legislature provide this important perspective, which the parties neglected to address in their proposed settlement.”
According to the release issued by Speaker Toma about the submission of the court filing, the amicus brief “seeks to protect Arizona’s statutory mandate by encouraging the court to narrowly interpret the governor’s executive order to avoid a conflict with current law, and it also urges the court to reject the parties’ unreasonable agreement to award $500,000 in taxpayer monies for the plaintiffs’ attorney’s fees.”
The Speaker’s release added that Hobbs’ recent Executive Order, which requires “the state employee health care plan to cover gender reassignment surgeries,” made “no mention of A.R.S. 32-3230, a law that the legislature passed and was signed last year by then-Governor Ducey which prohibits irreversible gender reassignment surgeries for minors.”
That law was the result of SB 1138, which was sponsored by Petersen in 2022. In a letter to then-Secretary of State Hobbs, Ducey wrote, “Distinguishing between an adult and a child in law, as this bill does, is not unique. Throughout law, children are protected from making irreversible decisions, including buying certain products or participating in activities that can have lifelong health implications. These decisions should be made when an individual reaches adulthood. Further, many doctors who perform these procedures on adults agree it is not within the standards of care to perform these procedures on children. The irreversible nature of these procedures underscores why such a decision should be made as an adult, not as a child, and further supports the importance of this legislation.”
Last month, Hobbs signed three Executive Orders that generated significant controversy, including the one in focus for Toma and Petersen’s amicus brief. After the governor’s action, Petersen tweeted, “Instead of helping struggling AZ families plagued by inflation, the governor just issued an order for taxpayers to cover the cost of elective, sex reassignment surgeries. This illegal, out of touch, unprecedented overreach did not receive proper JLBC review as required by law.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
As Arizona’s hot summer drags on, the state’s Senate Republican Caucus continues to work for their constituents, making positive strides to break through a divided government.
On Monday, the Arizona Senate Republican Caucus shared a legislative update “in an effort to provide continued transparency to the media and the public on outstanding issues remaining for the Fifty-sixth Legislature – First Regular Session.” The update highlighted six issues, giving important information on things that have happened behind the scenes.
The first issue was a meeting between Governor Katie Hobbs and Senate President Warren Petersen. The Caucus wrote, “Following President Petersen’s meeting request, he met with Governor Hobbs on Friday and the meeting went well. While there must be consequences for overreaching executive action, we are optimistic on finding a way to move forward in a bipartisan manner that benefits all of Arizona.”
Petersen had transmitted a letter to the Governor’s Office with the meeting request before the July 4th holiday break, following Hobbs’ controversial abortion executive order and a response from some Senate Republicans involving the future of her outstanding nominees for agency positions.
The second issue was about Prop 400, noting that “negotiations are continuing between the Senate, House and Governor’s Office with the common objective to pass a Prop 400 extension before sine die.” This revelation comes after Hobbs vetoed a legislative proposal from Legislative Republicans.
The third issue was water, which has been a huge topic of discussion between Republican and Democrat leaders around Arizona throughout this year. The Senate Republican Caucus noted that “Republican legislators are encouraged by the prospective of a state-driven solution to the current conditions on the Colorado River. To provide the requisite legislative authorization pursuant to A.R.S. § 45-106, Senate and House Leadership sent a letter to the Department of Water Resources on July 6th requesting details needed to act in a timely and efficient manner on the Lower Basin Plan.”
The fourth issue was nominations, and the Senate Republicans shared that their chamber “intends to confirm qualified director nominees.” No timetable was given for this intent, which is significant because of Senator Jake Hoffman’s stand-off with Hobbs over her nominees and the constitutionality of her abortion executive order.
The fifth issue was the Joint Legislative Ad Hoc Study Committee on Water Security, which “will convene on Thursday, July 13 to hear testimony on the Phoenix Active Management Area Model and municipal water resource management.”
The sixth issue was the Joint Legislative Ad Hoc Study Committee on Air Quality and Energy, which “will convene on Thursday, July 13 to receive testimony on our state’s air quality implementation plan and the business impacts of air quality nonattainment.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
Another Arizona state official is experiencing a high-profile staff departure just over six months after taking office.
On Monday, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes announced the resignation of her Chief of Staff, Amy Love, informing Arizonans that Love would soon be leaving her team.
In a statement, Mayes said, “Amy Love is an exceptional public servant, and I thank her for her service to the Arizona Attorney General’s Office. I wish her all the best in her future endeavors.”
The news about Love’s exit highlighted that her final day at the Attorney General’s Office would be August 7, 2023.
Mayes did not immediately indicate what her next move would be for filling the soon-to-be vacant position at the top of her team. Under former Attorney General Mark Brnovich’s administration, the Chief of Staff and Chief Deputy positions were jointly housed under one individual’s job responsibilities. Michael Bailey first held the Chief of Staff and Chief Deputy titles, and then Joe Kanefield, for Brnovich.
When Mayes assumed control of the Attorney General’s Office, she decided to create two positions from the Chief Deputy and Chief of Staff responsibilities. Dan Barr became Mayes’ Chief Deputy at the start of her tenure as the state’s top prosecutor. Love filled the Chief of Staff position.
Love previously worked for U.S. Senator Mark Kelly from Arizona, serving as his Outreach Director from February 2021 to January 2023.
Mayes’ loss within her staff nucleus follows a similar episode with Democrat Governor Katie Hobbs, who found herself without a Chief of Staff earlier this year. On May 25, Hobbs announced that Allie Bones would “be stepping down from her role…after four and a half years of public service with Hobbs” (mostly in the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office). At the time, Hobbs stated, “(Bones’) goal was to build a team that could work across the aisle to navigate divided government, and she accomplished that.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
