by Ethan Faverino | Jan 18, 2026 | Economy, News
By Ethan Faverino |
State Representative Nick Kupper (R-LD25) introduced House Bill 2325, also known as the Own Something and Be Happy Act. This legislative measure is designed to reduce the growing influence of large institutional investors in Arizona’s single-family housing market and restore ownership opportunities for working families.
The bill, which amends Title 44 of the Arizona Revised Statutes by adding Chapter 42, targets corporate dominance that has driven up home prices and made it harder for Arizona residents—particularly first-time buyers—to purchase homes in their communities.
Key provisions include:
- Capping institutional ownership at no more than 50 single-family homes statewide.
- Prohibiting bulk purchases, defined as acquiring two or more single-family homes in a single transaction or within a rolling 12-month period by the same entity.
- Imposing a 60-day waiting period, during which institutional investors are prohibited from bidding on or purchasing newly listed single-family homes, giving individual buyers priority.
Institutional investors—defined as entities owning or managing 10 or more single-family homes in Arizona—exceeding the cap on the bill’s effective date would be prohibited from new acquisitions and encouraged to voluntarily reduce holdings to achieve compliance.
The legislation includes targeted exemptions to avoid unintended impacts on housing efforts, such as:
- Nonprofit organizations focused on affordable housing
- Government housing agencies
- Community land trusts
- Small property owners (fewer than 50 homes)
- Pension funds of fiduciary entities with assets under $5 million
- Homebuilders whose primary business is constructing new homes for individual sale
To ensure transparency and accountability, HB 2325 requires institutional investors to file annual disclosures with the Arizona Department of Housing by March 15, detailing the single-family homes they own, purchase, or sell, along with their compliance with applicable laws.
Enforcement authority rests with the Arizona Attorney General, who may investigate violations, seek injunctive relief, or pursue other remedies. If the Attorney General declines action, county or city attorneys in the relevant jurisdiction are empowered to step in.
Representative Kupper emphasized the bill’s alignment with broader national concerns over housing affordability. “President Trump is right to call this out,” Kupper stated. “Homeownership has long been central to the American Dream and the reward for hard work. When large investment firms buy up neighborhoods, families lose, and prices climb. HB 2325 puts Arizona on the side of working people who want to own a home, raise a family, and stay rooted where they live.”
“Housing costs have climbed nationwide as institutional investors expanded their residential footprint, while homeownership rates for younger Americans have stalled,” continued Kupper. “In Arizona, population growth and limited housing supply have intensified the squeeze on first-time buyers. This bill draws a clear line. Arizona homes should be owned by Arizona families, not treated like financial instruments by distant corporations.”
Ethan Faverino is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Ethan Faverino | Jan 17, 2026 | Economy, News
By Ethan Faverino |
State Representatives David Marshall (R-LD7) and Ralph Heap (R-LD10) introduced House Bill 2269, a measure to eliminate the state sales tax on electric and gas utility bills for Arizona residents and businesses.
The proposed legislation would suspend the state’s 5.6% sales tax on electricity and natural gas utilities until either $2.3 billion in cumulative tax relief has been provided to Arizonans or December 31, 2046—whichever comes first.
Once the $2.3 billion threshold is reached, the Legislature would then decide whether to extend, modify, or reinstate the exemption.
“People are getting crushed by rising costs, making it harder to live and do business in our state,” said Representative Marshall. “Almost everyone pays a local utility for electricity or gas. Eliminating the tax on this expense represents one of the most immediate and direct ways we can help working families keep costs affordable.”
The 5.6% tax on electricity and gas quietly adds up on monthly bills, leaving the average household paying more than $100 a year in utility tax—funds that could instead support necessities like groceries, housing, and childcare.
Representative Marshall highlighted a structural concern with the current system: “Taxing electric and gas utilities creates a perverse incentive for the government to support increased rate hikes. If rates go up, the state gets more money. That leads some to view rate increases as a source of potential funds for their liberal pet projects. That’s not right; it’s time to put the people of Arizona first.”
“While we’re unsure of any legal way to get ratepayers’ money back, there are things we can do to help reduce costs today,” Marshall continued. “In my opinion, the next best thing we can do is try to provide justice by eliminating taxes on electric and gas utilities moving forward. That’s why, over the next 20 years, we are proposing no state tax on utilities until every penny of the $2.3 billion that was wrongfully extracted from the Arizona ratepayer is metaphorically ‘paid back’ to hardworking families.”
He added, “This bill will save most residents between $100 and $120 per year, on average. Once the $2.3 billion threshold has been met, then the state can determine what it wants to do with the exemption from there, including whether to reassess the tax or extend the exemption even further.”
Representative Heap pointed to actions taken by the Arizona Corporation Commission as the basis for the bill’s $2.3 billion figure: “In 2006, Arizona Corporation Commissioner Kris Mayes catered to outside special interests and adopted expensive renewable energy surcharges that cost ratepayers more than $2.3 billion over the last 20 years. This special interest slush fund also led to foreign-owned boondoggles like the Solana Generating Station, which Kris Mayes personally supported, and which cost ratepayers more than three times the above-market rate of power.”
“While repealing these mandates may help to prevent new costs,” Heap added, “it will do nothing to compensate customers for the unjust surcharges that Kris Mayes forced ratepayers to pay over the last 20 years.”
Ethan Faverino is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Ethan Faverino | Jan 14, 2026 | Economy, News
By Ethan Faverino |
The Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity released preliminary employment data for November 2025, showing that Arizona’s economy added 21,300 nonfarm jobs year-over-year on a not-seasonally adjusted (NSA) basis, representing a 0.6% increase compared to November 2024.
This growth was driven primarily by the private sector, which added 28,000 jobs over the year, while government employment declined by 6,700 positions.
Arizona’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased to 4.3% in November 2025, up from 4.2% in September and 3.9% one year earlier. Over the same period, the U.S. seasonally adjusted unemployment rate also rose, reaching 4.6%
The state’s seasonally adjusted labor force grew by 27,226 individuals from September to November 2025 and increased by 83,081 individuals (2.2%) year-over-year, reflecting continued population and workforce expansion.
From October to November 2025, Arizona added 17,500 total nonfarm jobs. Key monthly gains occurred in:
- Trade, Transportation, and Utilities: +10,600 jobs
- Government: +2,400 jobs, led by Local Government Education with +2,200 jobs
- Professional and Business Services: +1,600 jobs
- Leisure and Hospitality: +1,500 jobs
- Other Services: +1,400 jobs
- Manufacturing: +1,300 jobs
- Information: +1,000 jobs
Losses were reported in Financial Activities (-1,200 jobs) and Construction (-1,100 jobs), with a minor decline in Private Educational Services (-100 jobs). Health Care and Social Assistance showed no change month over month.
Over the 12 months ending in November 2025, the strongest job gains were made by:
- Health Care and Social Assistance: +14,500 jobs
- Professional and Business Services: +9,000 jobs
- Other Services: +4,800 jobs
- Construction: +2,100 jobs
- Leisure and Hospitality: +1,900 jobs
- Natural Resources and Mining: +1,300 jobs
- Private Educational Services: +1,200 jobs
- Financial Activities: +1,100 jobs
Year-over-year losses occurred in Trade, Transportation, and Utilities (-6,700 jobs), Government (-6,700 jobs), and Manufacturing (-1,300 jobs).
Among Arizona’s major metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs), the Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler MSA recorded the largest year-over-year employment gain, adding 78,100 jobs and bringing total employment to 2,801,000.
The Tucson MSA also saw solid growth, with employment increasing by 14,300 jobs, while the Prescott-Prescott Valley MSA added 2,800 jobs over the year. Smaller gains were reported in the Lake Havasu City-Kingman MSA (1,900 jobs), Flagstaff (1,300 jobs), and Sierra Vista-Douglas (800 jobs). The Yuma MSA experienced the opposite with a year-over-year decline of 1,500 jobs.
Statewide, Arizona’s total nonfarm employment reached 3,302,200 in November 2025 on a not seasonally adjusted basis, up from 3,280,900 one year earlier.
Ethan Faverino is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Ethan Faverino | Jan 13, 2026 | Education, News
By Ethan Faverino |
Grand Canyon University (GCU) announced it will continue its historic tuition freeze on the Phoenix campus for the 18th consecutive year, maintaining the same rate through the 2026-27 academic year.
The private Christian university will keep campus tuition at $16,500 (before institutional aid) for the upcoming year—the same amount that has been in place since the freeze began in 2008-09.
This longstanding commitment provides students and families with rare cost predictability amid widespread concerns about escalating college expenses and the long-term value of a degree.
In the 2024-25 academic year, more than 92% of GCU’s traditional students received institutional scholarships totaling $181 million, reducing the average tuition cost to approximately $8,900. This figure is comparable to many public universities and significantly lower than most other private institutions.
National data from the College Board’s Trends in College Pricing and Student Aid Report showed the significance of GCU’s decision. Since 2008-09, average in-state tuition and fees at four-year public colleges have increased 81% (from $6,585 to $11,950), while four-year private institutions have seen costs rise 78% (from $25,143 to $45,000).
GCU’s housing costs also remain well below national averages. The university’s estimated average room and board cost for 2025-26 is $10,658, compared to $13,900 at four-year public colleges and $15,920 at four-year private institutions.
This affordability is notable given that nearly all GCU’s modern residence halls have been constructed in the past 15 years, with approximately 64% of rooms being single occupancy.
Since the tuition freeze began in 2008, the university’s traditional campus enrollment has grown dramatically from fewer than 1,000 students to around 25,000, while the campus itself has expanded to 300 acres.
During this period, the university has invested more than $1.8 billion in new degree programs, classrooms, laboratories, research spaces, residence halls, and advanced technologies.
“When you look at the rising costs in higher education, it’s not surprising that families are questioning the value of a college education,” said GCU President Brian Mueller. “By freezing our tuition for nearly two decades, we have been able to build trust and predictability without compromising our academics. Our campus has grown exponentially, and we are blessed that it has occurred without passing those costs on to students and without requiring state tax subsidies that public universities receive.”
Mueller emphasized the broader impact of the university’s affordability strategy: “Freezing tuition costs is one way that we ensure higher education is affordable to all socioeconomic classes. That increases diversity on college campuses (over 40% of GCU’s ground campus enrollment are students of color), makes higher education more accessible to first-generation college students, and helps prevent students from taking on large amounts of debt.”
Ethan Faverino is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Ethan Faverino | Jan 12, 2026 | Education, News
By Ethan Faverino |
Arizona State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne hailed a unanimous decision by the Arizona Court of Appeals that reinstates a lawsuit against the Mesa Unified School District (MPS), reinforcing parental rights in cases involving children’s gender identity.
The ruling allows parents to pursue legal action against public schools that withhold critical information about a child’s intent to identify as a gender different from their biological sex.
“Schools are not substitutes for parents, and they have zero right to withhold information that parents are entitled to know,” said Horne. “Arizona law is very clear on the right of parents, and they should be informed when a child expresses a desire to be identified as a sex other than the one to which they were born. The Court of Appeals was unanimous in their decision allowing a lawsuit filed against the Mesa school district by a parent to proceed. I am very pleased that the Court made the correct ruling to defend parental rights and remind schools they should follow the law or risk legal action.”
The case is of a parent whose daughter, referred to as “Megan” (a pseudonym), was a student at an MPS junior high school during the 2022-23 school year. According to court documents, MPS had implemented “Guidelines for Support of Transgender and Gender Nonconforming Students” since at least 2015. These guidelines included procedures for school staff to support students asserting a gender identity different from their sex assigned at birth, such as updating their name or pronouns in internal systems without necessarily notifying parents.
In “Megan’s” situation, school personnel allowed her to use the male name “Michael” among teachers and students, while deliberately avoiding updates to the district’s electronic system to prevent automatic parental alerts.
The guidelines instructed staff not to disclose a student’s transgender status or gender nonconforming presentation without the student’s consent, even to parents.
This included options for students to specify whether their identity could be shared with school leadership, teachers, or peers—but parental notification was not mandated unless a change was requested in the school’s internal system.
“Megan’s” parents discovered the name change in October 2022 and confronted the school officials. In a December 2022 meeting with the principal, they learned that the school had intentionally bypassed the notification system to keep the matter secret.
The principal admitted that even if the parents had requested updates on name changes, pronouns, or gender-related issues, MPS policy prohibited informing parents.
The parents demanded that all staff cease using “Michael” and revert to Megan’s given name, but at a February 2023 meeting with teachers, all but one continued using the preferred name.
The parents further claimed that the school’s actions encouraged Megan to lie to her parents, straining the family relationship and delaying necessary mental health support.
Once her parents were fully informed, Megan was able to speak openly with them and a mental health counselor. Within a month, her issues were resolved, and she became comfortable presenting herself as female and using her given name. The lawsuit, joined by MPS board member Rachel Walden, alleges violations of Arizona’s Parents’ Bill of Rights, which protects parents’ authority over their children’s upbringing, education, health care, and mental health. It also cites prohibitions against public employees compelling children to withhold information from parents, requirements for advance notification on sexuality-related instruction, and bans on mental health screening without consent.
Ethan Faverino is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
