The Arizona Republican Party (AZGOP) is targeting Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs over her veto of legislation that would have eliminated municipal grocery taxes. Party Chairman Sergio Arellano said digital advertisements are targeting undecided voters, with additional ads forthcoming. An anti-Hobbs graphic appeared in a September 8 post, as Arellano defended the party’s advertising strategy in a newsletter reported by AZFamily.
The AZGOP released its first ad against Hobbs on September 4, highlighting the governor’s veto of SB 1231, the Arizona Border Invasion Act. Arellano identified it as the party’s first ad and encouraged supporters to share it. The legislation would have created a state offense for a noncitizen entering or attempting to enter Arizona directly from a foreign nation outside a lawful port of entry.
Arizonans overwhelmingly voted YES on border security. Katie Hobbs said NO.
She ignored our communities and opened the doors to dangerous criminals and deadly drugs.
Andy Biggs is ready to secure our state. Katie Hobbs never will.
Arellano addressed concerns about the visibility of Republican advertising in a recent newsletter, writing that “more ads are on the way.” He said the party’s online commercials were targeting undecided voters and encouraged supporters to share them.
“I know many of you have been concerned that you haven’t seen ads,” Arellano wrote, arguing that the party is being “as fiscally conservative with our donors’ contributions as we possibly can be.”
“The newsletter message is a direct response to the tens of thousands of Republicans I’ve heard from who are frustrated with Katie Hobbs’ lies and concerned that she may once again get away without being seriously challenged by the mainstream media,” Arellano said.
The station also reported criticism from former AZGOP Chair Gina Swoboda, who urged the party to deploy its resources.
“Your job is to get to zero,” she said.
AZFamily reported that Hobbs had spent more than $10 million on television advertising and that Biggs had yet to launch a traditional television campaign. The article did not provide a dollar amount for the AZGOP’s digital campaign.
State campaign-finance filings provide a partial picture of the party’s finances before the current advertising push. The Republican Party of Arizona, LLC reported $151,016.45 in cash disbursements during the first quarter of 2026, $175,829.83 during the second quarter, and $23,491.60 during the July 1–4 pre-primary reporting period.
Those reports total $350,337.88 in party disbursements from January 1 through July 4. The expenditures cover general party operations, including payroll, rent, legal services, consulting, mailings, and event costs. The three reports do not identify a specific amount spent opposing Hobbs. The party reported a cash balance of $1,114,887.48 at the close of the July 4 reporting period.
The AZGOP graphic released September 8thstates, “Katie Hobbs is LYING to your friends and neighbors every day, all day long. Tell them the truth – time and time again, Katie Hobbs chose higher prices over the needs of Arizona families. Voters know she has taken Arizona is the WRONG direction.”
The accompanying image accuses Hobbs of choosing higher prices over Arizona families.
Katie Hobbs is LYING to your friends and neighbors every day, all day long.
Tell them the truth – time and time again, Katie Hobbs chose higher prices over the needs of Arizona families. Voters know she has taken Arizona is the WRONG direction. pic.twitter.com/bCHzmrpwQl
The ad refers to legislation Hobbs vetoed on March 28, 2023. Senate Bill 1063 would have prohibited municipal taxes on food for home consumption beginning in July 2025. In her veto letter, Hobbs cited local officials’ concerns about potential service cuts and property-tax increases. She also argued that the delayed effective date would prevent immediate relief and that purchases made with SNAP and WIC benefits were already exempt.
The grocery-tax veto has become a campaign issue for Republican gubernatorial candidate Andy Biggs, who criticized Hobbs’ record after her 2022 comments about potentially supporting a repeal.
The AZGOP’s social media criticism of Hobbs has also included the Sunshine Residential Homes investigation. In a September 3 statement, Arellano questioned Attorney General Kris Mayes’ handling of allegations involving political contributions and Department of Child Safety rate increases, and urged voters to elect Biggs.
Mayes announced August 21 that the investigation had uncovered no evidence of the quid pro quo necessary to support a bribery charge. A separate investigation involving Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell and the Arizona Auditor General remains ongoing.
The next regular state party report covers July 5 through September 30 and is due October 15. That reporting period encompasses the party’s current campaign activity against Hobbs.
Congressman Paul Gosar’s campaign announced Monday that the National Rifle Association Political Victory Fund (NRA-PVF) has endorsed his reelection bid and awarded him an “A” rating ahead of the November general election.
Gosar, a Republican representing Arizona’s Ninth Congressional District, faces Democrat Danielle “Dani” Sterbinsky following the state’s July 21 primary election.
The NRA just endorsed my campaign and gave me an A rating.
I have never wavered on the Second Amendment. Our right to keep and bear arms is not negotiable, and I have voted that way every single time.
“I have never wavered on the Second Amendment,” Gosar said. “Our right to keep and bear arms is not negotiable, and I have voted that way every single time. I am grateful to have the NRA standing with me.”
The NRA-PVF evaluates candidates based on their voting records, public statements, and responses to its candidate questionnaire. Its grading system defines an “A” candidate as someone who has supported NRA positions on key votes or demonstrated support for Second Amendment issues.
Gosar’s campaign said he has maintained a career “A” rating from the organization. His congressional office also listed a career “A” rating from the NRA among its career ratings as of Jan. 1, 2024. His campaign platform states his opposition to a national gun registry and other legislation he considers an infringement on gun rights.
Federal Election Commission (FEC) summaries covering campaign activity through July 1 show Gosar held a cash advantage over Sterbinsky. Gosar’s campaign reported $303,213.70 in cash on hand, while Sterbinsky’s campaign reported $25,744.84. The FEC summaries list $580,042.50 in total receipts for Gosar from Jan. 1, 2025, through July 1, 2026, and $354,382.57 for Sterbinsky from July 1, 2025, through July 1, 2026.
The Ninth District includes communities in Mohave, La Paz, Maricopa, and Yuma counties, encompassing portions of western Arizona and the Phoenix metropolitan area’s West Valley.
Gosar was first elected to Congress in 2010 after working as a dentist. His campaign’s stated priorities include federal spending cuts, a balanced budget amendment, border security, domestic energy development, and lower taxes.
Sterbinsky’s campaign website identifies her as a Navy veteran and human resources professional living in Wittmann. Her platform includes housing affordability, reducing health care and prescription drug costs, and expanding rural infrastructure, including broadband access.
Arizona’s general election is scheduled for Nov. 3. The voter registration deadline is Oct. 5.
Arizona lawmakers are continuing efforts to prepare the state for advanced air mobility, hosting Joby Aviation at Phoenix Deer Valley Airport this week for a demonstration of the company’s autonomous flight technology.
Senate Majority Whip Frank Carroll (R-LD28) and Sen. David Farnsworth (R-LD10) attended the event, which featured Joby’s autonomous J208 aircraft and marked the beginning of the company’s nationwide Electric Skies tour.
🚨FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Arizona Senate Republicans Help Prepare State for the Future of Advanced Air Mobility
The J208 is a Cessna 208 Caravan equipped with autonomous aviation technology developed by Xwing, an autonomy division acquired by Joby Aviation in 2024. The aircraft is separate from Joby’s electric vertical takeoff and landing air taxi, which the company is developing for commercial passenger service.
Joby said the J208 departed Concord, California, on September 8 for its 2026 Electric Skies tour, which is intended to demonstrate autonomous aviation technology during a cross-country flight.
Joby reported that the aircraft completed its eastbound cross-country journey under remote supervision, with an onboard safety pilot who made no control inputs.
September is shaping up to be a huge month for our J208 program and the future of autonomous flight.
Former fighter pilot @maxabusa spent his career flying with a stick and a rudder.
The pilot commanding the J208 uses a keyboard, a mouse, and a microphone.
The Phoenix event continued a series of demonstrations and legislative initiatives aimed at expanding Arizona’s advanced air mobility sector.
In March, Farnsworth hosted representatives from Pivotal Aviation at the Arizona Capitol for discussions about potential uses of electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft in communities including Superior and Globe.
Those discussions focused on rural transportation, emergency response, public safety, and connections between communities that have limited access to traditional transportation infrastructure. Pivotal Aviation markets the Helix, a single-seat electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft.
Later that month, legislation sponsored by Farnsworth had advanced through the House Technology and Infrastructure Committee.
One measure, SB 1826, would appropriate $2 million from the Advanced Air Mobility Fund to the Arizona Office of Defense Innovation and require a public-private partnership supporting autonomous systems, advanced aviation, and related defense and aerospace development.
A second measure, SB 1549, would add ultralight vehicles to Arizona’s statutory definition of advanced air mobility.
The legislative work builds upon SB 1307, sponsored by Carroll and signed into law in 2025. The law directs the Arizona Department of Transportation to incorporate advanced air mobility into state aviation planning and consider infrastructure including vertiports, charging facilities, emergency-response applications, and integration with existing transportation systems.
Arizona’s fiscal year 2025-2026 transportation budget also deposited $2 million into the Advanced Air Mobility Fund. State law allows the fund to support planning, infrastructure development, research, workforce development, public education, and local transportation projects connected with advanced air mobility.
Carroll said Arizona has an opportunity to lead the next major development in transportation by creating a regulatory and infrastructure environment that encourages aviation investment.
“We’ve been laying the groundwork at the legislature so companies developing the future of aviation know Arizona is open for innovation and ready for investment,” Carroll said. “Advanced Air Mobility can improve connectivity between our communities, strengthen emergency response and public safety, support our defense industry, connect communities, and create tremendous economic opportunities.”
“Arizona has the opportunity to lead the next revolution in transportation,” he continued.
Farnsworth said technological development in the sector is accelerating and that lawmakers must ensure state policy keeps pace.
“Our responsibility as lawmakers is to remove unnecessary barriers and ensure that the infrastructure and policies are in place to translate innovation into real-world transportation.” He added, “This is about more than new aircraft. It’s about jobs, economic growth, stronger communities, and giving Arizonans entirely new ways to move around our state.”
“The technology is here, the momentum is building, and Arizona has every ingredient necessary to become the national leader in Advanced Air Mobility,” Farnsworth continued.
Joby also demonstrated its autonomous technology during the U.S. military’s 2025 Resolute Force Pacific exercise, testing capabilities for cargo delivery and military logistics. According to Joby’s account, the campaign logged more than 7,000 autonomous miles, including round-trip ferry flights across the Pacific; six exercise sorties accounted for 2,416 miles. Ground stations supervised the flights, with a safety pilot aboard to monitor system performance.
Carroll and Farnsworth said they are continuing to consult aviation companies and other stakeholders as they prepare for the 2027 legislative session. The Senate Republican announcement did not identify specific legislation planned for the session.
Correction:An earlier version incorrectly described the 2025 military demonstration as transporting personnel and attributed its total flight mileage to operations between Hawaiian locations. The article has been corrected to describe the cargo-logistics demonstration, distinguish exercise mileage from ferry flights, and include the presence of an onboard safety pilot.
A new economic analysis estimates that measures proposed during Arizona’s 2026 legislative session could have imposed at least $31.5 billion in annual costs and reduced employment by more than 424,000 jobs if they had taken effect together.
The 2026 Arizona “Job Killers” report, produced by Common Sense Institute Arizona (CSI) and the Arizona Chamber Foundation, identified 119 legislative measures that the organizations classified as potential tax increases, labor-cost increases, regulatory burdens, or new operating restrictions on Arizona businesses.
What is the potential cost of policy?
CSI Arizona and the Arizona Chamber Foundation identified 119 bills introduced during the 2026 legislative session that would have increased taxes, fees, labor costs or regulatory requirements.
A review of the measures’ introduced sponsorship records found that 92 had Democratic lead sponsors and 27 had Republican lead sponsors. One Democratic-led measure also listed Republican sponsors. All 23 measures classified in the report’s labor category had Democratic lead sponsors.
CSI used Regional Economic Models Inc. (REMI) simulation software to produce the statewide estimates. Most individual estimates represent direct, first-order costs, while researchers applied a broader REMI TaxPI+ analysis to selected proposals.
The projections describe hypothetical effects, not recorded losses. The report assumes sudden and simultaneous enactment of the modeled proposals and cautions that actual costs could vary with implementation. None of the 119 measures became law.
The authors wrote, “An initial econometric analysis using CSI’s REMI simulation software suggests enactment of 88 of the 119 bills identified and tracked by the Arizona Chamber would have imposed at least $31 billion in new annual costs on Arizona.”
The report’s methodology footnote gives a different count, stating that CSI limited its quantitative analysis to 31 proposals whose costs could be estimated from tax and fee provisions or existing academic research. It says the remaining proposals could impose additional costs that were not readily estimable for the report.
CSI reported that its economic simulation estimated that simultaneous implementation of the modeled proposals could have reduced statewide employment by 424,400 jobs, or 9 percent; lowered real disposable personal income per resident by as much as $4,100 annually, or 7 percent; and reduced Arizona’s real gross domestic product by $48 billion, or 8 percent, once the effects were fully realized.
The largest estimated cost category consisted of labor measures, with 23 proposals carrying an estimated combined cost exceeding $17.5 billion.
These included proposals to repeal Arizona’s constitutional and statutory right-to-work protections. SCR 1035 and HCR 2022 proposed placing the repeal of Article XXV of the Arizona Constitution before voters. If voters approved the constitutional change, the related HB 2464 would have repealed Arizona’s statutory right-to-work provision.
Article XXV prohibits denying a person employment because of nonmembership in a labor organization and prohibits agreements that exclude people from employment on that basis.
CSI’s modeling assumed repeal would lower Arizona’s projected average annual GDP growth over five years from 3.86 percent to 3.05 percent, a reduction of approximately 21 percent from the baseline growth rate. The model projected between 30,000 and 40,000 fewer jobs.
Other labor proposals included mandatory paid-leave programs, minimum-wage increases, workplace heat regulations, and changes to scheduling, meal breaks, and overtime requirements. The report estimated $1.8 billion in costs from proposed paid-leave programs and up to $1.9 billion from minimum-wage increases.
HB 2466 would have required overtime compensation for work exceeding eight hours in a workday, double pay for hours beyond 12 in a workday, and additional meal and rest breaks. CSI placed the measure’s estimated annual cost at $2.5 billion.
The report estimated that tax proposals would have imposed a combined cost of nearly $3.8 billion.
HB 4095 proposed an additional 3.5 percent tax on federal adjusted gross income exceeding $250,000 for single filers and married people filing separately, or $500,000 for married couples filing jointly and heads of household. Revenue would have been divided equally between the Classroom Site Fund and the Emergency Deficiencies Correction Fund.
CSI estimated the measure would have generated approximately $1.5 billion in additional annual tax liability.
HB 2636 would have retained the state’s 2.5 percent rate on taxable income through $1 million and applied an 8 percent rate to income above that threshold. The report’s narrative incorrectly identifies that proposal as HB 2629; its appendix identifies it correctly.
Separately, HB 2629 would have increased the minimum annual corporate income tax from $50 to $1,000 for otherwise taxable corporations with at least 50 employees. CSI estimated approximately $3.9 million in additional annual costs.
SB 1575 would have changed Arizona’s formula for allocating the income of multistate corporations by ending the option to calculate business income using only the sales factor. CSI estimated approximately $292.9 million in annual costs.
HB 2461 proposed a workforce-development surcharge on businesses with at least 50 employees. The bill set the surcharge at 1 percent of payroll taxes paid during the taxable year. CSI estimated an annual cost of $32.6 million.
Energy and environmental proposals accounted for an estimated $7.1 billion in annual costs, according to the report.
HB 2551 would have required Arizona electric distribution utilities to generate at least 50 percent of their electricity from renewable sources by January 1, 2035. It also proposed establishing an Office of Resiliency within the governor’s office.
SB 1385 proposed a similar renewable energy requirement taking effect by January 1, 2036.
CSI estimated that the renewable-generation requirements could have increased electricity costs by approximately $3 billion after accounting for generation and backup-capacity expenses.
The study also examined HB 2467, which would have removed transaction privilege and use-tax exemptions for qualifying data-center equipment. The bill would have required data centers to use renewable electricity with battery storage beginning in 2027 while imposing limits on water-consuming cooling systems.
The report identified 66 measures involving legal or administrative requirements, with an estimated combined cost of $3.3 billion. Those proposals addressed rent regulation, mandatory acceptance of cash, pharmacy benefit managers, consumer refunds, and price restrictions during emergencies.
“No single policy determines the entire direction of an economy, but policy choices compound over time,” CSI Arizona Executive Director Katie Ratlief said. “That’s exactly why we do this analysis every year. A tax here, a new mandate there, another regulatory requirement somewhere else may not seem significant on its own. But put them all together, and the economic picture can change dramatically. Our job is to connect those dots and give Arizonans a clear view of what these policy choices could mean for jobs, investment and the future of our economy.”
The analysis also compared Arizona’s economic performance with Colorado’s. CSI reported that Arizona’s inflation-adjusted GDP has grown at an average rate approximately 20 percent faster than Colorado’s since 2016. Arizona’s average annual population-adjusted net interstate migration increased 18.5 percent since 2020 compared with its average during the previous decade, while Colorado’s comparable measure declined by more than 90 percent, according to CSI.
CSI estimated that Arizona would have approximately 154,405 fewer workers and $26.4 billion less in real GDP if the state had followed Colorado’s economic growth trajectory since 2019. That comparison is also a modeled counterfactual rather than a measurement of losses Arizona experienced.
“Arizona’s economic success is not an accident,” Arizona Chamber President and CEO Danny Seiden said. “It reflects years of policy choices that have kept taxes competitive, preserved a flexible labor environment, cut red tape, and given businesses the confidence to invest and hire here.”
“We’re fortunate none of these bills became law. If they had, Arizona’s competitive advantages could have been dramatically undermined. Arizona’s competitive position is strong, but we can’t take it for granted,” he added.
A new report examining corporate ownership of Phoenix-area housing calls for restrictions on institutional homebuyers, expanded financing for local builders, and changes to federal tax policy. The report also endorses an Arizona proposal from Republican state Rep. Nick Kupper (R-LD25).
The American Economic Liberties Project’s September case study, authored by Laurel Kilgour and Allie Gross, argues that consolidation in banking and homebuilding, purchases of foreclosed properties, and the expansion of build-to-rent communities have contributed to difficulties facing prospective homeowners.
For more on the investor takeover of housing in Phoenix, read the full brief Phoenix Case Study: Single-Family Rentals, Build-to-Rent, and Undoing the Corporate Capture of Housing here: https://t.co/bQtNUr6fLX
— American Economic Liberties Project (@econliberties) September 9, 2026
The nonprofit, which advocates against concentrated corporate power, acknowledges that institutional investors did not create the housing supply shortage. Its report contends that investors capitalized on that shortage while changes in financing weakened smaller builders’ ability to compete.
The report’s focus on construction shortfalls follows earlier research covered by AZ Free News in May. The Common Sense Institute identified prolonged underbuilding after the Great Recession as a principal driver of Arizona’s housing shortage, citing annual housing permits that fell from nearly 90,000 in 2005 to approximately 12,600 in 2010 and recovered to about 45,000 by 2019. That study examined short-term rentals such as Airbnb and found no consistent statistical relationship between their growth and home-price appreciation across Arizona communities.
Before the housing crash, Arizona was building at a rapid pace:
• ~400,000 homes built from 2003–2007 After the Great Recession, construction slowed significantly: • ~211,000 homes built from 2010–2019
— Common Sense Institute Arizona (@CSInstituteAZ) April 16, 2026
Phoenix has gained prominence in the institutional rental market in recent years, appearing in Urban Institute research published in 2023. Using 2022 property records, researchers identified 33,406 single-family rental properties held by “mega” rental operators in the Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler metropolitan area, second to Atlanta among the markets examined. The study defined those operators as investors owning more than 1,000 properties across multiple locations. However, the Urban Institute also cautioned that its data should be treated as a sample and that smaller institutional investors were incompletely captured.
A 2024 Government Accountability Office (GAO) review found that institutional investors may have contributed to increases in home prices and rents while helping stabilize neighborhoods after the financial crisis. The GAO said their effects on homeownership opportunities and tenants were less clear because of limited data and inconsistent definitions of institutional investors.
The new Phoenix report also examines build-to-rent developments, where homes are constructed for rental occupancy. Its recommendations include phased sales of institutional holdings, giving prospective owner-occupants and nonprofits an initial opportunity to purchase foreclosed homes, and reducing tax incentives for institutional rental ownership. The authors also recommend financing programs for local homebuilders and taxes intended to discourage holding undeveloped land.
In Arizona, the report endorses Kupper’s House Bill 2325, introduced in January as the “Own Something and Be Happy Act.”
I’m proud to introduce HB2325 the Own Something and Be Happy Act!
The introduced legislation would prohibit covered institutional investors from owning more than 50 single-family homes statewide, bidding during the first 60 days a home is publicly offered for sale, or making bulk purchases. Investors already exceeding the ownership limit would be barred from additional acquisitions and could voluntarily sell properties to comply.
The bill includes exemptions for affordable housing nonprofits, government housing agencies, community land trusts, qualifying homebuilders, and people or entities owning fewer than 50 single-family homes in Arizona. It would also require annual ownership disclosures to the Arizona Department of Housing. The proposed enforcement provisions would allow local prosecutors to act when the attorney general declines enforcement in a particular matter.
“When large investment firms buy up neighborhoods, families lose and prices climb,” Kupper said.
HB 2325 did not receive a hearing in the House Commerce Committee.
At the federal level, the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, enacted July 11, includes restrictions on additional single-family home purchases by large institutional investors. Its definition generally covers qualifying investment entities controlling at least 350 homes, subject to exclusions.
The federal purchase restrictions take effect 180 days after enactment. The law includes exceptions for qualifying build-to-rent purchases and other transactions, and it does not require investors to sell homes purchased before enactment.
Arizona’s House delegation split 5–3 on the final version in the June 23 vote. Reps. David Schweikert (R-AZ01), Eli Crane (R-AZ02), and Andy Biggs (R-AZ05) voted against it. Reps. Juan Ciscomani (R-AZ06) and Abraham Hamadeh (R-AZ08) joined Reps. Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ03), Greg Stanton (D-AZ04), and Adelita Grijalva (D-AZ07) in support. Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ09) did not vote. Sens. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) and Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) both supported the final Senate version in the June 22 vote.
President Donald Trump said that he would withhold his signature in protest over the Senate’s failure to pass the SAVE America Act, which would require documentary proof of citizenship for voter registration and photo identification for voting. The housing legislation became law July 11 without his signature, following the constitutional review period of 10 days, excluding Sundays, without a veto.
