by Daniel Stefanski | May 20, 2024 | News
By Daniel Stefanski |
Arizona Republicans continue to promote rural interests when it comes to the state’s groundwater policies and future.
This week, State Representative Gail Griffin released comments over her – and others in the Arizona Legislature – efforts to “increase groundwater recharge in rural Arizona communities that have had challenges with groundwater.”
Representative Griffin said, “Throughout rural Arizona, residents have had challenges with groundwater and asked leaders to take action to help address rural groundwater. For years, lawmakers have answered the call and worked on implementing policies that would increase groundwater recharge for local communities. In 2016 and 2021, we passed legislation to direct the Arizona Department of Water Resources and State Land Department to identify sites that could be utilized to develop groundwater recharge facilities. As a result of the legislation, the agencies identified over 300 locations statewide that could be utilized immediately to increase local water supplies for rural communities.”
She added, “Let’s focus on developing these proposed statewide sites and utilizing other tools available to increase groundwater, rather than top-down government mandates that would negatively affect local economies and job opportunities. Let’s work together for a win-win scenario that puts water in the ground and provides sensible solutions that protect rural Arizona.”
Griffin’s statements followed some from one of her colleagues in the other state legislative chamber, Senator Sine Kerr. Over the weekend, Kerr highlighted two bills working through the legislative process, dealing with housing and water supply. Kerr said, “Average working-class Arizonans can’t afford to purchase homes right now because of supply shortages. The prospect of homeownership has become out of reach for anyone making less than $120,000. To keep up with demand and bring prices down, economic experts say Arizona needs between 40,000 and 50,000 new homes. Unfortunately, current water policies are preventing new homes from being built in the most affordable markets.
“This year, legislative Republicans have introduced bills to save groundwater and increase housing supply in the Phoenix metro area. SB 1172 would allow developers to retire agricultural lands outside of cities and replace those lands with lower-water use, single- family homes. HB 2589 would allow developers to move forward with proposed projects, if they are willing to accept a 15% reduction to future demand in pumping. Together, these proposals could save over 320,000 acre feet of water annually.”
SB 1172 currently resides in the Arizona House of Representatives, after passing the state Senate in February. HB 2589 was approved by the state House in February, and has been stalled in the state Senate.
In a joint op-ed at the beginning of the month, both lawmakers championed their side’s approach to the groundwater issue, encouraging Governor Hobbs to enact the policies espoused in the aforementioned bills if and when the Arizona Legislature finished its work on those efforts. They wrote, “Sensible groundwater policies, like those proposed by Republicans, save billions of gallons of water for future generations and reduce upward price pressure on new homes by allowing the housing supply to increase in this state. This supports affordable housing in Arizona and the economy. When the governor signs these bills, it will help housing affordability and protect Arizona’s precious water resources at the same time, thus providing a win-win for everyone.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Elizabeth Troutman | May 19, 2024 | News
By Elizabeth Troutman |
Amazon issued a statement blasting the Democratic Arizona attorney general for a “fundamental misunderstanding and mischaracterization of how Amazon’s businesses work.”
Under Arizona AG Kris Mayes’ leadership, the Grand Canyon state sued Amazon for “unfair and deceptive business practices under the Arizona Consumer Fraud Act and the Arizona Uniform State Antitrust Act.”
“Amazon’s anti-competitive and monopolistic practices have artificially inflated prices for Arizona consumers and harmed smaller third-party retailers that rely on its platform,” Mayes wrote.
Arizona filed two lawsuits, the first one focusing on the cancellation process for Amazon Prime, and the second targeting an Amazon algorithm that “determines which offer for a given product is made available via the ‘Buy Now’ or ‘Add to Cart’ buttons.”
“The lawsuit claims the Buy Box algorithm is actually biased toward offers that maximize Amazon’s profits, often favoring its own products or those of Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) sellers over better non-FBA options,” according to a statement from the Attorney General’s office.
The company is “surprised and disappointed” by the cases, a spokesperson for Amazon said, accusing the state’s AG of initiating the lawsuits “without reviewing a single document from Amazon.”
“Prime’s sign-up and cancellation processes are clear and simple by design, meeting a high bar for customer satisfaction well above legal requirements,” the statement says. “Customers sign up for Prime because it’s an incredible service and a great value, and they can cancel their Prime membership with a few clicks from the home page.”
“These suits would force Amazon to engage in practices that actually harm consumers and the many businesses that sell in our store—such as having to feature higher prices,” the Amazon statement continues.
Elizabeth Troutman is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send her news tips using this link.
by Elizabeth Troutman | May 19, 2024 | News
By Elizabeth Troutman |
The city of Maricopa appointed a new city manager with an annual salary of $242,000 and a $650,000 house included in the package.
Ben Bitter’s package also includes a $400 monthly stipend for personal vehicle use and a $100 monthly cell phone allowance. He is now the city’s highest paid employee ever.
Bitter will start July 1.
On April 16, the city council approved the purchase of a house for Bitter valued up to $650,000, which he will repay at a half-percent interest rate over 30 years, significantly below current market rates.
Bitter is receiving an $83,700 raise over his current salary and $20,000 more than outgoing City Manager Rick Horst’s pay.
Some residents are upset about the amount of taxpayer dollars dealt to Bitter.
Bitter’s credentials include serving as the city’s capital improvement plan and engineering director in 2021. Since 2022, he has served as deputy city manager and chief product officer.
But his background is riddled with controversy. During his time as city manager in Ashland, Kentucky, the City Commission voted 3-2 to fire him, marking the first such dismissal in decades.
The commissioners accused him of several policy violations, including issuing a $7,000 check as advanced vacation pay to a city employee against city policy and failing to investigate over $200,000 missing from city expenditures on tires.
Bitter said he was “humbled” by his appointment.
“I am deeply humbled by the trust and faith that the City Council has placed in me to fill this position,” Bitter said in a statement. “Following on the heels of such a great leader and mentor is a daunting task, one which I do not take lightly.”
Elizabeth Troutman is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send her news tips using this link.
by Daniel Stefanski | May 18, 2024 | News
By Daniel Stefanski |
A Republican law to protect missing children in Arizona has been signed into law.
This week, State Representative Barbara Parker championed the success of her bill HB 2479, which will “provide for the establishment of a Missing, Abducted and Runaway Children Unit within the Arizona Department of Child Safety (DCS) if DCS fails to comply with statute; [and] revises various other requirements related to the recovery efforts for a child who is missing, abducted or runaway (disappeared)” – according to the overview provided by the Arizona House of Representatives.
Governor Katie Hobbs signed the bill into law on April 10.
In a statement to accompany her announcement about the bill signing, Parker said, “I couldn’t be prouder that HB 2479 has been signed into law. When I came to the legislature, I didn’t have any idea I would focus on this issue. Yet, two young women who went missing were eventually found dead in my district leaving members of our society shell-shocked and necessitating stronger interventions immediately. These tragic incidents make me determined not to forget or abandon even ONE child while serving in office since I have seen their heart wrenching consequences at close range.”
The Republican State Representative added, “The new statute will promote children’s welfare by holding its child safety systems accountable and significantly enhance our efforts at avoiding such misfortunes as well as assisting those affected families. I’m so grateful to my colleagues, Senator Farnsworth, and the foster care community who were involved in perfecting the legislation along the way. Thank you!”
Parker noted that her newly enacted bill “builds upon another law that she wrote last year, HB 2651, aimed at changing DCS’ reporting obligations when children go missing or are abducted or run away.”
Back in February, the bill passed the Arizona House with a bipartisan vote of 37-20 (with two members not voting and one seat vacant). After it was transferred to the state Senate, it was amended and passed with a 27-0 result (with three members not voting). The state House then concurred with the Senate’s changes with an overwhelming 46-12 tally (with two members not voting).
On the Arizona Legislature’s Request to Speak system, representatives from the EPIC Group and Arizona National Organization for Women signed in to support the proposal, while representatives from the Arizona Department of Child Safety and Arizona Association of Chiefs of Police indicated their neutral standing on the bill.
HB 2479 will go into effect 90 days after the conclusion of the 2024 Arizona Legislative Session.
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Daniel Stefanski | May 18, 2024 | News
By Daniel Stefanski |
Members of Arizona’s Republican legislative leadership are again taking action against harmful energy policies for their state.
Earlier this week, Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen and House Speaker Ben Toma sued the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) over select regulations targeting gas-powered vehicles. The two legislative leaders also signed onto another lawsuit, which was led by a coalition of state attorneys general from across the nation, that challenged a California rule that would also have adverse effects in Arizona.
Joining Petersen and Toma on the legal filings in federal court against the EPA was the Arizona Trucking Association.
“These rules exceed the EPA’s statutory authority, are arbitrary, capricious, and an abuse of discretion,” said Senate President Warren Petersen. “In the absence of our Attorney General holding the Biden Administration accountable, the Legislature will gladly protect our citizens from this egregious abuse of power.”
In an exclusive comment to AZ Free News, Speaker Ben Toma said, “This latest California regulation attempts to override federal law, threatens to mandate the use of battery-electric vehicles, and targets owners and operators of trucking fleets. Arizona is among the top states that Californians have fled to in recent years. I joined this lawsuit to protect Arizona’s growing economy, business-friendly policies, and interstate commerce that produces fuel tax revenues for the state.”
“The EPA’s tailpipe emissions rules prioritize politics over science, posing a greater threat to public health by inflating the cost of essential and everyday goods,” said Tony Bradley, President & CEO of the Arizona Trucking Association. “Despite the trucking industry’s remarkable progress—already reducing 98.5% of emissions—we’re dedicated to further advancements through innovation and investment. Yet, the EPA’s impractical mandates, targeting a mere 1.5% of remaining emissions, burden us with unrealistic expectations and exorbitant costs. We proudly join the Arizona Legislature in challenging these detrimental regulations.”
One of the lawsuits asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to “declare [the] EPA’s final action (Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards for Heavy-Duty Vehicles – Phase 3) unlawful and vacate it.” The other took legal aim at the EPA’s final rule for Multi-Pollutant Emissions Standards for Model Years 2027 and Later Light-Duty and Medium-Duty Vehicles.
According to Arizona Senate Republicans, these regulations from the EPA “require by 2032 nearly 70% of all new vehicles and 25% of all new semitrucks or similar heavy-duty vehicles sold in the United States to be electric, guaranteeing to raise the costs of everything Arizonans purchase, and without adequate charging infrastructure in place or the necessary power grid capacity.”
The California lawsuit was led by the State of Nebraska and challenged California’s “ban [on] internal-combustion engines in medium- and heavy-duty vehicles.” Arizona Senate Republicans pointed out that “the rule applies to any fleets headquartered in Arizona, if they operate within California, which will create dire impacts to the supply chain and dramatically raise costs for Arizona trucking companies that will inevitably be passed onto their customers.”
“The climate change agenda from Democrats imposes expensive and unattainable goals on the automotive and trucking industries, which will undoubtedly lead to soaring consumer prices,” said Senator Frank Carroll, vice chairman of the Senate Committee on Transportation, Technology & Missing Children. “We don’t have the infrastructure to power these vehicles, and the average working-class citizen or trucking business can’t afford to purchase them.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Daniel Stefanski | May 17, 2024 | News
By Daniel Stefanski |
Arizona officials and agencies recognized law enforcement during the annual Police Week.
The Arizona Senate Republicans Caucus “X” account honored these first responders, writing, “This week we honor our law enforcement who put their lives on the line daily, as well as the fallen officers who paid the ultimate price to protect us. Our prayers are with the police officers and their families each and every day. THANK YOU!”
Senator Janae Shamp added, “God bless all the men and women in blue! We never miss an opportunity to let them know how appreciated they are by the Shamp family! #BacktheBlue”
Peoria Mayor Jason Beck posted, “During National Police Week, we are honoring our brave men and women in blue. On behalf of Peoria, we express our deepest gratitude for their constant dedication to keeping our communities safe.”
The Arizona Department of Education “X” account stated, “Superintendent Horne is thankful for Arizona’s Law Enforcement community. These heroes protect students, families, and our way of life.”
The Arizona Troopers Association shared a picture of four of its members in Washington, D.C., outside of the White House for police week.
The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office posted a video from County Attorney Rachel Mitchell, writing, “This National Police Week, we honor the dedication and sacrifice of our law enforcement community and their families. We are thankful for the brave men and women in Maricopa County and every corner of our nation who put everything on the line to keep our communities safe!”
The City of Apache Junction also stated, “We pay tribute to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty, never forgetting their courage and commitment.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
