The head of the Arizona Republican Party is predicting that Attorney General Kris Mayes will face an investigation of her own for her alleged lack of investigation into Gov. Katie Hobbs.
Sergio Arellano stated in an interview with the “Conservative Circus” on Monday that Arizona Democrats should be “terrified” over the continued inquiries into Mayes.
“Kris Mayes didn’t just make Sunshine Residential Homes disappear; she may have just moved the spotlight directly onto herself,” said Arellano.
The Arizona Republican Party issued a statement accusing Hobbs of leading a “culture of corruption,” and endorsing the Republican nominee for governor, Rep. Andy Biggs (AZ-05).
Arizonans deserve better than Katie Hobbs’s Culture of Corruption.
Arellano also urged Republicans to issue the transcripts from their investigation into Mayes and Hobbs.
More than two years after launching an investigation based on media reports connecting Hobbs with an unusual rate increase for one of her major donors, Mayes released a short memorandum clearing Hobbs of pay-to-play corruption.
Sunshine Residential Homes, a major group home operator in the state, and its CEO, Simon Kottoor, are among the top donors to Hobbs’ campaign, legal fund, and inaugural fund. The company received substantial rate increases in 2023 and 2024 following years of denials before Hobbs took office.
The most recent denial occurred a month after Hobbs was sworn in. Several months later, following a dinner attended by Hobbs and her campaign chief at Kottoor’s residence, Sunshine Residential Homes received the rate increase it had sought — while other group home operators were denied increases or had their contracts cut entirely.
Mayes’ seven-page memorandum clearing Hobbs was criticized across the board not only for its length but for it allegedly revealing oversights concerning apparent evidence that some corruption had occurred.
Mayes maintained that the scope of her investigation was thorough; it included more than 100,000 documents. The attorney general suggested that the legislature was to blame for the perceived pay-to-play issues, and advocated for improved transparency laws.
Earlier this summer, Hobbs vetoed the sort of legislation Mayes suggested to ensure greater transparency. Hobbs claimed that because the legislation would also bring transparency to the Sunshine Residential Homes debacle, it was a “political stunt.”
Most recently, House Speaker Steve Montenegro (R-LD29) sent Mayes a letter demanding she provide answers to five questions indicating key contradictions and omissions in her investigation. Montenegro cited evidence from Department of Child Safety employee testimonies and contracting requirements as support for the scope of questioning.
“The Memorandum suggests your Office failed to pursue critical issues and reached conclusions that directly conflict with reliable evidence — including information provided by the very witnesses your Office claims to have interviewed,” said Montenegro. “Those failures raise the specter that your Memorandum was intended to influence the November election by attempting to inoculate the Governor from a perceived political vulnerability.”
Montenegro gave Mayes until Friday, September 4, to answer.
Senate President Warren Petersen (R-LD14) — who is the Republican nominee for attorney general — has also called on Mayes to release the records that informed her decision to clear Hobbs of wrongdoing. Petersen called Mayes’ memorandum a “cliffs notes report” that withheld critical information from the public.
An Arizona House special advisory team and the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office are still investigating the pay-to-play allegations against Hobbs, despite an initial order from Mayes to stand down as her office conducted its investigation.
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The U.S. House passed legislation mandating victims of certain sexual or violent crimes have lifetime protections against their abusers.
Rep. Abe Hamadeh (R-AZ-08) sponsored the Kayleigh’s Law Act of 2026, or Kayleigh’s Law, named after Arizona native and survivor advocate Kayleigh Kozak. Reps. Andy Biggs (R-AZ-05), Eli Crane (R-AZ-02), Paul Gosar (R-AZ-09), Juan Ciscomani (R-AZ-06), and David Schweikert (R-AZ-01) were among the bill’s original cosponsors.
The legislation passed via unanimous voice vote on Monday.
In an address on the House floor, Hamadeh said that the bill would ensure that the criminal justice system would no longer prioritize the desires of abusers over the safety of victims.
In a press release, Hamadeh stated that Kayleigh’s Law would “eliminate the ‘legal tug-of-war’” requiring survivors to face their abusers in court.
“This bill is simple. When a predator is convicted, federal courts must issue a lifelong no-contact injunction. Not until probation ends. Not until some judge decides the offender has ‘moved on.’ For life,” said Hamadeh. “Victims should never again have to fill out another form, sit across from their abuser, or look over their shoulder because the sentence ran out and the system shrugged.”
Kozak has attested in many interviews in recent years that she was victimized by her middle school P.E. teacher who was also her soccer coach. Her abuser requested an end to probation in 2020, 13 years after his conviction, and Kozak was given three weeks’ notice.
“Two times as an adult she was hauled back to look at the man who destroyed her childhood just to keep him away. No victim should ever have to do that,” said Hamadeh.
🇺🇸WATCH🇺🇸
"Mr. Speaker, I rise today as a former prosecutor and as an Arizonan who has seen what happens when the system prioritizes a criminal over the victim."
Congressman Hamadeh takes the House floor to champion his bill, H.R. 8481, the Kayleigh’s Law Act of 2026. pic.twitter.com/Yq4fy8PuHH
— Office of Congressman Abe Hamadeh (@RepAbeHamadeh) August 31, 2026
Arizona law already requires courts to issue a lifelong no-contact injunction for sex offenders. This federal version would expand that no-contact mandate to certain violent felons.
“Contact” was defined to mean all direct or indirect communication, transmission, or physical interaction, including written, oral, electronic, digital, or physical means and communications executed through an intermediary or technological systems.
The Arizona version of this legislation was enacted in 2022, and is also named Kayleigh’s Law.
Biggs’ running mate for Arizona Governor, Sine Kerr, was the sponsor that led passage of the Arizona version of Kayleigh’s Law.
Today, the U.S. House unanimously passed Kayleigh’s Law by voice vote.
This victim-centered, public safety-focused legislation ensures that victims of violent crime have meaningful protections at the federal level while also serving as a model for states seeking to better… pic.twitter.com/XgJyXsdM8B
According to Hamadeh’s office, more than 1,000 child sex abuse survivors in Arizona benefited from the state’s lifetime no-contact protections within the first year of the law’s enactment.
“Kayleigh’s Law would give every American victim of a federal sex crime or a violent felony that same shield,” said Hamadeh. “Healing cannot begin if the abuser can show up again the day after release. Justice is not complete if the victim still lives in fear. Arizona already closed that gap; it is time the federal government did the same, so no American, no matter which state they live in, is left unprotected after a federal conviction.”
Three of Kozak’s five children were present with her for the passage of the bill.
A related bill, also titled Kayleigh’s Law Act of 2026, is making its way through the Senate under sponsorship from Utah Sen. Mike Lee. It was read twice and referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee last month.
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
Democratic congressional nominee Amish Shah is facing fresh criticism from the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) over his support for taxpayer-funded health care for illegal immigrants. The NRCC is pointing to Shah’s call for a “wholesale repeal” of the tax-and-spending law President Donald Trump signed in 2025.
During an April candidate forum, Shah was asked what he would do about the law commonly known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The Trump administration and the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) refer to Public Law 119-21 as the Working Families Tax Cut.
“So number one, repeal the tax cuts,” Shah said in a video released by the NRCC. “Yeah, I’ve called for a wholesale repeal of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. … I think it’s abominable.”
The NRCC argues that repealing the entire law would also reverse its immigration-related healthcare restrictions and rescind billions of dollars provided for immigration enforcement and border security.
LEAKED: AZ Democrat @DrAmishShah said, "So #1, repeal the tax cuts! Yeah, I’ve called for a wholesale repeal" … "Yes!"
Socialist Shah would raise taxes on Valley families by OVER $4,000 and end No Tax on Tips/Overtime/Social Security. AZ can't afford Socialist Shah! pic.twitter.com/JOfaelDmtl
“If Socialist Amish Shah got his way, criminal illegal immigrants would be back on free healthcare while Arizona families foot the bill,” NRCC spokesman Ben Petersen said in a statement provided to AZ Free News. “Every step of the way, Amish Shah backed radical open borders policies that led to the worst border crisis in American history and he’d do it all over again.”
Shah did not mention immigration or Medicaid in the cited portion of the forum. His remarks called for repealing the broader law and its tax provisions.
The legislation became Public Law 119-21 when President Trump signed it on July 4, 2025. It combined tax provisions with changes to Medicaid, food assistance, energy policy, and immigration enforcement.
The law narrows the categories of noncitizens eligible for federally funded Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program benefits beginning Oct. 1. Under guidance issued by the CMS, federal Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) funding generally will be limited to U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, lawful permanent residents, Cuban and Haitian entrants, and migrants covered by the Compact of Free Association.
The restrictions will affect some immigrants lawfully present in the United States, including refugees and people granted asylum. Across Medicaid, CHIP, Medicare, and Affordable Care Act marketplace coverage, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that the law’s combined immigration-related provisions would leave approximately 1.4 million lawfully present immigrants uninsured by 2034.
Illegal immigrants were already ineligible for comprehensive federally funded Medicaid coverage before the 2025 law. Federal matching funds were, and remain, available when a patient requires emergency treatment and would otherwise qualify for Medicaid apart from immigration status.
CMS said the new law preserves federal matching funds for emergency treatment. It also preserves state options to cover lawfully residing children and pregnant women through Medicaid or CHIP.
A separate provision caps the federal reimbursement rate for emergency Medicaid at each state’s standard matching rate beginning Oct. 1, rather than the enhanced rate available for the Medicaid expansion population. Repealing that provision would restore the previous reimbursement formula for emergency care. It would not establish comprehensive Medicaid eligibility for people living in the country illegally.
The 1.4 million figure cited by the White House and Republican organizations during the bill’s 2025 debate came from a separate CBO analysis of the earlier House-passed version.
The Congressional Budget Office determined that approximately 1.4 million people whose immigration or citizenship status was unverified could lose coverage because states would face a reduced federal Medicaid matching rate if they continued operating state-funded health programs for illegal immigrants.
“Those 1.4 million people currently are covered under state-funded programs alone,” the CBO wrote. “Their health insurance coverage does not involve federal funding.”
Shah has focused his opposition to the law on its wider healthcare provisions. In a July 2025 guest commentary for the Arizona Capitol Times, the emergency room physician called the law “a logistical failure, professional betrayal, a moral outrage and a national disgrace.”
The law also contains major appropriations for border and immigration enforcement. It provides $4.1 billion to hire and train additional Customs and Border Protection personnel, including Border Patrol agents, Office of Field Operations officers, and Air and Marine agents. Another $2.05 billion is designated for retention, hiring, and performance bonuses.
The law appropriates $29.85 billion for Immigration and Customs Enforcement activities through fiscal year 2029, including hiring and training additional personnel. It also allocates billions for border barriers, detention capacity, transportation, and state reimbursement.
A wholesale repeal of the One Big Beautiful Bill, codified as Public Law 119-21, would require Congress to decide which tax, healthcare, immigration, and spending provisions to eliminate or replace. Shah has not released a detailed proposal for repeal legislation specifying how he would treat each provision.
Attorney General Kris Mayes is declining to investigate Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD) for potential violations of open meeting law due to a potential conflict of interest.
Mayes referred the complaint, filed back in April, to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office (MCAO).
The complaint accused SUSD Superintendent Scott Menzel of violating open meeting law concerning school closures and consolidations, specifically with regard to the operations of the Phase II Design Advisory Team tasked with handling those decisions. The governing board voted to close Pima Elementary School and Echo Canyon School last December.
According to the complaint, the district’s Phase II Design Advisory Team must be open to the public because it was formed at the direction of the board, not the superintendent. The design advisory team operates under the classification of a Superintendent Advisory Committee, which is exempt from Open Meeting Law requirements.
The Phase II Design Advisory team publicizes its past and upcoming meeting dates and materials but does not permit the public to attend the meetings. The team held five meetings as part of Phase A, which lasted from March through May, and recently concluded five meetings as part of Phase B, which lasted from June through earlier this month.
Menzel proposed the design advisory team during a regular governing board meeting last November, and the following month the board discussed the formation of the design advisory team in a regular meeting. The board didn’t vote at that latter meeting to form the design advisory team.
The citizen who filed the complaint told AZ Free News that MCAO informed him in late July that the attorney general’s office had referred the investigation to them. Caitlyn Mitchell, an attorney with the Civil Services Division, told the complainant that the attorney general could not investigate because it provides legal counsel to SUSD.
“The Arizona Attorney General’s Office referred your Open Meeting Law complaint against the Scottsdale Unified School District to us to avoid any potential conflict of interest because the AG’s Office also provides legal counsel to SUSD,” said Mitchell.
Around the time of our initial reporting, SUSD advised AZ Free News that their officials were not aware of the complaint filed against the district, nearly a month after the complaint had been filed.
AZ Free News asked the MCAO when the attorney general referred the complaint to their office, and when they might have the results of their investigation complete.
We also asked about communications with SUSD, given the lack of awareness the district initially had when the complaint was in the possession of the attorney general’s office.
MCAO didn’t respond to our inquiries.
Last summer, the attorney general’s office found SUSD in violation of open meeting law for engaging in actions similar to those that led to the creation of the Phase II Design Advisory Team.
“The Open Meeting Law does not permit a governing board to evade the public meeting requirements by ‘informally’ forming or establishing, or by directing a superintendent to establish, a committee to perform work that would otherwise need to be conducted in public,” stated Mayes. “[W]e caution against an overly narrow reading of the law focused exclusively on the circumstances of a committee’s creation.”
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
Federal authorities arrested 95 commercial truck drivers identified as illegal aliens during a multi-agency enforcement operation in Arizona’s Yuma Sector, with more than three-quarters carrying commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) issued by California.
The U.S. Border Patrol conducted the operation with local law enforcement partners from Aug. 10 through Aug. 14, resulting in 143 arrests involving individuals from 18 countries, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
Of the 95 truck drivers arrested, 76 possessed California CDLs, while six held licenses issued by New York. CBP said the remaining licenses came from other states but did not identify them individually.
The operation also intercepted two human-smuggling attempts, resulting in the arrest of four alleged smugglers and 17 smuggled aliens. Agents seized a firearm, 74 pounds of methamphetamine, and 169 pounds of marijuana.
95 ILLEGAL ALIEN TRUCK DRIVERS ARRESTED.
Working alongside law enforcement partners, @CBP arrested the truckers in Arizona — 76 of whom had driver’s licenses issued by CALIFORNIA.
We won’t stop fighting to get illegal alien truckers OFF our nation’s roads.… https://t.co/OojGPH3lHC
Acting Chief Patrol Agent Dustin W. Caudle of the U.S. Border Patrol’s Yuma Sector said the agency is targeting threats involving improperly qualified commercial drivers as well as criminal organizations engaged in drug and human smuggling.
“We are committed to protecting our citizens from all international threats,” Caudle said, “whether that is from unlicensed or untrained drivers, or transnational criminal organizations engaged in human or drug trafficking.”
Fox News first reported the arrests Monday morning, before CBP publicly released the operation’s results.
The arrests come amid increased federal scrutiny of state commercial licensing programs for foreign nationals and follow an August report by the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) examining the issuance of non-domiciled CDLs nationwide.
FAIR reported that California issued more than 128,000 non-domiciled CDLs between January 2022 and September 2025, more than doubling the state’s annual issuance during that period, and that in 2025 at least 17 fatal crashes involving foreign national CDL holders cost more than 30 Americans their lives.
A non-domiciled CDL is a separate category of commercial license available under federal law to certain foreign nationals and is not synonymous with a license issued to an illegal alien. Under current federal regulations, foreign-domiciled applicants for a non-domiciled CDL must be lawfully present in the United States under specified employment-based nonimmigrant visa categories.
FAIR’s report found California allowed CDL knowledge examinations in Arabic, Chinese, Punjabi, Russian, and Spanish. According to data cited in the organization’s 31-page investigative report, first-attempt pass rates were 22 percent for applicants taking the test in Arabic and 26 percent for Punjabi, compared with 63 percent for applicants testing in English.
“Our investigation—powered by public records, litigation against New York’s stonewalling, and analysis of FMCSA’s own audits—lays bare systemic noncompliance on a massive scale,” Mateo Forero, FAIR’s director of investigations, said. “California’s 128,000-plus non-domiciled CDLs and abysmal foreign-language pass rates, the multi-state practice of issuing licenses beyond lawful presence, and the growing list of preventable deaths make clear that temporary executive fixes are not enough. Only permanent statutory reform can restore the integrity of the CDL program and protect every American driver.”
Federal regulators separately identified problems with California’s non-domiciled CDL program during a 2025 review.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) found that approximately 25 percent of the California records sampled during its review failed to comply with federal requirements.
FMCSA found that California issued some commercial licenses with expiration dates extending beyond the expiration of drivers’ lawful-presence documents. Regulators also found licenses issued to Mexican nationals who were ineligible under the applicable federal rules and found that some temporary commercial credentials were issued without first validating lawful presence or reporting the licenses to the national Commercial Driver’s License Information System.
California informed federal regulators in late 2025 that it had begun proceedings to rescind approximately 17,000 noncompliant licenses. FMCSA subsequently determined California had failed to complete the corrective actions on the agreed schedule and withheld approximately $160 million in federal highway funding in January.
The California DMV later said that, effective March 6, the federal government required it to cancel approximately 13,000 non-domiciled CDLs. The state agency said all affected drivers had federal work authorization and were legally present when their licenses were originally issued. California DMV also said it had sought permission to issue corrected licenses to drivers who remained eligible.
New York has faced similar federal enforcement. An FMCSA audit found 107 of 200 sampled non-domiciled CDL records were issued in violation of federal requirements, a failure rate of more than 53 percent.
The agency found New York’s licensing system routinely issued eight-year non-REAL ID commercial licenses without limiting their expiration dates to the period during which the foreign driver was lawfully present in the United States. FMCSA withheld more than $73 million from New York in April after concluding the state had failed to complete required corrective actions.
Federal rules governing non-domiciled commercial licenses were tightened this year. An FMCSA final rule, effective March 16, limits eligibility to foreign nationals lawfully present in the United States under H-2A temporary agricultural worker, H-2B temporary non-agricultural worker, or E-2 treaty investor status.
The regulations also require states to verify an applicant’s immigration status and require states unable to comply with the new standards to halt issuance of non-domiciled commercial licenses until their systems meet federal requirements.
The Yuma Sector arrests are the latest enforcement action involving commercial drivers as federal transportation and immigration authorities increase scrutiny of the licensing and employment of foreign nationals operating commercial vehicles on U.S. highways.
Congressman Eli Crane (R-AZ-02), spent the final days of the congressional district work period visiting communities and key infrastructure sites across Arizona, focusing on rural health care, the recovery of the Grand Canyon’s North Rim, water security, and domestic mineral production.
Crane was joined during portions of the visits by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ-05).
The engagements included stops with the Gila River Indian Community, Grand Canyon National Park, Salt River Project, and Freeport-McMoRan as Crane highlighted what he described as efforts to strengthen Arizona’s long-term economic and infrastructure needs.
Crane visited the Gila River Indian Community following the University of Arizona and Gila River Health Care’s announcement of a new partnership to expand medical education and physical recruitment in the community.
The partnership will establish a Doctor of Medicine-granting program that the university describes as the first rural regional branch of its kind established in partnership with a federally recognized Tribe on Tribal land.
Students will begin their foundational science coursework in Phoenix before moving to Gila River Health Care and other regional sites for clinical training.
The program is intended to encourage medical students to establish careers in rural and Tribal communities, where access to physicians and other health services can be limited.
Crane said the program could help create a long-term physician workforce within the community.
The partnership is expected to support construction of a new health center providing primary care, dental services, behavioral health, and specialty care.
Crane also pointed to more than $160 million recently directed to Arizona through the Rural Health Transformation Program for health care clinics, workforce development, and infrastructure.
On August 25, Crane accompanied Burgum to both the North and South Rims of the Grand Canyon National Park.
At the North Rim, park personnel and other stakeholders briefed the officials on recovery efforts following the 2025 Dragon Bravo Fire, which severely damaged critical facilities.
The fire has left the North Rim facing additional challenges, including erosion, flash flooding, and disruptions to its water system, along with longer-term infrastructure and rebuilding needs.
Crane discussed his North Rim Restoration Act of 2025, which would streamline federal contracting procedures to allow the National Park Service to move more quickly on rebuilding efforts.
He also highlighted an amendment he introduced to the 2026 Farm Bill aimed at expediting recovery efforts related to the White Sage Fire.
Both measures passed the U.S. House unanimously and are awaiting further consideration in the Senate.
This week, I had the honor of joining @SecretaryBurgum for critical meetings with leaders across Arizona's vital industries.
The following morning, Crane and Burgum traveled to Theodore Roosevelt Dam, located northeast of Phoenix.
The dam and Roosevelt Lake are operated by the Salt River Project (SRP) and provide water storage, flood control, hydropower, and recreation.
SRP officials briefed Crane and Burgum on the effects of recent dry winters, changing runoff patterns, and the importance of maintaining reliable water storage within the state.
Officials also discussed a 2024 decision by the U.S Army Corps of Engineers that allows SRP to retain water in a portion of Roosevelt Dam’s Flood Control Space for up to 120 days, compared with the previous 20-day limit.
The additional flexibility allows more water to remain stored following qualifying runoff events rather than being released downstream before it can be put to beneficial use.
SRP estimates the change could help support the water needs of hundreds of thousands of households during eligible periods.
Although Roosevelt Dam is not part of the Colorado River system, Crane said the reservoir remains important as Arizona prepares for potential reductions to Lower Basin water allocations beginning in 2027.
During the visit, Crane and Burgum discussed several issues surrounding the negotiations, including avoiding costly litigation, maintaining adequate water storage capacity, and supporting potential desalination projects.
While Governor Hobbs’ administration is leading the state’s interstate negotiations, Crane said he believes the federal government may need to intervene if the state cannot reach an agreement.
This morning, I joined @SecretaryBurgum at Theodore Roosevelt Dam to discuss water security.
I was able to use this opportunity to advocate for Arizona’s long-term water needs.
That afternoon, Crane, Burgum, and Biggs visited the Miami Smelter in Claypool, a copper processing facility operated by Freeport-McMoRan.
The century-old facility processes copper concentrate from Freeport’s Arizona mines and is the company’s largest U.S. source of sulfuric acid for its copper leaching process.
Freeport officials briefed lawmakers on the facility’s operations and recent maintenance work.
According to the company, the smelter processed approximately 821,000 metric tons of copper concentrate in 2025 and produced roughly 209,300 metric tons of copper anodes.
The 2025 maintenance turnaround was associated with approximately $73 million in maintenance and idle-facility costs.
Company officials also discussed the possibility of expanding the facility, arguing that using the existing infrastructure could be more practical than securing permits and constructing an entirely new domestic smelter.
Crane focused on federal regulations affecting the facility’s competitiveness, including Environmental Protection Agency standards finalized in 2024 for primary copper smelters.
Freeport had previously warned that complying with the standards could require significant equipment changes and additional costs.
Crane praised a two-year regulatory exemption granted to the facility by the Trump administration in October 2025, but said he believes a permanent solution is needed.
Crane said the series of visits provided an opportunity to examine challenges facing several of Arizona’s major industries and communities while working with state, federal, Tribal, and private-sector leaders.
“To our friends at Grand Canyon National Park, Salt River Project, Freeport-McMoRan, as well as the Gila River Indian Community and the University of Arizona, thank you for your generous hospitality,” stated Crane. “This past week and a half has been invaluable in terms of briefings, new partnerships, and progress toward recovery and growth.”
Crane also thanked Burgum for traveling to Arizona and meeting with leaders across the state.
“I’m also grateful to Secretary Burgum for taking the time to visit our state and meet with leaders across our vital industries. It was a tremendous honor to host the Secretary and his team as we worked to strengthen our blueprint for long-term stability,” Crane added.
Ethan Faverino is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
