Arizona Republican House and Senate leaders announced a compromise budget agreement with Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs on Tuesday and introduced a series of budget bills for consideration in both chambers.
According to a press release by the GOP Senate Caucus, the budget, totaling $18.29 billion, is designed to deliver approximately $1.45 billion in tax relief to Arizonans over a four-year period and to limit state spending growth to 3.05%. The agreed-upon budget also “rejects or modifies more than $3 billion in proposed executive tax increases, fees, and spending expansions over the next three years.”
The legislative GOP leadership and Gov. Hobbs have been embroiled in tense on-again-off-again negotiations since January, with Hobbs announcing a full moratorium on signing legislation, vetoing nearly all bills sent to her desk from April 13 until May 14, including a proposed Republican budget containing over $1 billion in tax relief.
🚨FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Arizona Becomes Only State in the Nation to Deliver Historic Trump Tax Cuts As Part of Bipartisan FY 2027 Budget Agreement
“Arizona is leading the nation once again,” Senate President Warren Petersen (R-LD14) said in a statement. “For years, Arizona has built a reputation as one of the best places in America to live, work, raise a family, and start a business. This budget strengthens that foundation. Families are facing higher costs for groceries, childcare, housing, and everyday necessities, and we wanted to provide real relief. By adopting President Trump’s tax cuts at the state level, expanding tax relief for families, and protecting educational freedom, we’re helping Arizonans keep more of their hard-earned money while ensuring our state remains economically competitive.”
Looks like we have a deal on the budget. Arizona will be the first state in the nation to deliver the full Trump tax cuts! Proud of my colleagues in the House and Senate. Expecting to vote it out on Thursday. And this time, it will get signed.
The budget reportedly incorporates full conformity with the tax cuts of the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act passed in 2025, which included several of President Trump’s major federal tax provisions, including:
No tax on tips, no tax on overtime,
An increased standard deduction,
A new childcare deduction,
An enhanced child tax credit,
Expanded charitable giving deductions,
Property tax relief for disabled veterans.
In a statement to AZ Free News, Arizona House Speaker Steve Montenegro (R-LD29) said, “Republicans came into this session focused on affordability, responsible spending, public safety, school choice, and protecting taxpayers from new taxes and fees. This agreement reflects those priorities and shows what can be achieved through serious negotiations in divided government. The process still needs to play out, but this is a responsible budget agreement that moves Arizona in the right direction and puts families and taxpayers first.”
According to the Senate GOP Caucus, the budget agreement will also address the ongoing controversy of data center development in the state through the imposition of “a three-year moratorium on the issuance of new certificates for the data center sales tax exemption while explicitly allowing construction of new data centers to continue.”
In addition to implementing the $1.45 billion in tax relief, the budget will also include:
$112 million for corrections operations,
A 4% correctional officer stipend,
$23 million for victims of crime assistance,
$58 million for child safety operations, including foster care coaching and guardian contract costs,
$25.5 million for county support programs, probation services, coordinated reentry efforts, and sheriff assistance,
$10 million for wildfire suppression efforts,
$4.3 million for rural hospitals.
Reforms packaged with the FY2027 budget also include eligibility verification requirements for Medicaid and SNAP benefits, and protections for the Empowerment Scholarship Account program.
Governor Hobbs praised the bipartisan agreement, saying, “This bipartisan, balanced budget agreement will put Arizona first and deliver opportunity, security and freedom to communities throughout the state. With this agreement, we are delivering a $1.4 billion tax cut for working-class families, investing in job creation, education and water security while tightening our belts, and securing a moratorium on the data center tax exemption so we can develop a responsible path forward that protects our water future and lowers utility bills for Arizona families.”
She added, “This bipartisan compromise shows what we can do when we put common sense before political games and focus on delivering real results for our communities. It will put money back in the pockets of Arizona families and lower costs, make our communities safer, and protect the vital services that Arizonans rely on. In the coming days, I look forward to working with legislators in both parties to pass this bipartisan budget agreement that will make Arizona stronger, safer, and more prosperous.”
House and Senate versions of the budget bills will be considered during a Joint Senate & House Appropriations Committee hearing Wednesday, with final votes set for Thursday.
A local church filed suit against the city of Phoenix for its new ordinance requiring permits to feed and provide medical care to the homeless in public parks.
The city ordinance, “Phoenix Medical Treatment and Food Distribution in Parks,” impacts any individual or organization with a charitable or humanitarian purpose from distributing food or medical care to the general public, not just the homeless — though it is those seeking to provide resources to the homeless that are most impacted by the policy.
The city emphasized the prohibition on the sale, distribution, or exchange of syringes or needles, needle exchange programs, and distribution of needle/intramuscular naloxone in public communications discussing the new ordinance.
The ordinance exempts those distributing food or medical care for non-charitable purposes, such as food distributed at events not open to the general public, like birthday parties, or medical aid rendered to address a sudden medical event. Water and electrolyte beverage distribution was also exempted from the permitting process.
The council passed the ordinance last month, and it took effect last wek week. Starting Friday, the city provides a limited number of permits: two per month, per park made available on a tri-annual basis. The two permits combine both food and medical, not two food and two medical permits.
Those seeking permits must submit the names, food handler certificates, and medical certifications for all providing food and/or medical care, along with proof of a $2 million liability insurance policy.
Lance Brace, a Phoenix real estate agent, and his nonprofit St. Herman’s Table filed the lawsuit challenging the ordinance through Provident Law in the Arizona District Court this week.
St. Herman’s Table provides a meal, water, Bibles, and small hygiene products to the homeless at Cave Creek Park at Cactus once a week. The nonprofit is part of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross Orthodox Church.
Brace argued that the ordinance violates the First Amendment and the Arizona Free Exercise of Religion Act, claiming that it extends favorable treatment to secular activities, like wedding and birthday parties, by not holding them to the same permitting requirements as religious organizations engaging in charitable endeavors.
Advocates for the city ordinance say the homeless have made the public parks unsafe for children and families.
In its presentation of the ordinance during a formal council meeting last month, the city included photos taken by city staff and submitted by residents as examples of the pervasive problems occurring in park systems due to unfettered services rendered to the homeless: mass crowding, littering, drug usage, drug paraphernalia, and contamination with biological hazards.
As an example of the safety hazards presented by charitable organization presence without government oversight, officials referenced several recent city cleanup efforts that yielded the collection of hundreds of needles at South Mountain Park and Preserve, John F. & Mary P. Long Homestead Park, and Margaret T. Hance Park.
Critics of the city ordinance argued that the charitable services shouldn’t be limited by a permitting process due to the outsized needs of the homeless community.
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Maricopa County Recorder Justin Heap rejected the Board of Supervisors’ proposal for a public meeting to discuss unresolved election administration disputes, arguing the offer was intended to create an appearance of cooperation while the Board continued litigating election authority issues.
In a June 5 statement, Heap said the Board’s latest proposal was “not a serious effort to resolve this dispute” and accused the Board of continuing “a pattern of delay, obstruction, and political theater” that has lasted more than 18 months.
For 18 months, the Board refused negotiations. Then they lost in court. Six weeks later, they're still refusing to comply and facing contempt proceedings and sanctions for ignoring the Court's order.
I've offered to sit down with the Board and our respective legal counsel so we… https://t.co/DHiFwzCC5J
— Maricopa County Recorder Justin Heap (@azjustinheap) June 6, 2026
“They rejected proposals, rejected meetings, rejected mediation, and forced taxpayers to fund unnecessary litigation,” Heap said. “After losing decisively in Superior Court, they are now doing everything possible to delay compliance while pretending the problem is a lack of communication. The problem is not communication. The problem is that the Board refuses follow the law and accept Court orders they do not like.”
The dispute follows an April ruling in the litigation between Heap and the Board over election administration duties. The Maricopa County Superior Court issued a ruling in Heap’s favor on April 16, rejecting the Board’s claim of “plenary” authority over election administration, and held that Arizona law establishes the Recorder as the county’s principal elections officer.
The Recorder’s Office said the court ordered the Board to return control of IT staff, servers, databases, software, and election systems to the Recorder or fund their immediate replacement. The office also said the court found that the Board’s control of the Recorder’s IT systems and personnel constituted an “unlawful usurpation” of authority.
The Board has disputed Heap’s characterization of the litigation and said the April ruling could disrupt election operations. In a May 4 release, the Board said it had filed a motion for a stay pending appeal and warned that the ruling could cause “significant disruptions to election operations,” including confusion over chain of custody, on-site tabulation, and the handling of mail-in ballots on Election Day.
The Board has also maintained that it negotiated in good faith with Heap over a Shared Services Agreement. On the county’s election duties dispute page, the Board said it has “consistently negotiated in good faith” to reach an agreement on how to divide election responsibilities and said Heap chose to file a lawsuit in 2025 instead of finalizing a new agreement.
The latest exchange centered on whether unresolved Shared Services Agreement issues should be discussed in a public meeting or through structured negotiations involving counsel.
Heap pushed back in a June 1 letter, saying he had sought discussions and negotiations since the beginning of the dispute, had submitted multiple Shared Services Agreement proposals, had requested meetings with Board leadership, and had offered mediation.
Heap said the Board’s proposed public meeting format was “unlikely to achieve” the objective of resolving the dispute. He wrote that effective negotiations over legal authority, operational responsibilities, staffing, resources, and election administration required candid discussion, counsel’s participation, and a process capable of producing written agreements.
“Public Board meetings are not designed for that purpose,” Heap wrote in the letter. “They are designed for conducting public business. While appropriate for informing the public, they are ill-suited for negotiating and memorializing agreements between parties engaged in active litigation.”
Heap also said the Board could not “simultaneously litigate authority before the courts” while expecting the same disputes to be resolved through informal public meetings rather than structured negotiations involving counsel.
In a June 3 letter, Board Chair Kate Brophy McGee and Vice Chair Debbie Lesko asked Heap to meet in person “as quickly as you are available,” noting that UOCAVA ballots would be mailed within days and that early voting for the primary would begin in three weeks.
What a shocker😀…@azjustinheap puts out a statement on Friday night saying he won't meet with me & @KateBrophyMcGee to resolve elections issues because he doesn't want the meetings livestreamed to the public. Election negotiations should be public. I have nothing to hide.
“The Board seeks, and voters deserve, a resolution to these SSA issues,” Brophy McGee and Lesko wrote in the letter. “There is no time to waste.”
Brophy McGee and Lesko said legal counsel and staff would be welcome to attend, but said the in-person dialogue should be limited to elected officials “empowered by and accountable to the people,” according to the June 3 letter. They also said the discussion should be livestreamed because election administration is a public-facing government responsibility.
“This discussion needs to occur in the light of day, not in secret,” Brophy McGee and Lesko wrote.
In his June 5 statement, Heap said the Board was demanding a public meeting where it would control the agenda, format, questions, and discussion while continuing to litigate the same issues in court.
“The Board has also attempted to portray my rejection of this proposal as opposition to transparency,” Heap said. “That is an obvious lie. I have offered to meet with Board leadership, County staff, and legal counsel for both parties. I proposed specific meeting dates and offered to make myself, my staff, and counsel available at any other time the Board preferred. The Board rejected that proposal.”
Heap said real negotiations require decision-makers, legal counsel, candid discussion, and a process capable of producing binding written agreements. He said public hearings would instead produce “speeches, soundbites, and political posturing.”
The disagreement comes as the Board appeals the April ruling and Heap continues seeking compliance with the court’s order. The Recorder’s Office said in a May 29 statement that Heap had requested the Superior Court hold the Board in civil contempt for allegedly refusing to comply with the April 16 ruling.
The election authority dispute remains pending as Maricopa County officials prepare for upcoming elections without a new Shared Services Agreement in place.
Rep. Andy Biggs is advancing a constitutional amendment to permanently set the size of the U.S. Supreme Court at nine justices. He says the proposal would prevent future attempts to expand the Court through legislation.
According to a statement released by Biggs’ office, House Joint Resolution 1 would amend the U.S. Constitution to require that the Supreme Court consist of one chief justice and eight associate justices. The proposal seeks to place the Court’s size in the Constitution rather than leaving it subject to change by Congress.
The resolution was introduced at the start of the 119th Congress and referred to the House Judiciary Committee.
On June 3, the House Judiciary Committee voted 15-8 to advance the proposed amendment. According to Reuters, the vote fell largely along party lines, with Republican members supporting the measure and Democratic members opposing it.
During the committee proceedings, Biggs framed the proposal as a response to court-packing efforts.
“How can the Supreme Court protect Americans from government overreach if the same government can pack the Court whenever it dislikes a ruling?” Biggs asked. His office stated that the resolution is intended to preserve judicial independence and to prevent future court expansion efforts.
“Our nation’s founders built a system of checks and balances to protect citizens from concentrated power – a central part being the U.S. Supreme Court, whose duty is to defend the rights and freedoms of every American, not to serve as a political tool for any party,” Biggs said. “The judiciary was designed to be the quiet guardian of liberty, insulated from the passions of the moment. Unfortunately, special interests have been increasing their attacks on the Court, threatening to pack this iconic American institution to ensure favorable outcomes for their causes. The goal is not ethics or protecting rights but gaining power and intimidating the Court.”
This week, the U.S. House Judiciary Committee passed H.J. Res. 1, which proposes an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to require that the Supreme Court of the United States be composed of nine justices.
The U.S. Constitution does not specify the number of Supreme Court justices. Congress has altered the Court’s size several times throughout American history, with the number of justices ranging from five to ten before being set at nine by statute in 1869. The Court has remained at nine members since that time.
Supporters of the amendment have cited proposals by some Democrats in recent years to increase the number of Supreme Court justices. Opponents have argued that Congress should retain its constitutional authority to determine the Court’s size and structure through legislation.
“The ongoing and escalating assault on the U.S. Constitution and Supreme Court must stop,” Biggs noted. “That is why I have introduced this constitutional amendment to fix the number of justices at nine. This action will protect the Court’s legitimacy, preserve the checks and balances that safeguard our cherished freedoms, and ensure every American’s rights remain secure – no matter who holds political power. I’m grateful for my colleagues’ support of this amendment, and I look forward to its passage on the U.S. House floor.”
Constitutional amendments face a high threshold for approval. A proposed amendment must receive support from two-thirds of both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate before being sent to the states for ratification. Ratification requires approval from three-fourths of the states.
The last newly proposed constitutional amendment to clear Congress and be ratified by the states was the 26th Amendment, setting the national voting age at 18 in 1971. The D.C. Voting Rights Amendment was passed by Congress in 1978 but failed to meet the state ratification requirement before its statutory deadline expired. The 27th Amendment, which bars changes to congressional compensation from taking effect until after an intervening House election, was ratified in 1992; however, Congress originally passed it in 1789 as part of the Bill of Rights package.
Several Maricopa County staffers are now in the middle of an elections authority dispute between the recorder’s office and the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors.
Several employees with the recorder’s office have been placed under investigation for the alleged theft of a piece of election equipment.
Several employees were contacted by an officer with the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office over the weekend as part of a criminal investigation initiated by special counsel appointed by Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell, following a complaint from the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors (BOS).
Mitchell’s office said MCAO has no involvement in the investigation.
An allegation was made to Maricopa County Attorney @Rachel1Mitchell, who had a conflict of interest, and she appointed a Special Counsel. MCAO is not involved in the investigation and has no further comment. https://t.co/HA2GYOxkDR
— Maricopa County Attorney's Office (@marcoattorney) June 8, 2026
BOS leaders Kate Brophy McGee and Debbie Lesko, chair and vice chair, said the criminal investigation was not some new development but the result of an incident that occurred months ago in March.
Per McGee and Lesko, Chief Information Officer Bryan Colby and one other, unnamed recorder’s office employee briefly removed a pre-tabulation ballot scanner from the Maricopa County Election and Tabulation Center (MCTEC) during the Tempe Jurisdictional Election. The two employees removed the scanner from MCTEC property for approximately 50 minutes before returning it.
The board also accused Colby of potentially jeopardizing the chain of custody by removing “a handful” of provisional ballots from MCTEC. However, the board said all ballots and envelopes were accounted for the day following the incident.
Maricopa County Recorder Justin Heap contends the scanner belonged to his office, since recorder funds paid for it.
Following the brief removal of the scanner, the county decommissioned and replaced the equipment for $70,000.
Brophy McGee and Lesko issued their press release explaining the criminal investigation into Heap’s employees after Heap filed an emergency motion with the Arizona Superior Court over the weekend.
Heap petitioned the court to take stronger action against the board by stopping further actions like the deputy contacts with his staff that occurred over the weekend — which Heap characterized as retaliation — and for an enforcement action to require the board to adhere to the court’s previous ruling.
🚨 BREAKING: LEGAL UPDATE Yesterday, I filed an emergency motion with the Court after armed sheriff's deputies appeared at the homes of three Recorder's Office employees and informed them they were under criminal investigation.
— Maricopa County Recorder Justin Heap (@azjustinheap) June 8, 2026
Last month, the Arizona Superior Court ordered the board to restore election authority and resources to Heap’s office. The board, which maintains it has “plenary authority” over elections administration, rejected this ruling and plans to appeal.
Last week, Heap asked the court to hold the board in contempt.
And now this week, Heap has accused the board of doing the very thing they have accused him of doing: criminalizing election workers.
“For weeks, the board has attempted to convince the public that I somehow intend to seek criminal penalties against election workers for performing their duties,” said Heap. “That claim is a lie, and they know it. Yet, while making those false accusations, the board was quietly pursuing criminal investigations and penalties against election workers employed by the recorder’s office.”
Heap said “meaningful cooperation” with the board of supervisors has been “impossible,” as evidenced by this latest development.
“While the Board publicly talks about collaboration, claims it wants to work together, and falsely accuses others of creating conflict, behind the scenes it bullies employees, interferes with the recorder’s operations, and now seeks to subject election workers to criminal investigations for attempting to lawfully do their job using equipment purchased and owned by the recorder’s Office,” said Heap.
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The U.S. Department of the Treasury reported Tuesday that millions of Americans claimed tax relief under President Donald Trump’s Working Families Tax Cuts during the most recent filing season. According to the analysis, low- and middle-income households received the largest share of the benefits.
According to a June 2 press release from the Treasury Department, taxpayers claimed approximately $82 billion in individual tax relief through the April filing deadline under provisions included in the Working Families Tax Cuts. Treasury officials said the total is expected to increase as taxpayers who requested filing extensions continue submitting returns.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the data demonstrates that the tax package delivered significant relief to working Americans and families.
“American families and workers overwhelmingly benefited from the Working Families Tax Cuts, receiving the largest share of the historic tax relief delivered this past filing season,” Bessent said. “This analysis confirms President Trump’s tax policies deliver substantial tax cuts to hardworking Americans and provide greater relief and financial certainty to low- and middle-income households.”
While Iran’s economy is in free fall, the regime has chosen to co-opt digital asset technologies for its own corrupt agenda, including evading sanctions and transferring wealth out of the country. Iran’s current economic chaos is proof that @POTUS’ maximum pressure campaign has… https://t.co/CJPNSgccqh
— Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (@SecScottBessent) June 2, 2026
The Treasury Department stated that without the legislation, taxpayers would have faced the scheduled expiration of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which officials said would have resulted in approximately $5 trillion in tax increases over time. According to the Treasury, 97% of filers who received a tax cut during the most recent filing season would have owed more in taxes absent the extension of the 2017 tax provisions.
The analysis found that tax relief was concentrated among households earning less than $200,000 annually. The Treasury reported that 96% of filers receiving a tax cut earned less than $200,000 per year, while nearly 70% earned less than $100,000.
Among taxpayers earning between $100,000 and $200,000 who claimed one of the tax provisions, the average tax reduction exceeded $1,250. Taxpayers earning between $50,000 and $100,000 who claimed one of the provisions received an average tax cut of more than $815.
The report highlighted several signature provisions included in the package. The Treasury reported that more than 7.5 million filers claimed the “No Tax on Tips” deduction, receiving an average deduction of more than $7,000. According to the department, 90% of taxpayers claiming the deduction earned less than $100,000 annually, while 99% earned less than $200,000.
More than 29 million filers claimed the “No Tax on Overtime” deduction, with an average deduction exceeding $3,100. The Treasury reported that 75% of taxpayers using the provision earned less than $100,000 annually, while 96% earned less than $200,000.
The department also reported that more than 35 million seniors claimed the Enhanced Deduction for Seniors, receiving an average deduction of more than $7,500. According to the Treasury, 68% of participating seniors earned less than $100,000 annually and 94% earned less than $200,000.
Other provisions cited in the report included the “No Tax on Car Loan Interest” deduction, which the Treasury said was claimed by more than 1.4 million taxpayers purchasing qualifying American-made vehicles. Those taxpayers received an average deduction of more than $1,800. The Treasury reported that 62% of claimants earned less than $100,000 annually and 98% earned less than $200,000.
The Treasury also reported that more than 5.5 million Trump Accounts have been opened since the program’s launch, with approximately 1.4 million qualifying for a $1,000 pilot contribution. According to the department, 86% of the accounts are linked to families earning less than $200,000 annually.
The report further found that nearly 40 million families claimed the enhanced Child Tax Credit, which the Treasury noted was permanently expanded under the legislation. Approximately 65% of participating families earned less than $100,000 annually, while 89% earned less than $200,000.
In addition, the Treasury reported that more than 127 million taxpayers—representing roughly 90% of all filers—claimed the permanently doubled standard deduction during the filing season. The department said the provision continues to simplify tax filing requirements for millions of Americans.
