by Corinne Murdock | Mar 7, 2022 | News
By Corinne Murdock |
The Arizona Senate kicked off their Monday with a show of bipartisanship. Four Senate Republicans joined their Democratic colleagues in voting against a bill to prohibit local governments from using lobbyists: State Senators Paul Boyer (R-Glendale), Tyler Pace (R-Mesa), T.J. Shope (R-Phoenix), and Senate President Karen Fann (R-Prescott). The bill from State Senator Warren Petersen (R-Gilbert), SB1198, failed 12-17.
The four senators didn’t explain their “no” vote; neither did the Democrats. The bill would’ve prevented counties, cities, towns, school districts, and any other political subdivisions from contracting with or spending money on lobbying services, with exemptions for employees of that local government entity, cities or towns with less than 75,000 citizens, or counties with less than 250,000 citizens.
Peterson explained during the Senate Government Committee that the end of lobbying at the state level several years ago allowed for a “greater balance” between citizens and the state government.
A spokesman for Apache County, Greenlee County, Scottsdale, and Prescott said that the bill was a good idea philosophically but would result in higher costs for the cities and counties. He said that the local governments would have to hire full-time employees to fulfill duties normally filled by lobbyists contracted at lower costs.
The League of Arizona Cities and Towns also opposed the bill. Their spokesman explained that their lobbyists alleviated the burdens of keeping up with the legislature for elected officials.
The Goldwater Institute National Litigation Director Jon Riches said the bill prevented taxpayer dollars from being spent on services that further government interests while ignoring the taxpayer.
“Tax dollars should not go to support status quo special interests at the expense of taxpayers, small businesses, and citizens who might not be able to afford a team of well-funded lobbyists, including lobbyists who often advocate against those taxpayers’ interests,” said Riches.
Arizona Free Enterprise Club Vice President Aimee Yentes concurred with Riches’ statement, insisting that it’s elected officials’ duty to take on the responsibilities that they pass on to lobbyists. Yentes is also a member of the Gilbert Town Council.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
by Corinne Murdock | Mar 7, 2022 | News
By Corinne Murdock |
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Marco Lopez has ties to a massive foreign corruption scandal involving a global construction conglomerate Odebrecht and its bribes to politicians globally. According to an investigative report from Arizona Agenda relying on case information from anti-corruption news organization Mexicanos Contra la Corrupción y la Impunidad, Lopez’s company, Intermestic Partners/International Strategic Solutions, received $35,000 from Odebrecht for his several months of work on former Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto’s 2012 campaign. Ultimately, Odebrecht shelled out $800 million through its secretive business department tasked with bribing all levels of government officials across the world, the “Division of Structured Operations,” earning a minimum criminal fine of $4.5 billion in 2016.
Peña Nieto’s former campaign lieutenant, Emilio Lozoya, connected Lopez’s $35,000 to a $3 million bribe from an Odebrecht shell company: campaign money for public works contracts. Lozoya’s shell business, Latin American Asia Capital Holdings, received the $3 million from Odebrecht before redistributing tens of thousands to Lopez.
According to Lozoya, the invoices that Lopez and others submitted were bogus. Lopez claimed to have worked on something called the “Colombia Project.” Lopez refused to speak with the Arizona Agenda about his ties with Odebrecht and the Peña Nieto corruption.
By all accounts, Lopez would qualify as a career politician. As a teen, Lopez served as a congressional page for former Arizona Congressman Ed Pastor. In his early 20s, Lopez worked on Al Gore’s presidential campaign. In 2001, Lopez was elected mayor of his hometown, Nogales, Arizona, becoming one of the youngest mayors in American history at the time.
Another two years after his election, former Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano appointed Lopez to be the executive director of the Arizona-Mexico Commission. Lopez took on a Latin American policy advisory position within Napolitano’s cabinet. After three years, Napolitano promoted Lopez to serve as her senior advisor on foreign affairs and trade. Napolitano again promoted Lopez in 2008 to direct the Arizona Department of Commerce.
It appears Napolitano didn’t forget Lopez when the White House came to bring her into the Obama Administration in 2008. Not long after Napolitano’s appointment as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Lopez was appointed chief of staff for Customs and Border Protection (CBP). He remained in that position until 2011, before focusing his attention on business ventures of his own. That year, Lopez established the Phoenix-based business and investment advisory group linked to the Odebrecht scandal, Intermestic Partners. Additionally, Lopez began to serve as senior advisor to Forbes’ 2010-2013 richest person in the world: Carlos Slim Helu.
For a decade, Lopez abstained from taking on a political office. Then in March of last year, Lopez announced his candidacy for Arizona governor — the first to do so.
After the report broke, Lopez denied his involvement. He claimed the report was inaccurate because it was heavy with “innuendo, racial stereotypes and falsehoods.”
Indicating any knowledge of Odebrecht’s bribing operations could be a deadly maneuver. Odebrecht’s former vice president, Henrique Valladares, was found dead in his Rio de Janeiro apartment in September 2019, shortly after entering a plea bargain with state prosecutors to reveal who was in on the company’s bribing system. Valladares was one of the key informants in the case. According to state police, the cause of his death was “undetermined.”
Odebrecht was implicated following a smaller Brazilian anti-bribery investigation codenamed “Lava Jato,” or “Car Wash,” that began with the arrest of Brazil’s former national oil company executive, Nestor Cerveró.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
by Terri Jo Neff | Mar 6, 2022 | News
By Terri Jo Neff |
Both chambers of the Arizona Legislature have been busy this week considering bills which originated in the other chamber, and one that is garnering a lot of attention would clarify and curtail the emergency powers of the governor.
Senate Bill 1009 was introduced in January by Sen. Michele Ugenti-Rita to ensure state lawmakers have a voice in how the state responds to public health emergencies. The bill easily cleared the Senate and was transmitted to the House on Feb. 2.
On Thursday, SB1009 cleared the House Government & Elections Committee and is awaiting a Third Reading.
Supporters of SB1009 note Arizona has been under a COVID-19 public health state of emergency since March 2020. During time, Gov. Doug Ducey has issued nearly two dozen executive orders but the Arizona Legislature has been essentially kept on the sidelines throughout.
The bill by Ugenti-Rita (R-LD23) would establish a 30-day cap on a Governor’s initial proclamation with respect to a public health emergency. A Governor could extend the state of emergency in 30-day increments for up to 120 days total.
After that point, a public health emergency proclamation would terminate unless extended by the Arizona Legislature through passage of a concurrent resolution. Any legislative extension would also be effective for 30 days but could be approved “as many times as necessary.”
SB1009 also prohibits a Governor from proclaiming a new state of emergency based on the same conditions unless the Legislature consents via a concurrent resolution. Another provision of the bill would kick in if a Governor extends the public health emergency beyond the first 30 days.
It requires a written report be submitted to a joint committee of the Senate and House health committees. The joint committee would then be responsible for providing “a favorable or unfavorable review” of the extension after being briefed by the Governor’s Office and the director of the Arizona Department of Health Services.
The review by the joint committee would have to be shared with the Governor and all state lawmakers. In addition, the review would have to be posted in a conspicuous manner on both the Governor’s and the ADHS’s websites.
SB1009 is similar to a provision Ugenti-Rita introduced last year into one of the annual budget bills. The bill was later voided by the Arizona Supreme Court for technical reasons.
If signed into law, the change in a Governor’s powers would take effect in January 2023.
by Terri Jo Neff | Mar 5, 2022 | Economy, News
By Terri Jo Neff |
Arizona State Treasurer Kimberly Yee wants to ensure all State vendors understand their obligations in light of economic sanctions put on the Russian Federation by the U.S. and E.U. following Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine.
On Tuesday, Yee issued a Notice of Compliance about her expectation that State contractors, vendors, and other third-parties pay attention to the situation involving Russia and have all “necessary consents, approvals, and authorizations of all governmental authorities in connection with any transaction” dealing with the State.
“As you are aware, the State of Arizona and the Arizona State Treasurer’s Office (ASTO) are subject to U.S. laws, regulations, and orders applicable to its business activities and financial transactions, including those related to the international trade controls and economic sanctions,” Yee wrote. “As a vendor of the State of Arizona, you have separate and independent obligations under these same laws.”
Yee added that the State of Arizona has no investments in Russia, and while economic sanctions are subject to change, she expects all contractors and third parties “acting as intermediaries for the State of Arizona” to be knowledgeable about and remain in compliance with export and import laws, regulations, sanctions, embargoes, and policies.
That includes, but is not limited to, securing all clearances, export and import licenses, or exemptions therefrom, and making all required filings with appropriate governmental bodies, she noted.
“If you or your agents are unable to comply with the above foreign transaction requirements – including compliance with the United States trade sanctions related to Russia– in regard to your independent relationship with State of Arizona, you are required to notify the Arizona State Treasurer’s Office in writing immediately,” Yee wrote.
Yee also used the notice to suggest State contractors and vendors not be associated with financing any oil or other energy trades with Russia.
“Instead, we respectfully request you consider financing and investing in energy production in the United States, so we can be energy independent,” she wrote. “This is not only beneficial from a foreign policy perspective, but it is also a safer domestic investment.”
Yee’s suggestion, she noted, goes against the wishes of the Biden Administration but she pointed out there is no law against financing U.S. energy production.
“Doing so is a sound investment that does not carry the risk of foreign investment in that sector,” Yee wrote.
by Corinne Murdock | Mar 5, 2022 | News
By Corinne Murdock |
A bill to prevent the state and public utilities from contracting with companies who rely on forced Uyghur labor, HB2488, passed out of the Senate Commerce Committee 8-1 on Wednesday. The only senator to vote against the bill was State Senator Tyler Pace (R-Mesa). The Uyghurs are a Muslim ethnic group that the Chinese government has detained in “reeducation camps” since 2017. The legislation passed out of the House nearly a month ago.
HB2488 prohibits the state and any of its political subdivisions, agencies, boards, commissions, or departments from entering contracts without explicit confirmation that the company doesn’t and won’t rely on forced labor from Uyghurs in China. The prohibition also extends to goods and services produced by those Uyghurs, as well as any Uyghur labor used by a company’s contractors, subcontractors, or suppliers.
The bill sponsor, State Representative Justin Wilmeth (R-Phoenix) explained in a press release that this was a necessary measure to stand against human rights violations.
“As a student of history, I know what happens when good people remain silent,” stated Wilmeth. “The Chinese Communist Party keeping millions of people locked in internment camps, which harkens back to the darkest chapters of the 20th century. HB 2488 sends a strong message that the State of Arizona won’t do business with anyone that turns a blind eye to this horrible human rights abuse.”
In the House, the bill passed unanimously. The only other votes against the bill that occurred came from Minority Whip Domingo Degrazia (D-Tucson) and State Representative Diego Espinoza (D-Tolleson) in the Rules Committee. Degrazia ultimately voted for the bill during the final house floor vote, while Espinoza didn’t vote at all.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
by Corinne Murdock | Mar 4, 2022 | News
By Corinne Murdock |
In just under 15 days, it will be two years since Trump announced the national emergency over COVID-19: 730 days exactly.
Of all the bills Sinema discussed on social media and in press releases, the resolution to end the national emergency wasn’t one of them. The senator appears to support a state of emergency in perpetuity, though she appeared to support the minimum at the start of the pandemic. Back in March 2020, Sinema touted the concept of “15 days to slow the spread” announced by President Donald Trump. Over the past several years, she has supported all other measures to alleviate people’s economic hardships from forced lockdowns — with the exception of supporting an end for the root cause of those hardships.
Congressman Louie Gohmert (R-TX-01) attempted to pass a similar resolution that would’ve been effective the previous Christmas. That, too, failed.
It is unlikely that the resolution will pass the Democrat-controlled House. Additionally, despite lifting certain masking regulations and pledging to roll back more COVID-related protocols, the Biden Administration promised that Biden would veto the resolution.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
