The Arizona State Legislature is reviewing several election-related bills aimed at tightening voter registration rules, increasing transparency in election mailings, and preventing potential voter fraud.
Sponsored by Rep. John Gillette (LD-30), the three bills—HB 2004, HB 2006, and HB 2007—focus on restricting voter registration mailings, requiring disclosures on election-related mailings, banning payment incentives for voter registration, and limiting third-party election mailers. Supporters argue these measures will protect election integrity.
This bill prohibits Arizona county recorders from sending voter registration cards to mailing addresses outside the state, with exceptions for military personnel and overseas voters covered under federal law as well as Arizona residents without in-state postal service access.
Supporters argue this bill prevents potential voter fraud by ensuring only Arizona residents receive registration materials at valid in-state addresses. HB 2004 passed the House Floor (33-27-1) and is now under Senate consideration.
HB 2006: Requiring Disclosures on Election Mailings
Under this bill, any nongovernmental entity that mails or delivers election-related documents—such as voter registration applications or early ballot requests—must include the phrase “not from a government agency” on the envelope. The requirement applies to third-party voter registration groups, political organizations, and nonprofit advocacy groups.
Proponents argue this measure prevents voter confusion and ensures recipients can differentiate between official government communications and third-party outreach. HB 2006 passed the House Floor (37-19-4) and is advancing to the Senate.
HB 2007: Prohibiting Payment for Voter Registration Quotas
This bill bans individuals or organizations from paying or receiving compensation based on the number of voter registration forms collected, completed, or submitted.
Currently, government agencies, political parties, and private organizations conducting voter registration drives receive state and federal voter registration forms at no cost. However, this bill would ensure that voter registration efforts are not incentivized by financial compensation, which supporters say prevents fraudulent or rushed registrations. HB 2007 passed the House Floor (34-23-3) and is now under Senate review.
The Arizona Senate is expected to debate these bills in the coming weeks. As lawmakers debate these measures, Arizona voters will be watching closely to see how the changes may impact future elections.
Jonathan Eberle is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
After 45 years of existence, the Department of Education (ED) is coming to an end.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday dismantling ED: “Improving Education Outcomes by Empowering Parents, States, and Communities.” The historic order stops short of total abolition of the agency, since law dictates that Congress must be the one to close it.
The order cited historic lows of reading and math scores among children as proof of ED’s decades-long failures, and contrasted the poor educational outcomes with ED’s high budget and massive staffing.
“While the Department of Education does not educate anyone, it maintains a public relations office that includes over 80 staffers at a cost of more than $10 million per year,” said the order. “Closing the Department of Education would provide children and their families the opportunity to escape a system that is failing them.”
The order further accused ED of operating like an inefficient bank with its management of over $1.6 trillion in student loan debt.
Trump directed Secretary of Education Linda McMahon to undertake measures to close ED and return authority to the states, as well as terminate funding to programs and activities engaged in progressive ideologies including diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and gender theory.
Reactions among Arizona leadership fell largely along party lines.
Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI), Tom Horne, praised the executive order, calling the agency an “unnecessary” entity dedicated to heaping more bureaucracy on the states.
“The Federal Department of Education was unnecessary and added bureaucracy for states,” said Horne. “Thank you President Trump for bringing education back to the states where it belongs.”
The Federal Department of Education was unnecessary and added bureaucracy for states. Thank you President @realDonaldTrump for bringing education back to the states where it belongs.
Congressional efforts to codify the executive order are also underway. South Dakota Senator Mike Rounds revealed to Fox News that he’s been in discussions with Trump to do just that.
“I am working on legislation that would return education decisions to states and local school districts while maintaining important programs like special education and Title I,” said Rounds. “We are discussing this legislation with Secretary McMahon, and we believe there is a very good path forward.”
Earlier this month, the Trump administration slashed ED’s workforce by nearly half (over 1,300 staffers). Thursday’s executive order will further reduce the remaining 2,200 employees.
Although Trump’s order does not close ED totally, Mayes claimed the executive order was “illegal.”
“The Department of Education cannot be dismantled via executive order,” said Mayes. “This chaos is not about efficiency — it’s destruction.”
Another day, another illegal action by the Trump administration. The Department of Education cannot be dismantled via executive order. This chaos is not about efficiency — it’s destruction. https://t.co/GRse4zJ096
— AZ Attorney General Kris Mayes (@AZAGMayes) March 20, 2025
Governor Katie Hobbs said Arizona stands to lose $1 billion in federal funds for certain programs, like special education, with the dismantling of ED.
Arizona could lose nearly $1 billion in vital education funding if the U.S. Department of Education is dismantled. This funding supports low-income schools, special education, Tribal and rural communities, and programs like FAFSA & Pell Grants. As Governor, I will do everything…
Senator Mark Kelly rejected Republican predictions of ED’s abolition leading to better schools and student outcomes.
“It will further undermine public schools, making it harder for kids from working families like mine or who need a little extra help to get a good education,” said Kelly.
I’m the proud product of a good public school education.
Getting rid of the Department of Education won’t improve schools or help kids in Arizona get ahead.
It will further undermine public schools, making it harder for kids from working families like mine or who need a little… https://t.co/f69s11Rebo
Senator Ruben Gallego claimed Trump was abolishing ED to enrich “his billionaire friends” and reduce school funding.
“He wants fewer resources for teachers and fewer opportunities for our kids — just so his billionaire friends can get richer,” said Gallego.
Donald Trump just gave the order to dismantle the Department of Education. He wants fewer resources for teachers and fewer opportunities for our kids—just so his billionaire friends can get richer.
— Senator Ruben Gallego (@SenRubenGallego) March 20, 2025
Rep. Eli Crane called the continuance of ED an “insanity,” referencing the decades-long decline of student outcomes.
“Thank you to President Trump for having the courage to do this,” said Crane.
Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.
The Department of Education has failed our nation's students for decades. It's time to chart a new path.
Rep. Andy Biggs also touched on the disparity of high funding and low outcomes. Biggs said Trump was right to be “returning power” to Arizona and its parents.
“Taxpayer funding for public schools is at an all-time high, but test scores are at an all-time low,” said Biggs. “The radical Biden-Harris regime weaponized the Department of Education against their opponents.”
Taxpayer funding for public schools is at an all-time high, but test scores are at an all-time low.
The radical Biden-Harris regime weaponized the Department of Education against their opponents.
President Trump is rightfully returning power to the States and parents. https://t.co/Svw5fLSa9B
Rep. Yassamin Ansari predicted that children would be forced out of schools, teachers would be fired, and special education services would cease.
“This reckless and irrational move will devastate our future — all to give tax breaks to billionaires at the expense of our kids,” said Ansari. “We’re going to fight this illegal EO with every tool we have.”
With the support of Republicans in Congress, Donald Trump just followed through on his plan to gut the Department of Education.
This means kids kicked out of kindergarten, special education slashed, and teachers fired. This reckless and irrational move will devastate our future…
— Congresswoman Yassamin Ansari (@RepYassAnsari) March 20, 2025
Rep. Greg Stanton called the order “a direct attack on Arizona kids,” and asserted it was illegal.
Trump's executive order to eliminate the Department of Education is a direct attack on Arizona kids. pic.twitter.com/tONhDthSXr
Senate President Warren Petersen reposted remarks made by Secretary McMahon to Fox News. McMahon echoed Trump’s questioning why federal education spending only continues to increase while outcomes have decreased.
“We have to let teachers teach. I have such respect for teachers. I think it is the most noble profession in the world, and I have seen what can happen when teachers are allowed to teach and be innovative and creative in our classrooms,” said McMahon. “For every dollar that goes into the school system, it’s been reported to me that almost 47 cents of that dollar is spent on regulatory compliance. Teachers they don’t want to stay, they’re leaving the profession, because they’re bogged down by regulation. Let’s lift that burden and let them do what they do best, which is teach.”
Let the states tailor education to local communities—and get results.
Let parents choose the best educational fit for their children.
Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego attacked Arizona’s school choice programming in an attempt to sway Governor Katie Hobbs against an Arizona Diamondbacks funding bill.
In a letter submitted to Hobbs on Tuesday, Gallego expressed opposition over the bill to fund the Arizona Diamondbacks facility renovation, HB2704. The legislation dedicates Chase Field sales and employee income taxes to the renovation.
HB2704 has passed the House with bipartisan support and awaits Senate approval.
Gallego argued the legislation was a “boondoggle” for failing to accurately capture the fiscal impact. Gallego said the Joint Legislative Budget Committee (JLBC) model underestimated the predicted cost to taxpayers derived from the city’s actual tax collection data by nearly half, equating the underestimation to the Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) Program.
“Just like the state’s Empowerment Scholarship Account Program or the infamous Alt-Fuels bill, there is not a high-end cap on this bill to act as a safeguard for taxpayers,” said Gallego. “I urge that you work with the Legislature to demand responsible and enforceable parameters for the amount of taxpayer dollars spent on an annual and aggregate basis.”
The JLBC model estimated a $471 million cost over 30 years, sans fiscal impact data input from the Department of Revenue. Per Gallego, the city of Phoenix estimated an $825 million cost over 30 years.
“After accounting for lost construction sales tax revenue, additional revenues that can follow a significant renovation to a major league sports facility, and inflation over 30 years, the bill in its current form will certainly cost more than $1 billion in public funds,” said Gallego.
Last month, Gallego also spoke out against HB2704 publicly. Gallego expressed opposition to the diversion of millions of funds that would have gone to the city otherwise.
“Two-thirds of Phoenix’s general fund supports public safety. Phoenix’s tax dollars are best spent supporting our firefighters who respond to emergencies, helping police fight crime, and combating homelessness — not used to pay for subsidies for those at the very top,” said Gallego.
Recently ousted Arizona State Board of Education (ASBE) member and ESA Program advocate Jenny Clark advised Gallego to dedicate her efforts to improving the city’s budget rather than criticizing the budgeting of another program.
“Maybe Mayor Gallego should focus on her own MASSIVE failures with the city of Phoenix budget, instead of taking cheap shots at Arizona families using the widely popular ESA program,” said Clark.
Clark questioned why Gallego’s critique of increased funding for school choice, given the mayor attended an out-of-state private school in her youth.
The city of Phoenix narrowly avoided a reported $39 million budget deficit by the 2026 fiscal year by passing on the cost to taxpayers. The city previously announced an $85 million annual loss following the state legislature’s elimination of the residential rental tax and the implementation of the flat income tax.
On Tuesday, Gallego and the Phoenix City Council voted to increase the sales tax rate from 2.3 percent to 2.8 percent to avoid making cuts to city programs and services. The increase takes effect on July 1. Only Councilman Jim Waring voted against the sales tax increase.
The Goldwater Institute sued the city over the proposed tax increase earlier this month.
In a letter submitted to Gallego and the council, the public policy institute alleged this latest tax increase to be unconstitutional.
The Goldwater Institute also sued the city last year over allegedly illegal tax breaks for developers.
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy’s (ONDCP) Hemisphere Project was thrust into the daylight last week in a release responding to a bipartisan letter from Congressman Andy Biggs (R-AZ) and Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR). According to a press release from Biggs’ office, the Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released unclassified information that was previously redacted from a March 2019 report detailing the use of Administrative Subpoenas to Collect or Exploit Bulk Data by the Drug Enforcement Agency.
Biggs has been calling for transparency on the Hemisphere Project since at least November 2023 when he highlighted the program’s use by former DOJ Special Counsel Jack Smith in an interview with Newsmax.
Biggs explained “It’s the feds actually contracting to buy personal data from big telecom companies, anybody who made a call, even if it wasn’t your telecom company. But if you made a switch to somebody who was in that company, they got your data and they were giving it to the federal government.”
He went on to tell Newsmax, “It is so dangerous what is happening now and what Jack Smith’s doing, this is why we wanted to defund him.”
At the time, a bombshell report from WIRED revealed that the Biden White House had provided over $6 million for the program, allowing the targeting of any calls using AT&T infrastructure. As reported by Breitbart at the time, Sen. Wyden expressed “serious concerns about the legality,” of the program.
In a post to X, the Project for Privacy & Surveillance Accountability responding to the 2023 report wrote, “#Hemisphere is larger than a previous @NSAGov program shuttered after continual abuse & declared illegal by 2nd Circuit. Agents were instructed to never discuss Hemisphere in official docs as far back as 2013 – the parallel construction archetype.”
#Hemisphere is larger than a previous @NSAGov program shuttered after continual abuse & declared illegal by 2nd Circuit. Agents were instructed to never discuss Hemisphere in official docs as far back as 2013 – the parallel construction archetype. @nytimeshttps://t.co/GNB5a1tlaBhttps://t.co/1L8ONejemt
— Project for Privacy & Surveillance Accountability (@savingprivacy) November 21, 2023
Biggs wrote in his letter as Chairman of the Subcommittee on Crime and Federal Government Surveillance, “What you failed to disclose in that op-ed is that your office has – for more than a decade – quietly funded another dragnet surveillance program that has swept up information about millions of law-abiding Americans without meaningful Congressional or judicial oversight.”
In his press release last week, Biggs noted, “Last year, the House Oversight Committee considered legislation to reauthorize the ONDCP. The bill included a number of provisions negotiated by Congressman Biggs that were designed to improve Congressional oversight of ONDCP funded programs, and to protect Americans’ privacy. The release of this information underscores the need for similar legislative reforms to be enacted across government programs.
“Additionally, the ONDCP informed Senator Wyden that federal funding for Hemisphere was ended as of September 30, 2024, and the program has been shut down.”
Congressman Biggs and Senator Wyden issued a joint statement saying, “This report contains information that the public has a right to see. The American people demand transparency from their government, and Congress must work to ensure that the federal government is accountable to its citizens. We’re thankful to DOJ OIG for their work to make new information public, and we look forward to further cooperation in the interest of American citizens.”
Congressmen David Schweikert (R-AZ), Tim Burchett (R-TN), and Steve Cohen (R-TN), co-sponsors of the Justice for Kennedy (JFK) Act, hailed the release of over 1,100 PDF files of documents pertinent to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in a statement released Tuesday.
Social media and news outlets have been abuzz examining the files, many of which are being seen in unredacted form for the first time, having been previously released with key segments withheld.
The files, which total over 80,000 pages, were released with Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard stating, “President Donald J. Trump promised maximum transparency and a commitment to rebuild the trust of the American people in the Intelligence Community (IC) and federal agencies. Part of that promise was to fully release previously-classified records related to the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, Senator Robert F. Kennedy, and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.”
One file that has garnered significant attention from July 19, 1967, refers to a CIA employee named Gary Underhill who was reportedly found dead after he claimed that the agency was responsible for the assassination of the president. “The day after the assassination, Gary Underhill left Washington in a hurry. Late in the evening he showed up at the home of friends in New Jersey. He was very agitated,” the document states. “A small clique within the CIA was responsible for the assassination, he confided, and he was afraid for his life and probably would have to leave the country. Less than six months later Underhill was found shot to death in his Washington apartment. The coroner ruled it suicide.”
Newly released JFK files tell a story about how Gary Underhill, who worked for the CIA, was found dead after he revealed to friends that the CIA was responsible for JFK’s assassination.
“The day after the assassination, Gary Underhill left Washington in a hurry. Late in the… pic.twitter.com/psZkYQ5COi
“It’s been 61 years since the tragic murder of President John F. Kennedy. A truly functioning republic ensures Americans have access to information, and this moment symbolizes the long-awaited restoration of the people’s trust in the federal government,” Congressman Schweikert said in a statement.
“I applaud the Trump Administration for following suit with our Justice for Kennedy Act and requiring all assassination records be unclassified and unredacted.”
Jeff Morley, a former Washington Post reporter and Co-Founder & Editor of JFK Facts, commented on the release saying, “Today’s release needs to include removing the many unnecessary redactions in the JFK files current held at the National Archives. I appreciate Congressman Schweikert’s years of work pushing Administrations of both parties to provide more government transparency on the Assassination of President Kennedy, especially from the CIA.”
More records are expected to become available according to the National Archives who wrote on its JFK Assassination webpage, “As of March 18, 2025, the records are available to access either online at this page or in person, via hard copy or on analog media formats, at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland. As the records continue to be digitized, they will be posted to this page.”
“I am happy that after decades of questions from the public and government cover-ups that the American people finally may have answers to the JFK assassination. President Trump is once again showing his commitment to having the most transparent administration this country has ever seen,” said Congressman Burchett.
“It’s too soon to know whether there’s much in the documents released today, but it is a good sign that some progress toward the goal of full disclosure is under way,” said Congressman Cohen. “The assassinations of the 1960s need to be understood in their full historical context and the documents being released may help us get there.”
On Tuesday, House Democrats took to the House floor to recognize their invited families with disabilities to push the passage of HB2816, a bill to provide funding for the Department of Economic Security (DES). The agency runs out of funds in May.
The bill from Assistant Minority Leader Nancy Gutierrez appropriates $122.3 million in state general funds and nearly $403 million in developmental disabilities Medicaid expenditure authority funds to the DES for developmental disabilities program expenses.
House Democrats are shenanigating to try and bring forward for a floor vote Assistant Leader Nancy Gutierrez’s HB2816 to provide the supplemental funding to keep the program for developmentally disabled children and adults, and paid parental caregivers. Rather than support a… pic.twitter.com/lJ1VHS0mRC
HB2816 did not make it past introduction. However, that didn’t stop House Democrats from attempting to bypass regular processes to get it heard on the floor on Tuesday.
“Republicans are blocking needed supplemental funds to keep the program going past May,” said Arizona House Democrats.
At the risk of getting gaveled down if she mentions developmental disability funding or her bill to save the families who need it, Assistant Democratic Leader Nancy Gutierrez artfully argues against the Republican countermove to block her motion to bring her HB2816 to a floor… https://t.co/52V2zpnkJ1pic.twitter.com/nsBByuiyHe
House Minority Leader Oscar De Los Santos accused House Republicans of being against funding children’s disability services.
“Arizona House Republicans just KILLED the bill to fund lifesaving disability services for children with Down syndrome, autism, and other developmental disabilities. All while heartbroken families watched from the gallery,” said De Los Santos.
BREAKING: Arizona House Republicans just KILLED the bill to fund lifesaving disability services for children with Down syndrome, autism, and other developmental disabilities. All while heartbroken families watched from the gallery. pic.twitter.com/dD0BtYCLJA
House Republicans said Governor Katie Hobbs’ mismanagement was to blame for the budget shortfall and constricted timeline. Majority Leader Michael Carbone alleged to ABC15 that Hobbs had stretched disability services beyond their capabilities without the legislature’s consent.
“She expanded the scope and raised rates, all without the consent of the legislature of the necessary funding to meet her policy changes, and it now threatens the viability of the entire program,” said Carbone.
This wouldn’t be the only area of alleged mismanagement by Hobbs. House leaders addressed the pending shutdown of the Department of Child Safety’s Congregate Care program, which Speaker Steve Montenegro attributed to poor budgeting by Hobbs.
“The governor spends beyond her budget. She waits until it fails, and then she declares an emergency. In January, we were told by the governor’s staff that they needed supplemental funding for DCS,” said House Speaker Steve Montenegro in Monday’s press conference.
Hobbs’ spokesman, Christian Slater, said Republican lawmakers were “lying” about the governor’s budget handling. Slater accused Republicans of attempting 50 percent cuts to the Department of Developmental Disabilities.
“Governor Hobbs produced a balanced budget proposal that secures the border, raises pay for State Troopers and firefighters, combats Veterans homelessness and protects Arizonans with autism, cerebral palsy, and Down Syndrome,” said Slater. “Instead of showing Arizonans a budget plan of their own, Republican lawmakers have gone to the press to lie about the Governor’s budget, refused to enter negotiations, and are holding kids in foster care and Arizonans with disabilities hostage to their political games.”
NEW: Republican lawmakers are lying to their constituents instead of negotiating a budget. Today, we called on them to pass the Governor’s budget. And if they don’t like that, then they need to show Arizonans their plan. pic.twitter.com/KhFzrNlMS0
