by Daniel Stefanski | Jan 4, 2024 | News
By Daniel Stefanksi |
Arizona Republicans continue to lay out their agenda as the legislative session fast approaches.
Over the past weekend, two Arizona Republican state senators, David Gowan and Janae Shamp, revealed snapshots of their plans for the upcoming legislative session.
Senator Gowan, who represents a southern Arizona district, shared his thoughts on the border crisis affecting the state, saying, “President Biden’s border crisis continues to set records in Arizona. New data released from U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows the Tucson sector continues to have the dubious distinction as the busiest area in the nation with encounters of illegal aliens for a fifth month in a row! 64,638 immigrants were recorded in November alone. This is horrendous! These aren’t just innocent people looking for a better life. They include dangerous criminals, child sex traffickers, human smugglers, rapists, and terrorists invading our state and country.”
Gowan revealed that he had designated an earmark of $10 million “towards this year and last year’s budget for anti-human trafficking laws to help fight against these heinous crimes.” He again blamed the president for the border crisis, stating that Biden “continues to turn a blind eye to what’s really happening at our border, and in particular, in my district.” The southern-Arizona Senator promised to look into “creating legislation to help law enforcement fight this crisis in the upcoming session.”
Senator Shamp, who represents a district in the southwest Valley, expounded on her plans to “address Arizona’s doctor shortage.” The inspiration behind this idea, according to the legislator, came from a projection “that Arizona has a shortage of nearly 600 primary care physicians right now and around 2,000 more physicians will be needed to meet healthcare demands in the state by 2030 due to increases in retirements, higher rates of chronic diseases, and an aging population.” Shamp pointed to a “lack of residency slots” as a major reason for the existing shortages. She noted that “all medical school graduates must complete a period of GME, or residency training, to be licensed to practice medicine in the United States,” adding that only “around 20% of medical school graduates find themselves unable to attain the residency slot necessary for them to complete their training.”
The Valley-based lawmaker championed her state as having “taken steps to help address this issue,” with “an additional 200 residency position (going) into effect July 1, 2024.” She cautioned, however, against becoming complacent with these additions, leading to her pledge to “identify and establish more ways to help” in the 2024 legislative session.
The Second Regular Session of the 56th Arizona Legislature begins on Monday, January 8, with opening ceremonies for both chambers and the Governor’s anticipated State of the State address.
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Daniel Stefanski | May 29, 2023 | News
By Daniel Stefanski |
As Americans around the country honored the fallen men and women who have worn our country’s uniform on Memorial Day, Arizona Legislators paid their own homage to those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice in defense of our nation’s freedoms and Constitution.
May we never forget and always be appreciative of the great debt we owe to all the individuals who have laid down their lives to protect American freedom. We live in the greatest country in the world and have so much to be thankful for – because of the service and sacrifice of these men and women who are no longer with us.
God bless and keep the United States of America.
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Corinne Murdock | Aug 12, 2021 | Education, News
By Corinne Murdock |
25 Arizona House and Senate Republicans led by freshman State Representative Jake Hoffman (R-Phoenix) called for Governor Doug Ducey to do something about the school districts defying state law with their mask mandates. The news release on Wednesday revealed that Republican legislators have urged Ducey privately to take action, to no avail. This public statement appears to be their next step in convincing Ducey to enforce the law.
It’s been over a week since the first school district called a mask mandate: Phoenix Union High School (PXU). Other schools followed suit soon after: most recently, Flagstaff Unified School District (FUSD). Ducey hasn’t taken action – though his spokespersons have relayed Ducey’s finger-wagging statements of disapproval in response to those school districts.
The legislators proposed that Ducey respond to the districts’ actions by withholding federal funding, authorizing temporary Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESAs) for families, inform families of the law, and take legal action.
Hoffman’s statement explained that the ban on mask mandates included a retroactivity clause that puts it in effect – contradicting school districts’ insistence that the law can’t take place until 90 days after the end of the legislative session, per Arizona statute. He noted that the school districts’ behavior undermined lawful government and bordered on anarchy.
“Under Arizona’s constitutional form of government, local governments do not have the authority or power to usurp state law simply because they disagree, yet that is precisely the kind of illegal activity in which many local governments are presently engaged. The Arizona legislature, with the Governor concurring, very intentionally enacted the laws at hand to protect Arizonans and Arizona children from the threat of government mandating them to wear a mask or be injected with a vaccine,” wrote Hoffman. “A resounding message must be delivered to any local government or subdivision of the state considering defying state law – lawlessness will not be tolerated.”
https://twitter.com/AZHouseGOP/status/1425545781558218754
House Speaker Pro Tempore Travis Grantham (R-Gilbert) signed onto the statement admonishing Ducey. He told AZ Free News that he also supports law enforcement stepping in to enforce the law. Grantham hinted that this debacle sparked a legislative priority for next year – adding more teeth to legislation.
“It’s unfortunate that some of our government-funded schools have chosen to blatantly ignore state law and the will of the majority of Arizonans by instituting mandates regarding students wearing face coverings,” relayed Grantham. “I support executive action by the governor to include withholding of taxpayer dollars and expansion of school choice funding options giving more educational choices to parents. I also support any efforts by law enforcement to enforce state law and I encourage parents and teachers to follow state law when sending their children to school and when on school grounds. Next year I will make it a focus to hold those who violate state law accountable and ensure appropriate funding reductions are in place for districts that purposely violate the law.”
State Representative Joseph Chaplik (R-Scottsdale) also signed onto the statement. He reiterated to AZ Free News that disagreement with the law isn’t justification for violation of it. Chaplik wrote the legislation that effectively banned mask mandates in schools. He, too, asserted that the power to act is in Ducey’s hands.
“Just because some don’t agree with policy and law, we should not disrespect and violate it while also teaching children these illegal tactics,” said Chaplik. “We passed this policy due to the inconsistencies of results with mask use and the unknown long term health issues that can impair our children. We need to stop this madness. The legislature did its job and now the executive branch needs to enforce the law.”
As of press time, Grantham and Chaplik said that they haven’t seen or heard any responses from Ducey.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
by Diane Douglas | Apr 5, 2021 | Opinion
By Diane Douglas, Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction 2015-2018 |
In the words of the famed NY Yankee catcher, Yogi Berra, “it’s like déjà vu all over again!”
In 2019, during the very last, wee hours of the legislative session the legislators passed SB1558 attempting to TRIPLE their per diem compensation.
This year’s attempt, by virtue of an eleventh hour “strike everything” amendment to HB2053, is to give themselves a very significant increase in their per diem because a salary increase must be passed by the voters. It’s probably safe to assume that such shenanigans would have been attempted last year as well had the session not been prematurely preempted thanks to the Covid “crisis.”
This session the legislators propose to increase Maricopa County legislators per diem from $35 to $56 for meals each day of the session. Legislators outside Maricopa County per diem increases from $60 to $207 – $56 for meals and $151 for lodging for every day in session.
Legislators are paid a salary of $24,000. This may not seem like a lot however consider that this is for a 100 day session (which includes in that count Saturdays, Sundays and Fridays when committee meetings or floor sessions are virtually never conducted and most have already left for home). Prorate that 100 days to the 260 days full time Arizonans work it equates to $62,400 per annum. Not bad, especially when considering that for many the legislature is a second job. Many of them have another career or are collecting at least one if not more, oft times government, retirements or own very successful businesses or charter schools for which they write the laws or all of the above.
But I digress, back to the per diem.
If nothing else, legislators should treat themselves by the same rules and standards which they impose on state employees.
But wait, state employees are not entitled to meal allowances unless they are traveling on state business and then, if I’m not mistaken, must be outside a 50 miles radius to qualify for meal or travel allowances. They are not given a meal allowance to buy their daily lunch at their assigned work site (nor are they frequently, if ever, the guests of lobbyists) so neither should Maricopa legislators.
For those legislators outside Maricopa County, in addition to the meal allowance, they will all receive the same travel per diem, $151, regardless of how close or far they are from the Capitol. Whether they travel the 190 or so miles from Kingman in Mohave County or Sierra Vista in Cochise County and stay in Phoenix Monday through Thursday; or travel the 40 miles home nightly to Apache Junction in Pinal County or Black Canyon City in Yavapai County the per diem is the same.
A benefit, by the way, that is not provided to a Maricopa County legislator should he/she live in Gila Bend almost 70 miles from the Capitol. In my opinion the same 50 mile radius that applies to state employees should likewise apply to legislators regardless of their county of residence.
Finally, the per diem will be tied to the annual federal per diem rate for Maricopa County as determined by the United States General Services Administration and adjusted annually without future legislative action.
But let’s put all that aside. The real issue not just the “how much” – some will argue too much, others not enough. It is the “how” that matters most.
In 2019 it was a bill slammed through at the last moments before the legislators voted to Sine Die at 12:58am. This session it is done through a “strike everything” amendment to HB2053. If that were not bad enough, allegedly part of the “deal”, to get Maricopa legislators to support this strike everything amendment, is to raise the Maricopa legislators’ lunch money as well. 30 pieces of silver this Easter Week, well, okay 21.
HB2053 originally entitled “superior court clerk; salary”, now titled “salary; superior court clerk” but nothing to indicate the true legislative intent of the amendment. – giving themselves an extra $2,100 for those in Maricopa and $14,700 for those outside.
(I’ve written about this legislative game of strike-all shenanigans in the past here.)
Legislators’ salary increases are supposed to be referred to the voters for approval however their “per diem” is defined in statute which takes no more than a majority and signature to increase. Effectively giving themselves what the voters will not – increased compensation.
If per diem is really just a backdoor way for legislators to do an end run around the taxpayers and give themselves a substantial increase in their compensation that the voters have not or are not otherwise willing to approve then, at the very least, legislators should be transparent and honest about it. Drop an appropriately titled bill at the beginning of the session. Do not do it through late night bills on the way out the door or late session “strike everything” amendments.
Especially after a year when untold numbers of Arizonans have lost their jobs and countless small business have had to close their doors Arizonans deserve better from their elected officials than the same old games. Deja vu Yogi, deja vu.
