President Joe Biden’s skyrocketing, 40-year-high inflation levels have resonated with a historic worst for Arizona. Arizona households are spending an average of nearly $6,000 more on household necessities since the 2020 election.
According to the most recent report from the Common Sense Institute, a Phoenix-based research nonprofit, Phoenix inflation prices rose over eight percent in one year. The metropolitan area reached 11 percent price inflation, nearly three points higher than the nation’s average.
The institute noted that the current rate of increasing inflation would cause the cost of living in Phoenix to be higher than San Francisco’s cost of living by 2034.
Additionally, the cost of rent and housing grew by nearly 15 percent over the last year. The pandemic marked a record-high for the number of those moving to Arizona.
Yet, Biden declared that the last year marked positive changes lending to a “historically strong” economic foundation that would result in a decline in inflation.
We’ve laid an economic foundation that is historically strong.
Now we are moving forward to a new moment where we can build a future of stable, steady growth. So we can bring down inflation without sacrificing all of the historic gains we’ve made.
Governor Doug Ducey blasted Biden’s handling of inflation as a “disaster,” noting that Arizona families were paying an average of over $500 a month more in household costs.
President Biden’s inflation disaster is costing AZ families $500+ more per month in added household costs. Curbing the damage of Biden’s policies is a top priority. Cutting taxes is an answer. We’ve done so by adopting the lowest flat tax in the nation. https://t.co/Pq3AQfkahw
In a Wall Street Journal opinion piece succeeding Memorial Day, Biden blamed inflation on Russia President Vladimir Putin. Biden said that Putin’s warring impacted the energy market and supply chain. The president alluded to heavier intervention in the Russia-Ukraine war, with more aggression toward Russia, to uplift the flagging economy.
“We can’t let up on our global effort to punish Mr. Putin for what he’s done, and we must mitigate these effects for American consumers,” said Biden.
The president explained that the federal government would build a million more affordable housing units, and proposed using Medicare to negotiate with pharmaceutical companies. He also proposed recouping lost tax revenue from companies established overseas who benefit from international tax policies, and claimed that billionaires pay lower tax rates than working-class individuals like teachers or firefighters.
Biden also claimed that the job market was the strongest since World War II, though he didn’t distinguish between new jobs and those restored after the pandemic layoffs.
The most important thing we can do now to transition from rapid recovery to stable, steady growth is to bring inflation down. That is why I have made tackling inflation my top economic priority. My plan has three parts — read more about them here: https://t.co/5IUu0qbCaa
The president relied on the “kitchen table” illustration again to empathize with Americans’ struggles. (For context: there are over 40 speeches from Biden on the White House’s website in which he’s used the “kitchen table” illustration; it is unclear whether his speech writer has a penchant for kitchen tables or whether the term is meant to serve as a touchstone concept, but former first lady Hillary Clinton is credited for popularizing the term within the Democratic Party in the 1990s).
Secretary of State and gubernatorial candidate Katie Hobbs has picked up on the “kitchen table” illustration, though she hasn’t denounced the Biden administration’s handling of inflation.
From groceries to gas prices to child care to inflation, these are just a few of the kitchen table issues I hear about from Arizonans.
As Governor, I will tackle these—and more—to ensure our state is the best place to live, work, and raise a family.
Instead, Hobbs blamed Ducey and the Republican-controlled state legislature for not doing more to curb inflation. She insisted that her plan — Affordable Arizona — would mitigate inflation.
Once again, I’m calling on Gov. Ducey & our Legislature to put partisan politics aside, alleviate the burden of inflation & put money back in pockets by passing my Affordable Arizona plan.
Biden has denounced one specific plan from across the aisle by Senator Rick Scott (R-FL): a “12 Point Plan to Rescue America.”
Earlier this month, the president reiterated that the plan to bring down inflation consisted of taking a hands-off approach with the Federal Reserve. He then listed two end goals — lowering the cost of living and reducing the deficit — as part of the plan, without elaborating further.
My plan to tackle inflation is simple:
– Let the Fed do its job – Lower everyday costs for Americans – Keep reducing the deficit
By taking these steps — and with Congress taking action — we can build a sustained recovery that benefits all Americans.
The latest Internal Revenue Service (IRS) migration report revealed that Arizona gained about $4.8 billion aggregate adjusted gross income.
Over 247,600 were reported migrating into Arizona from all 50 states. Nearly 63,100 from California, over 15,700 from Texas, over 15,000 from Washington, nearly 12,800 from Colorado, and over 12,500 from Illinois.
During the same period, the state lost over 169,400 individuals: over 25,300 to California, over 16,500 to Texas, nearly 9,000 to Colorado, over 8,800 to Washington, and over 7,600 to Florida.
Based on the latest IRS data, the Wall Street Journal editorial board discovered a pattern: high-tax states lost the most aggregate adjusted gross income. The majority of those states were blue, with Ohio being the exception.
New York lost $19.5 billion, California lost $17.8 billion, Illinois lost $8.5 billion, Massachusetts lost $2.6 billion, New Jersey lost $2.3 billion, Maryland lost $1.9 billion, Ohio lost $1.4 billion, Minnesota lost $1.2 billion, Pennsylvania lost $1.2 billion, and Virginia lost $1.1 billion.
California has the highest individual income tax rate in the nation at over 13 percent, followed by New York at nearly 11 percent, and New Jersey and Washington, D.C. at 10.75 percent.
They noted that Florida gained $23.7 billion, Texas gained $6.3 billion, North Carolina gained $3.6 billion, Tennessee and Nevada gained $2.6 billion, Colorado gained $2.3 billion, Idaho gained $2.1 billion, and Utah gained $1.3 billion.
Florida, Texas, Tennessee, and Nevada don’t have an income tax. North Carolina, Colorado, and Utah have flat income tax. Idaho has a graduated-rate income tax.
Arizona’s graduated income tax rate ranges from those individuals making up to about $27,800 at 2.59 percent to those making between $166,800 to $250,000 at 4.5 percent. Those making over $250,000 pay one percent of their taxable income, plus just over $10,000 and a 3.5 percent surcharge.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
A judge in Mohave County is expected to rule by noon on Monday whether Arizonans could lose their ability to vote by mail without providing an excuse.
Judge Lee Jantzen is being asked by the Arizona Republican Party and its chair, Kelli Ward, to declare the state’s no-excuse voting by mail “system” unconstitutional despite the fact the system has been in effect for three decades. The judge heard arguments last Friday to issue a preliminary injunction to ban no-excuse voting by mail effective with the upcoming Nov. 8 General Election.
About 85 percent of all ballots cast in the 2020 General Election—including Ward’s ballot—were mailed out to voters in advance of the election. But the AZGOP contends the law passed by the Legislature in 1991 violates the constitutional requirement that Arizona’s elections be held in such a way to ensure “secrecy in voting.”
The lawsuit argues the only ballots which should be accepted through the mail are those from voters who provide a satisfactory excuse—such as military service, a disability that makes it a burden to vote in person, or being out of town on Election Day.
(The AZGOP acknowledged in their May 17 lawsuit that there is not enough time to outlaw no-excuse voting for the Aug. 2 Primary Election as ballots are in the process of being printed so they can be in voters’ mailboxes in early July.).
Attorneys for Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs and several county election officials argued to Jantzen that there is nothing unconstitutional with Arizona’s no-excuse voting by mail system. They also advised the judge of the practical problems with trying to ban a practice after 30 years without much advance notice to voters and those responsible for running each county’s elections.
One such problem involves the Active Early Voter List, from which ballots are sent to voters who have signed up to receive them by mail. Those voters recently received a reminder notice from their respective county recorder with the 2022 election schedule and confirming the voters will receive ballots by mail for the primary and general elections.
The AZGOP argued to Jantzen that counties can be forced to accommodate changes in time for the General Election, even if it requires hiring thousands more poll workers and election staff across the state, scrounging to find enough voting machines and other election-related equipment, and locating facilities which can accommodate millions more in-person voters than have turned out in years.
That argument was pushed back on during Friday’s hearing by an attorney for seven of Arizona’s 15 county recorders responsible for the voting by mail process and county election directors who are responsible for election day voting and ballot tabulation.
“They cannot conjure polling places or poll workers out of nothing,” Karen Hartman-Tellez of the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office told Jantzen.
Whatever order Jantzen issues in response to the AZGOP’s preliminary injunction request is likely to be appealed. But even if no-excuse voting by mail is allowed to take place this year, the AZGOP’s constitutional challenge does not die.
Instead, the litigation will move forward to a trial under civil court rules, same as any other lawsuit.
On Thursday, Attorney General Mark Brnovich co-led a 20-state coalition in filing an amicus brief in the Supreme Court case deciding the speech rights of business owners. The coalition filed their amicus brief the day after Pride Month began.
At the heart of the case — 303 Creative v. Elenis — is Colorado businesswoman Lorie Smith, a graphic artist and website designer who refused to design wedding websites for same-sex couples per her religious beliefs. Colorado law C.R.S. 24-34-601 prohibits businesses from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression, even due to religion. The state considers any business that sells to the public or offers services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations to the public as a “place of public accommodation” and therefore beholden to their anti-discrimination law.
The amicus brief pointed out that Smith provided other services to LGBTQ+ customers, but that her Christian religion prevented her from providing wedding-related services to those customers. It also pointed out that Smith’s hesitation concerned the message she would convey in being forced to do so; in other words, her speech and not the status of a customer.
The Christian Bible dictates that marriage is the union between one man and one woman, and that homosexuality is a sin.
“Colorado interprets its public-accommodation law to forbid Smith from expressing her desired messages about marriage. In its view, graphic artists who create websites celebrating opposite-sex marriages must do the same for same-sex marriages, and refusing to do so subjects those artists to punishment,” read the amicus brief. “By adopting this position, Colorado violates the constitutional rights of its citizens, because the First amendment prohibits States from forcing individuals, including people who create custom speech for a living, to speak in favor of same-sex marriage.”
In a press release, Brnovich asserted that business owners like Smith have a constitutional right to discern speech as part of their business.
“Owners of small companies do not give up their constitutional rights as a cost of doing business,” said Brnovich. “Freedoms of speech, belief, and expression are at the core of who we are as Americans, and our government is out of line to infringe on them.”
“As a Christian artist, I was really excited to step into the wedding industry and use my artistic talents. Except, there’s a Colorado law that prevents me from continuing my work and forces me to violate my beliefs and speak messages I don’t agree with,” stated Smith. “Every American should have the right to control the content of their own speech.”
Nebraska, Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, and West Virginia joined Arizona in the amicus brief.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
A recent poll revealed that 97 percent of Arizona voters were concerned about the price of gas, and 80 percent were concerned with supply shortages.
Phoenix-based OH Predictive Insights released those findings on Wednesday, part of an Arizona Public Opinion Pulse (AZPOP) conducted last month over the course of a week.
9 in 10 Arizonans expect gas prices to be higher next month…again
Those who expressed concern over the gas prices weren’t hopeful about the future costs. 91 percent expected gas prices to increase by next month. That’s more pessimism than expressed in previous polls. In a March AZPOP study, 80 percent of Arizonans anticipated an increase in gas prices.
Although Arizonans share similar perspectives on the state of gas prices, they don’t agree on who’s to blame. 36 percent of Arizonans identified President Joe Biden as the reason for rising gas prices, whereas 26 percent blamed oil companies and the remaining 23 percent blamed the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.
“The long-term anticipated impacts from the pandemic are surfacing as it globally disrupts the supply chain, heightening concern for Arizonans as supply shortage continues to burden virtually everyone, “said @MikePNoble
Gas prices present a bipartisan issue, with both Republican and Democratic leadership expressing criticism over Biden’s handling of the rising costs.
Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) told KOLD that the Biden administration and Congress have options to curb the crisis, insinuating that they weren’t taking all necessary and available action.
“There are levers we can pull here to lower the cost,” stated Kelly. “I’ve asked the administration to increase production [….] They’ve done some but it’s not happening fast enough.”
Gas has become far too expensive for Arizona families.
Washington needs to move quickly to increase domestic energy production and pass my bill eliminating the federal gas tax for the rest of the year. https://t.co/9HvVfPIuFA
Concerning the supply chain crisis, 52 percent of Arizona voters reported that it impacted them directly. 43 percent said they weren’t affected directly. 86 percent of those concerned made over $100,000 a year; 90 percent were homemakers, and 80 percent were suburban women.
Over half of Arizona registered voters (52%) said they have been directly affected by the supply shortage while 43% say they have not been directly affected.
However, 80% are extremely/ very/ somewhat concerned about supply shortages.
According to the Department of Labor’s Consumer Price Index, Phoenix area prices increased 2.5 percent from February to April — a total increase of 11 percent from one year ago. Food prices increased by nearly two percent those two months, and 8.6 percent over the last year. Energy prices increased nearly 13 percent those two months, and 32.6 percent over the last year.
A Pew Research study released while the latest AZPOP study was underway revealed that the rest of the nation concurred with Arizonans that inflation is the most pressing issue.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
