The Fountain Hills Town Council voted to adopt a resolution banning all DEI on Tuesday. Councilman Allen Skillicorn, who introduced the measure, noted that the policy was authored with the assistance of the Goldwater Institute.
“I talk a lot about how Fountain Hills is open for business,” Skillicorn said. “Tonight, I get to join Amazon, Disney, Ford, Harley-Davidson, Lowe’s, McDonald’s, Molson Coors, Pepsi, and Toyota in rejecting divisive DEI policies. In the public sector, the Supreme Court ruled that most forms of affirmative action were unconstitutional in 2023. Our town joins the Federal Government, Department of Education, and many states banning divisive DEI.”
Skillicorn noted, “Included in the language is also a ban against using invented gender identity pronouns in town email signatures.”
The measure was debated in an explosive 45-minute segment of the town council meeting which saw frequent sparring between Councilwomen Peggy McMahon and Brenda Kalivianakis, and Councilman Skillicorn as well as Vice Mayor Hannah Toth.
Kalivianakis, speaking on the resolution, accused the Councilman Skillicorn of “mischief,” saying, “I’m reticent to because ‘if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.’ I could use those same adages, ‘problem solution seeking a problem,’ but I do see mischief in this too and and maybe for the sponsor of the bill.”
Responding to concerns that the resolution could preclude the town from membership in various civic organizations, Skillicorn clarified, “If those organizations that we belong to are in violation of and have active divisive Dei policies, it appears that yes, our town does have a problem with divisive DEI policies.”
Councilmembers Gayle Earle, Rick Watts, and Allen Skillicorn voted in favor of the ban along with Vice Mayor Hannah Toth and Mayor Gerry Friedel. Councilwoman Peggy McMahon voted against and Councilwoman Brenda Kalivianakis abstained.
Watch the Town Council Meeting Section on the DEI Policy:
One Arizona town recently pledged cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
On Tuesday, the town of Fountain Hills passed a resolution (6-1) pledging cooperation with ICE’s mass deportation efforts under the Trump administration.
The resolution cited the existence of over 647,000 illegal immigrants with pending charges or convictions for violent crimes within the U.S. as justification for the town’s support.
“[T]he Town remains steadfast in its commitment to protecting the safety and well-being of its residents, particularly those most vulnerable to criminal activities such as human trafficking and drug distribution,” stated the resolution. “[T]he Town will continue to comply with all applicable federal and state laws, recognizing that there can be conflicts between federal and state laws.”
The resolution also committed the town to not becoming a sanctuary town as others in the state have done, and pledged to seek assistance from the U.S. Attorney General’s office to indemnify the town and employees for any assistance or cooperation provided to federal immigration authorities.
According to a press release also issued on Tuesday, Fountain Hills Town Council member Allen Skillicorn drafted and introduced the resolution. Skillicorn cited his past experience as an Illinois state lawmaker as the impetus for presenting the policy.
“Not long ago I was a state legislator. I had to solve problems, both present and in the future,” Skillicorn said. “My commitment is to our town and keeping our town safe from crime.”
Fountain Hills, passed a resolution of cooperation with ICE to enforce Federal immigration law. “My commitment is to our town and to keep our town safe!”
— Skillicorn for Arizona🌵 🇺🇸 (@allenskillicorn) March 5, 2025
The resolution didn’t pass unanimously.
Councilwoman Peggy McMahon questioned whether Skillicorn was accusing town council members, staff, and community members of impeding law enforcement. McMahon further alleged the resolution would encourage racial profiling.
“Are you saying they’re not doing their job in enforcing the laws? Are you implying the town and the sheriffs are not committed to cooperating with enforcing laws to protect the health, the welfare, and the safety of our community?” asked McMahon. “Accordingly, the resolution to me is moot and legally unenforceable. So I don’t even know why we’re talking about it.”
McMahon also argued that illegal immigrants were responsible for just a small fraction of crimes committed in their town and the state as a whole.
Councilman Brenda Kalivianakis, who voted for the resolution, asked why the resolution was necessary. Kalivianakis criticized the resolution as another “time-sink” designed to further other council members’ political careers and not the town’s priorities.
“This seems like a solution looking for a problem. This isn’t a problem we have in this community. It seems like a case of just virtue signaling. Here I am, I’m going to lead the way on DEI and all these nationally divisive issues and then I’m going to appear in some small newspaper tomorrow and be called a hero,” said Kalivianakis. “Why are we talking about things that don’t matter?”
During the same meeting on Tuesday, the town council passed a resolution (5-2) banning Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and the usage of gender identity-based pronouns.
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Fountain Hills Town Councilman and Republican Mayoral Candidate Gerry Friedel revealed on Tuesday that Democrat incumbent Mayor Ginny Dickey has refused to appoint primary election winner Republican Gayle Earle to the council. Earle was the only candidate to earn enough votes to win the July 30th race outright.
In so refusing, Dickey preserves a 3-3 partisan deadlock until after the November election but is accused of violating state law (A.R.S. 9-235).
According to a press release, State Representatives Alex Kolodin and Joseph Chaplik, who represent Fountain Hills, filed a 1487 complaint with the Arizona Attorney General’s Office on Monday calling upon the Solicitor General’s Office to investigate Dickey’s alleged non-compliance with the statute pertaining to “vacancies in council.”
Friedel’s campaign alleged that state funding for the town could be jeopardized by Dickey’s action writing, “The AG will investigate Mayor Dickey’s unwillingness to agendize filling the vacancy while the State Treasurer will be required to hold back the shared state funds for the town, effectively bankrupting Fountain Hills until the complaint is resolved.”
In a statement Friedel said:
“On September 30, 2024, State Representatives Alexander Kolodin and Joseph Chaplik have formally asked the Arizona Attorney General’s Office to investigate alleged wrongdoing by Fountain Hills Mayor Ginny Dickey during a Town Council Meeting on September 17, 2024. The Mayor and Council were asked to fill a council seat vacancy pursuant to A.R.S. 9-235 which states: ‘The council shall fill a vacancy that may occur.’ Accordingly, the Council has no discretion to wait until the voters fill the vacancy but, rather, is required to fill the vacancy itself pending the voters’ chosen candidate taking office which, in this case, was Councilwoman-Elect, Gayle Earle.
Ms. Earle was the only candidate to win outright during the July 30 primary election, securing 4226 votes. Councilmembers Gerry Friedel, Hannah Toth, and Allen Skillicorn voted to appoint Ms. Earle to fill this vacancy. Mayor Dickey, along with Councilmembers Peg McMahon and Brenda Kalivianakis voted against appointing Ms. Earle to this vacancy, thereby deadlocking with respect to filling the vacancy. It should be noted that not filling this vacancy could jeopardize town business and town finances for the remainder of the year. Mayor Dickey may now have to reconsider filling this vacancy to avoid being reprimanded by the Attorney General.”
In a post to X, Councilwoman Hannah Toth shared video of her making an impassioned argument for the appointment of Earle. She wrote, “Tonight the Democrats on the Fountain Hills Council chose Party over People. The people of Fountain Hills have chosen Gayle Earle, is the bipartisan choice to fill our vacant seat. Council members Dickey, McMahon, Kalivianakis would rather leave this seat vacant. They have assaulted democracy, robbing the people of their voice. But I stood up.”
Tonight the Democrats on the Fountain Hills Council chose Party over People.
The people of Fountain Hills have chosen Gayle Earle, is the bipartisan choice to fill our vacant seat.
Council members Dickey, McMahon, Kalivianakis would rather leave this seat vacant.
In a subsequent reply to a comment, Toth explained how the vacancy has been addressed on the council, “Gayle was elected for a 2025-2029 term, however we have a vacancy due to a council member whose term was expiring moving to CA. Therefore, we need someone to fill the seat for the 3 meetings before Gayle is sworn in. Oddly, Kalivianakis was recruiting replacements, and later the Democrats decided they would rather the seat just remain vacant, rather than install someone who has already been elected, early.”
Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that Friedel preserved a 3-3 partisan deadlock. Dickey is the current mayor responsible for preserving the 3-3 partisan deadlock. The story has been updated.
The Fountain Hills Town Council adopted its tentative budget plan for the upcoming fiscal year on a 6-1 vote May 7.
The council decided to set the budget at the maximum expenditure amount allowed under law, $45.1 million.
“Fountain Hills need to save some money and do more road repairs,” Councilman Allen Skillicorn said. “Last night the Liberal Ladies majority of council refused to cut just $1 from their ‘spend to max’ 2025 budget.”
Skillicorn, a Republican, suggested cutting 3% or $1.35 million from that budget to fund road repairs. The motion failed to receive a second. Skillicorn made a follow-up motion to cut the budget by just $1. This motion was seconded but failed three votes to four.
Voting to cut the budget were council members Gerry Freidel, Hannah Toth, and Skillicorn.
Mayor Ginny Dickey and council members Peggy McMahon, Sharron Grzybowski, and Brenda Kalivianakis voted against cutting just $1 from the budget.
“Four big spending Liberal Ladies voted for the maximum under law budget and could not cut just $1,” Skillicorn said. “If we cannot cut the budget by just $1 to fix roads, one wonders how Dickey, McMahon, Grzybowski, and Kalivianakis plan to fix our roads.”
Fountain Hills is a town in Maricopa County, Arizona with a population of roughly 24,000.
Elizabeth Troutman is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send her news tips using this link.
