A middle-of-the-road legislative district in the Phoenix-metro area will be key to deciding the future political makeup of the Arizona State Legislature.
State Representative Seth Blattman, a Democrat, is running for reelection in Arizona Legislative District 9.
The Democrat lawmaker has been endorsed by liberal groups in his reelection bid, including National Organization for Women Arizona, AEA Fund for Public Education, the Progressive Turnout Project, the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, Jane Fonda Climate PAC, Save Our Schools Arizona, and Stonewall Democrats of Arizona.
Blattman’s support from the Fonda PAC may be one of the most concerning for voters researching his record and determining which direction they want to see for their district. On August 7, Blattman boasted of this endorsement, saying, “I am incredibly honored to announce the endorsement by the Jane Fonda Climate PAC! Their tireless efforts in combating climate change and advocating for sustainable policies are crucial for our planet’s future. Together, let’s create a healthier and sustainable Arizona for generations to come.”
I am incredibly honored to announce the endorsement by the Jane Fonda Climate PAC! Their tireless efforts in combating climate change and advocating for sustainable policies are crucial for our planet's future. Together, let's create a healthier and sustainable Arizona for… pic.twitter.com/qXZVxxZDJs
The mission of the PAC, however, is not as agreeable to a wide swath of constituents. On her website, Fonda writes, “Our planet is on fire and our leaders are failing us, so if we can’t change the minds of the people in power, we need to change the people in power. It is for that reason that I started Jane Fonda Climate PAC, which is laser-focused on one goal: Do what it takes to defeat fossil fuel supporters and elect climate champions at all levels of government.”
This PAC asserts that “major solutions are stopped cold: the Green New Deal, Build Back Better, clean energy investments, ending billions in tax subsidies to the fossil fuel industry – all because of politicians backed by Big Oil.”
The Green New Deal pushed by the Jane Fonda Climate PAC is the same championed by U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, who is one of the most progressive lawmakers in the U.S. Congress. On Sanders’ presidential campaign website, he wrote about the deal, that “the climate crisis is not only the single greatest challenge facing our country; it is also our single greatest opportunity to build a more just and equitable future, but we must act immediately.”
Sanders added that as president he would “launch the decade of the Green New Deal, a ten-year, nationwide mobilization centered around justice and equity during which climate change will be factored into virtually every area of policy, from immigration to trade to foreign policy and beyond. Part of the details of the Green New Deal, according to Sanders, includes, “declaring climate change a national emergency, commit[ing] to reducing emissions throughout the world, [and] expanding the climate justice movement.”
Though Arizona has so far resisted an extreme move to the globalist agenda of the climate change lobby – thanks, in large part, to its previous Republican governors (Brewer and Ducey) and a Republican-led legislature – Blattman’s recent votes indicate that he might help usher in more of the Green New Deal policies should Democrats retake the legislature alongside Governor Katie Hobbs. He voted against HCR 2050, which would have “constitutionally prohibit[ed] Arizona or any political subdivision or public body of Arizona from restricting the manufacture, use or sale or a device based on the energy sources used to power the device.”
Additionally, Blattman voted against HCR 2018, which would have “prohibit[ed] this state and any city, town, county, municipal corporation or other political subdivision of this state from imposing a fee or tax based on vehicle miles traveled by a person in a motor vehicle or enacting any rule or law to monitor or limit the vehicle miles traveled by a person in a motor vehicle.”
Another of Blattman’s endorsements, the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, also highlights its efforts to fight for the Green New Deal. The organization promotes itself as “a proud supporter of Elizabeth Warren since her first run for Senate and was the first national political organization to endorse her for president in the 2020 election.”
Warren, also one of the most liberal and progressive members of the U.S. Congress, presents herself as a top supporter of the Green New Deal. On her campaign website, Warren writes, “This is a crisis. We need bold, aggressive action. We need a Green New Deal – and we need it now. Elizabeth is proud to be an original cosponsor of Senator Ed Markey and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s Green New Deal resolution, which commits the United States to a ten-year mobilization to achieve domestic net-zero emissions by 2030. It provides the framework for an ambitious effort to transform our economy and save our planet.”
According to the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission, Legislative District 9 is one of the most competitive in the entire state, with a 2.6% vote spread between Democrats and Republicans in the past nine statewide elections. In those contests, Democrats have emerged victorious five times, compared to four for Republicans.
Blattman will attempt to return to the Arizona House of Representatives alongside his seatmate, Lorena Austin. The two Democrats are facing off against Republicans Mary Ann Mendoza and Kylie Barber for the right to represent the district in its two slots.
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
The “Freedom to Move” bill, a ballot referral that would create a constitutional ban on taxes or fees for Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) and limitations on travel miles, SCR1002/HCR2018, failed to pass in the Senate on Wednesday.
The resolution failed as Republican State Sen. Ken Bennett (R-LD01) joined Democrats in voting against it.
VMTs levy fees based on miles driven, generally for passenger vehicles only. Oregon implemented a VMT in 2015, and Utah implemented a VMT in 2020. The federal government has encouraged VMT pilots and enhancements through its Surface Transportation System Funding Alternatives (STSFA) grant program. Arizona is a member state of the STSFA Road Usage Charge (RUC) America Pilot, as are 12 other states.
Bennett expressed frustration that he was unable to have “reasonable changes” made to this or any other resolution like it.
The senator said that while he agreed with the desire to prevent limitations to free movement, he had concerns that the bill didn’t provide sufficient exceptions for governmental entities to monitor their vehicles for maintenance and employee reimbursement purposes.
Bennett further noted that businesses brought concerns to him that they would be prevented from complying with or taking advantage of the state implementation plan through Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT), Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ), and federal statutes.
“We do not want Arizona ever to be going down the road of what’s happening in other jurisdictions where they’re using VMT taxes or fees to limit people’s ability to move freely wherever they want to go,” said Bennett.
Bennett also claimed the bill wouldn’t appropriately apply to alternative fuel vehicles, such as electric vehicles. He suggested the legislature first come up with an energy equivalency calculation to bring alternative fuel vehicles into the process of paying for the roads.
“The growing number of electric vehicles is outside the HURF [Highway User Revenue Fund] revenue in this state, and we have to address that,” said Bennett.
Sen. Jake Hoffman (R-LD15) dismissed Bennett’s concerns as “patently false” and alleged that his counterpart knew that to be the case.
Hoffman countered that the bill does allow for governmental entities to enact VMT monitoring or limitations, just not mandates for businesses, and that the bill wouldn’t preclude businesses from voluntarily engaging with VMT rules or policies. The latter was a provision added under an amendment at the request of Intel Corporation, according to Hoffman.
Hoffman said that the federal government and entities bent on advancing environmental interests and policies were behind a feverish push for VMT.
“It’s called choice architecture, it’s a theory of the left. In choice architecture, you artificially alter the inputs with which people make decisions, so that the architecture surrounding those decisions changes,” said Hoffman. “You raise the price of gas to an unreasonable level, well, what’s the resulting behavior? They don’t drive as much.”
Correction: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that Republican State Sen. Frank Carroll (R-LD28) voted against SCR1002/HCR2018. Sen. Carroll voted in favor of the resolution.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
Maricopa County might become four counties, per a new resolution seeking to break up the fourth-largest county in the nation.
HCR2018 wants to shrink Maricopa County, then divide the remaining land into three counties named after Native American tribes that once populated the Valley and southern area of the state: Hohokam, Mogollon, and O’odham. The bill sponsor is State Rep. Alex Kolodin, cosponsored by State Reps. Joseph Chaplik, David Marshall, and Barbara Parker.
Kolodin told AZ Free News that the initiative is a continuation of a bill run last year; however, since this year’s version is a resolution it will ultimately be up to the voters to decide Maricopa County’s fate. Kolodin shared that voters discussed breaking up Maricopa County with him often on the campaign trail last year. The dissent to the proposal that he did hear concerned an increase in costs, but Kolodin said he thinks the opposite would be true.
“It’s never been my experience in government that having it smaller and more conservative increases costs,” said Kolodin. “There’s an optimal size for counties, and that’s not having a county board of supervisors that oversees over three-quarters of a million people. That’s more than a congressman.”
Kolodin noted that Maricopa County residents’ grievances with their current administration aren’t a shared experience by residents of other counties. In fact, he observed other counties having a positive relationship with their board of supervisors during his travels as a lawyer.
Kolodin argued that county officials should be able to pick up the phone and talk to constituents — a far-fetched concept for Maricopa County residents. The county has a population of about 4.5 million; Arizona has a population of around 7.4 million.
“Besides the problems of unaccountable government, people joke about the ‘great state of Maricopa.’ I think there’s lots of Democrats in Pima County that would agree that Maricopa County has an outsized presence. Counties should be relatively coequal entities,” observed Kolodin.
Kolodin said that the restructuring would also improve elections administration. Maricopa County experienced massive Election Day failures stemming from their printers.
“One thing we’ve learned from this last cycle is that Maricopa County is too big to effectively run itself anymore,” said Kolodin. “It completely screwed up the 2022 election. It’s too hard for them to run it.”
We also asked Kolodin to weigh in on community feedback regarding Maricopa County’s rebranding unveiled last week. Some noted that the new logo intended to depict an orange cactus looked like a middle finger.
“All I can say is these guys have spent the past several years demonstrating utter contempt for their constituents,” said Kolodin. “I’ve been involved in politics for a while, and the constant feeling is [that Maricopa County residents] don’t feel like they’re heard. You never hear that about the State House, ‘Oh these guys are so distant, they’re so inaccessible.’ You might disagree with us, but you would never feel that we don’t care about our constituents. People feel like members of the board of supervisors don’t care about their constituents, and they just feel like they’re not heard.”
When a county gets so big and unaccountable that they think they can flip voters the bird with impunity it is time to break them up and return government to a smaller and more local level. My bill to dismantle Maricopa County will let voters decide if that is a good idea. pic.twitter.com/WzfYyVUs0D
Maricopa County has struggled to fulfill basic functions like public record requests or, most recently, complying in a timely manner with an Arizona Senate subpoena.
“They’re trying to run a state with a county’s infrastructure. It just doesn’t make any sense,” said Kolodin. “It gives rise to both arrogance and incompetence. The arrogance is they think they can thumb their nose at the state legislature. It upsets the constituents.”
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
