by Matthew Holloway | Jun 2, 2025 | Economy, News
By Matthew Holloway |
The Phillips 66 Los Angeles Oil Refinery, in operation for 102 years, is set to shut down in October and will leave California with a dwindling network of just eight refineries remaining. The closure places the already fragile supply lines of gasoline and diesel fuel for California, Arizona, and Nevada in question.
All three states utilize California’s Low Carbon Fuel standard for fuel known as California Reformulated Gasoline (CaRFG), which is 90% petroleum-based gasoline and 10% ethanol, ostensibly designed to reduce air pollution and decrease emissions of smog-forming toxins. The closure is expected to have a wide impact across the region on prices for gasoline, diesel, and even aviation fuels.
The Phillips 66 refinery accounts for approximately 8.57% of California’s overall refinery capacity. The closure, announced last year, drew bipartisan pleas from Arizona and Nevada’s governors to California’s Governor Gavin Newsom who asked him not to authorize new legislation that allows California to demand more fuel be held in-state for California’s needs, regardless of outside demand.
Arizona’s Democrat Governor Katie Hobbs and Nevada’ Republican Governor Joe Lombardo said in a joint statement, “It is evident that increased regulatory burdens on refiners and forced supply shortages will result in higher costs for consumers in all of our states. With both of our states reliant on California pipelines for significant amounts of our fuel, these looming cost increases and supply shortages are of tremendous concern to Arizona and Nevada.”
According to OANN, a spokesman for Newsom told the outlet that the California law will “prevent price spikes that cost Californians upwards of $2 billion last year, giving the state more tools to require that petroleum refiners backfill supplies and plan ahead of maintenance.” Although he reassured Californians at the time that “the state has the tools to make sure they backfill supplies and plan ahead for maintenance,” he made no such reassurance to Arizona or Nevada.
California Republican Assemblywoman Kate Sanchez warned in a post to X, “Expect CA gas prices to skyrocket and more refineries to shut down as Sacramento Democrats double down on their agenda to exterminate affordability and make a middle-class life impossible to achieve for millions.”
Newsom accused Hobbs and Lombardo of repeating Big Oil talking points, saying their concerns reflected “the oil industry’s talking points rather than the facts.” He claimed that the California Energy Commission will be able to dampen price spikes and supply shortages with a spokesman calling their letter a “stunt” to appease “Big Oil Donors.”
Newsom signed the bill over the objections of both neighboring governors.
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
by Staff Reporter | Jun 1, 2025 | News
By Staff Reporter |
The Arizona Democratic Party (ADP) will go broke by the end of this year, according to the party’s own leadership.
News of the party’s financial woes emerged after ADP’s executive committee rejected a budget from the party’s new chairman, Robert Branscomb, in a recent meeting per Arizona Republic reporter Mary Jo Pitzl.
ADP’s committee reportedly cited the current state of spending and low fundraising for the diminishing funds.
This new development emerged shortly after Branscomb suspended his vice chair, Kim Khoury, through email. Branscomb accused Khoury of working against him — accusations he’s leveled against others early on in his leadership.
“[You engaged] in political activity directed against party leadership while holding an executive officer role,” said Branscomb.
And in recent months, there were reports of infighting between party leadership and the state’s top elected Democrats.
In a tell-all email issued last month, Branscomb provided a 90-day “candidate update” in which he accused his predecessor, Yolanda Bejarano, of undermining him and both U.S. Senators Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego of threatening him over his decision making. Kelly and Gallego were supportive of Bejarano’s reelection, as were Governor Katie Hobbs, Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, and Attorney General Kris Mayes.
In a joint response to the accusations, Fontes, Gallego, Hobbs, Kelly, and Mayes said they had only sought to support Branscomb from the beginning.
“We’ve spent the last several months meeting regularly with the chair and working to support the party through the transition,” read the statement. “Unfortunately, his statement today includes many false claims and is the kind of bad-faith response we’ve come to expect from the new leadership over the last several weeks.”
ADP is facing financial struggles despite the millions in heavy outside spending given as assistance in key state legislative races across the state last fall — expenditures that surpassed the more successful Republicans, even.
In January, ADP faced accusations of financial wrongdoing from one of the ADP vice chairs at the time, Will Knight. The former treasurer, Rick McGuire, was accused of “self-dealing.” Bejarano denied Knight’s request for an audit of the party’s finances, and denounced the accusations as “defamatory” and “false and damaging.”
ADP’s troubles are consistent with the issues facing the national Democratic Party. Although Democrats outraised and outspent Republicans in last year’s election, they gained only one seat in the House and lost four seats in the Senate — resulting in a Republican control of the Senate that reflected the most gains for either party in a decade.
Major donors to the Democratic Party vented their frustrations to mainstream media this week.
“Why would I write a check when we’re losing everything? We’re losing the airwaves. We’re losing the tech battle. We’re losing the ground game. They have yet to prove that they have learned any real lessons yet,” said one donor anonymously. “So either people start to wake up or we lose again.”
A survey in March of Democratic voters by the Associated Press and NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found only one-third felt optimistic about the party’s future.
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by Jonathan Eberle | May 24, 2025 | News
By Jonathan Eberle |
On Thursday, Arizona State Representative Alexander Kolodin (R-LD3) accused Governor Katie Hobbs and Attorney General Kris Mayes of improperly delegating state powers to a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy organization. The accusation raises concerns about transparency and potential conflicts of interest in the administration of state business.
According to documents Kolodin says he obtained through a months-long investigation, both Hobbs and Mayes engaged in undisclosed agreements with the States United Democracy Center, a nonprofit organization focused on protecting elections and democratic norms. Kolodin alleged that the group holds connections to progressive donors and political agendas.
The materials released by Kolodin indicate that Hobbs, during her tenure as Secretary of State, contracted with States United on three separate occasions to provide assistance in managing her office. One such arrangement was reportedly renewed shortly after Hobbs assumed the governorship. Kolodin contends that while these services were presented as being provided at no cost to the state, States United simultaneously received permission to advocate in regulatory and legal proceedings against Arizona’s interests—even while advising top state officials.
The report also includes allegations that the group was allowed to delete public records, potentially in violation of state law. Kolodin claims that the organization’s acknowledgment of this risk was disregarded by AG Mayes, who publicly denied any wrongdoing. The Attorney General’s office, according to Kolodin, has yet to release additional documents tied to its interactions with States United.
“Governor Hobbs and Attorney General Mayes have betrayed Arizonans by allowing radical, dark-money activists to infiltrate and weaponize Arizona’s government,” said Kolodin in a statement. “This corrupt collusion must be exposed. The people deserve answers, transparency, and immediate accountability.”
The allegations are likely to intensify tensions in the state, where debates over election integrity and government transparency have remained prominent in recent years. Representative Kolodin, a Republican, serves in the Arizona House of Representatives and has been a vocal critic of Governor Hobbs’ agenda.
Jonathan Eberle is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Jonathan Eberle | May 23, 2025 | News
By Jonathan Eberle |
Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs has vetoed legislation that would have allowed residents in voter-established Active Management Areas (AMAs), including the newly created Douglas AMA, to revisit their groundwater management designation after ten years.
The bill, HB 2089, was sponsored by Representative Gail Griffin (R–LD19), who argued that the measure was about preserving local control and ensuring that rural communities retain a voice in long-term water policy decisions.
“This bill simply would have allowed voters to revisit a decision they made ten years earlier. It respected the voice of the people — not silenced it,” Griffin said in a statement responding to the veto. “The Governor’s action undermines the ability of rural communities to self-govern and respond to future conditions.”
Under current Arizona law, AMAs are designated areas where groundwater is heavily regulated in an effort to manage overdraft and promote sustainable use. The Douglas AMA was approved by voters in 2022 in response to growing concerns over aquifer depletion in southeastern Arizona. The law established that AMA did not include an option for voters to re-evaluate the decision in the future — a gap HB 2089 sought to address.
Rep. Griffin and other rural lawmakers have expressed concern over what they describe as heavy-handed regulation from Phoenix that may not reflect the economic realities of agricultural communities. In a press release, the Arizona House Republican Caucus also criticized the Governor’s broader approach to groundwater management, particularly in the Willcox Basin, where the administration is reportedly pursuing a 50% reduction in groundwater overdraft by 2075.
The veto is the latest flashpoint in an ongoing debate between state leadership and rural lawmakers over how best to balance groundwater conservation with agricultural and economic needs. It remains unclear whether supporters of the measure will seek to reintroduce similar legislation in future sessions.
Jonathan Eberle is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Jonathan Eberle | May 18, 2025 | News
By Jonathan Eberle |
Governor Katie Hobbs has vetoed SB 1268, a Republican-sponsored measure that aimed to increase transparency around the costs of providing healthcare to illegal immigrants in Arizona’s hospital system. The move drew swift criticism from State Senator Wendy Rogers (R-LD7), who accused the governor of obstructing efforts to ensure fiscal responsibility and protect taxpayer dollars.
The bill, sponsored by Rogers and passed by the Republican-controlled Legislature, would have required Arizona hospitals to include a voluntary question on patient intake forms asking individuals to indicate whether they are lawfully present in the United States. According to the bill text, the response would have had no bearing on the care provided and would not have been shared with immigration enforcement agencies. The Arizona Department of Health Services (DHS) would then compile annual reports using the data, including the number of non-citizens receiving care through the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS), the state’s Medicaid program.
“Our hardworking, law-abiding citizens have a right to know how much of their money is going towards paying for the medical services of those who’ve willfully chosen to break our laws by entering our country illegally,” said Senator Rogers in a statement following the veto. “This legislation would have helped us obtain the data necessary to make informed decisions on how to tackle this problem.”
A 2023 Congressional Budget Office report cited by Rogers estimated that federal and state governments spent approximately $27 billion on Emergency Medicaid for illegal aliens between fiscal years 2017 and 2023.
Supporters of SB 1268 argue that Arizona taxpayers deserve to understand how much of the state’s healthcare budget is being used to treat non-citizens — especially as hospitals report growing strain and long wait times for patients. Rogers emphasized that the intent was not to deny care, but to gather data needed for long-term planning and resource allocation.
This marks the latest in a series of transparency and immigration-related proposals rejected by Hobbs. Her actions have drawn praise from progressive groups but sharp criticism from GOP lawmakers, who argue that the governor is ignoring the concerns of constituents struggling with a strained healthcare system.
“This veto is a slap in the face to Arizona taxpayers who are demanding accountability and transparency,” Rogers said. “Shame on Governor Hobbs.”
As the debate over immigration and healthcare access continues to shape Arizona politics, similar proposals may resurface in future legislative sessions — especially as state lawmakers prepare for the 2026 election cycle, where these issues are expected to be front and center.
Jonathan Eberle is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
