by Matthew Holloway | Apr 7, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
In an exclusive interview with AZ Free News, Speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives Steve Montenegro revealed that Republican legislative leaders had been warning Governor Hobbs of her potential budgetary failure as far back as January. He further revealed that a notice from the Hobbs administration was only sent to House leaders two weeks prior to the funding crisis deadline and was sent to an incorrect email address.
Montenegro called out Hobbs for her administration’s “incompetence,” and explained the purpose of the House Ad Hoc Committee on Executive Budget Mismanagement, which met for the first time last week.
Montenegro explained, “The purpose of the ad hoc was literally on executive budget mismanagement and the failures that the Governor has demonstrated from the start. I mean at some point we understand that there are shifting numbers. There’s sometimes you budget for a certain amount of caseload or you budget for a certain amount of students or you budget for a certain amount of individuals that are going to have need of services in the state and that can fluctuate a little.
“We’ve seen that throughout the year it fluctuates. But the mismanagement that’s coming from this Governor’s office is startling—to see that they’re not factoring certain budgeting items in, completely ignoring it from start.
“In January, we pointed out there were failures in her proposal failing to include certain budget items. But now we’re seeing that in, specifically this latest debacle where we get an email sent to the wrong place and when we finally are able to see the email, there’s less than two weeks left before the Congregate Care program goes bankrupt. Then, the letter that she emailed states almost as a demand, ‘If this happens, kids will be sleeping in offices.’
“It’s almost as if there’s, first of all, no care, and second, no understanding that she should have let us know early on specifics on where we would need supplementals. So asking the question, is this a level mal-intent or incompetence?
“This is sheer incompetence in mismanagement of budgets, not understanding how to manage a budget, and when you’re talking about kids and the most vulnerable individuals in the state, it’s gross incompetence. Arizonans deserve better.”
Asked about the possible perception of the Ad Hoc Committee as having a political intent, Montenegro answered bluntly, “There are no games here. I haven’t even sat to consider politics in this subject. When we receive a letter, when our team receives a letter that kids are going to be sleeping in offices, there’s a certain level of indignation that I can’t ignore, especially when you’re saying kids will be sleeping in offices. And then we find out that the reasoning is because we can’t manage a budget.“
When asked about the potential intent of the Governor, Montenegro was equally direct:
“When we’re talking about kids here, I don’t care about the politics. What we do care about is making sure that these kids are taken care of and holding this Governor accountable because it’s gotten to a point now that we can’t ignore it. We genuinely can’t ignore the fact that we’ve got kids that are gonna be affected.
“We’ve got a Governor that decided to raise rates on the same program earlier this year. We know there’s an ongoing investigation, so we’re not gonna get in the middle of the investigation by Kris Mayes or Rachel Mitchell, County Attorney, or even others higher.
“But we want to find out, we want to get to the bottom of the budget mismanagement so that as we proceed forward in how we make sure these kids are taken care of and these vulnerable communities are taken care of, that from the legislature’s perspective, we’re putting safeguards and ending up some reforms that don’t allow the Governor’s incompetence to hurt these kids.”
Asked what recourse the House will have against a recalcitrant Governor, Montenegro answered, “Well, to start, that is why we’ve had our Appropriations Committee from the beginning asking the questions. Right now, the Governor refuses to give us access to her staff, to her policy advisors, to the people that know the numbers in these agencies. She refuses to make them accessible for us to talk to them, to understand where these numbers are.
“So what we’re doing is, we’re going to turn up the heat on holding her accountable. The Ad Hoc committee is formed to say, ‘Look, for weeks, we’ve been asking for your staff to sit down with our policy advisors on the numbers, on finding out where things are.’
“We get a letter two weeks out. We have been asking for weeks to sit down with them for numbers, to understand where these are. So, the whole purpose of this is now to take a deep dive in understanding where these numbers are so that Republicans can execute our plan. We are going to make sure that she’s using funds from her executive budget to fulfill these needs. And we’re going to make sure that, as we start stepping into the budget, we have the right reforms and we have the right safeguards for these kids.”
Referring back to the work of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee, he added, “If you go back and see the JLBC committee hearing that we had, that’s a preview of what we expect to happen with this Ad Hoc Committee on Executive Budget Mismanagement that I put together.
“Because by forcing them to come to talk to us, to finally get somebody to speak, which I’ve told you before, she’s been preventing her staff from coming to speak with our staff about numbers. But by her folks having to come to the committee, we’ve learned a lot, specifically, by learning how they’re mismanaging DCS. We’ve learned a lot, and the goal is through the Ad Hoc to expose the rest of what’s happening in other areas of either DCS, or DDD, or in general DHS on the mismanagement.“
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 Jonathan Eberle | Apr 5, 2025 | Education, News
By Jonathan Eberle |
Arizona lawmakers have passed SB 1437, a bill aimed at increasing accountability for school employees and officials who fail to report sexual misconduct involving students. The bill, which received bipartisan support, now awaits Governor Katie Hobbs’ signature.
Sponsored by Arizona Senator Carine Werner (R-LD4), SB 1437 expands the list of mandatory reporters for cases of sexual misconduct in schools. Under the proposed law, school district governing board members, charter school governing body members, substitute teachers, and school safety officers will be legally required to report any incidents of sexual misconduct by school employees to law enforcement.
The bill was introduced in response to multiple cases of abuse that came to light during Werner’s tenure as a governing board member. Advocates argue that strengthening reporting requirements will close existing loopholes and help prevent potential predators from evading accountability.
SB1437 received bipartisan backing in the Arizona Legislature, with supporters emphasizing the need to ensure student safety and hold perpetrators accountable.
“It is imperative that we work together to protect children and take action against sexual predators who are abusing their trusted positions and flying under the radar in schools,” said Senator Werner. “Parents should be able to have confidence in knowing there are safeguards in place to prevent this abuse from happening.”
Supporters argue that increasing the number of mandatory reporters will deter potential misconduct and ensure swift action against offenders. The bill also reinforces Arizona’s commitment to child protection policies in schools.
“Not only does justice need to be served for inflicting life-altering acts on children, but parents should be able to have confidence in knowing when they send their child to school, there are safeguards in place to prevent this abuse from happening,” Senator Werner continued. “This bill, passing with bipartisan support, serves as a force-multiplier to ensure cases of sexual misconduct against children are reported. I applaud my colleagues in both chambers for getting this bill to the finish line. The people of Arizona are relying on us to implement laws to better protect our most vulnerable communities, and there’s no better way to deliver on this promise, than for the governor to sign this bill and support the effort.”
With the bill approved by both chambers of the legislature, it moves to Governor Hobbs’ desk for final consideration. If signed into law, Arizona will join other states that have recently strengthened mandatory reporting laws in response to concerns over child safety in educational settings.
The passage of SB 1437 underscores Arizona’s ongoing efforts to enhance protections for students and ensure greater accountability among those responsible for their well-being. The law would reinforce existing safeguards while signaling a tougher stance on preventing and addressing sexual misconduct in schools.
For further updates, stakeholders and the public are encouraged to follow legislative announcements and Governor Hobbs’ decision on the bill in the coming days.
Jonathan Eberle is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Matthew Holloway | Apr 5, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
This week, Governor Katie Hobbs issued a directive to all of her agency directors not to appear or testify at the inaugural hearing of the Arizona House Ad Hoc Committee on Executive Budget Mismanagement. Hobbs issued the directive 15 minutes prior to the start of the meeting. Democrats on the committee also refused to attend.
According to Committee Chairman Matt Gress (R-LD4), agency leaders from AHCCCS and the Department of Economic Security (DES), who share responsibility for the $122 million shortfall in Arizona’s Developmental Disabilities (DD) program, were scheduled to appear before the committee and answer for the program’s massive cost overruns that have threatened to disrupt critical services for Arizona families.
Gress said in a statement, “The Governor pulled her directors because she can’t defend the damage she’s done. If she had a plan, she would have sent her team to explain it. Instead, she’s hiding behind a press release while Arizona families face the consequences of her financial mismanagement. This Legislature asked for answers. The Governor responded with a tantrum. What she calls a ‘political stunt’ is actually legislative oversight—a constitutional duty that we will carry out whether she likes it or not.”
In the press release referred to by Gress, Hobbs and Democratic House Assistant Leader Nancy Gutierrez claimed the “Ad Hoc committee is a waste of time and a shameless political stunt,” and derided it as a “sham,” demanding instead that the legislature issue a supplemental budget bill to cover the shortfall.
Despite the conspicuous absence of Democrat members of the committee, the hearing went forward with the Republican members reviewing budgetary data, testimony from the Joint Legislative Budget committee, and expert testimony from former Idaho House Majority Leader Megan Blanksma, whose state suffered what Gress’ office called “a near-identical funding crisis.”
The committee issued its formally adopted findings, naming the Hobbs administration accountable for:
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“Without approval from the Legislature or specific appropriation authority, dramatically expanded its Developmental Disability program by making permanent a temporary, COVID-era program to pay parents to provide attendant and habilitative care to their minor children.”
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“The programmatic and scope changes of the DD program adopted by AHCCCS and implemented by DES led to dramatic unfunded liabilities, threatening the entire DD program and leaving the state with at least a $122 million budget deficit in FY2025.”
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“Through its Medicaid agency at AHCCCS, put the Department of Economic Security under legal threat with a November 2023 Corrective Action Plan, which aimed to grant parents 2 additional hours for care under the PPCG program, which was at odds with the ’extraordinary care’ standards and dramatically expanded costs to the state.”
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“AHCCCS delayed implementation of guardrails on the PPCG program by over 18 months, despite its original plan submitted to the Federal CMS in August 2023, causing considerable cost overruns and unrealistic expectations for families.”
The committee further found that “The critical nature of the Developmental Disabilities program and its pending exhaustion of funds requires that the Executive identify available federal funds, and the Legislature will work to identify transfers of other available funds, in the month of April, to continue the program.”
It also added that “the State Legislature must receive annual reports from the executive administration identifying all federal funds received and an exit plan should those federal funds be eliminated.”
In a statement following the hearing, Gress addressed the Democrats’ absence and Hobbs’ order for her agency directors not to attend.
“Fifteen minutes before the committee hearing began, I received a letter from Governor Hobbs criticizing legislative intent on providing oversight and learning exactly what happened. Now this is a pattern and a practice of Governor Hobbs. She fails to even acknowledge who’s responsible for this problem. Instead, it’s deflection and trying to scare families who rely on the DD services for their loved ones.
“We will not be deterred. Her unhinged, chaotic letter falls far below the standard that Arizonans expect of their leaders. We will continue to find the facts. We will be the adults in the room to provide a supplemental appropriation, and we will ensure that there are guardrails put in place so that this never happens again.
“Let me be very clear, we will not pass a financially irresponsible supplemental. It will include the reforms necessary to protect families who rely on DD for their loved ones. We demand accountability and transparency, and it’s going to happen soon.”
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 | Apr 3, 2025 | News
By Staff Reporter |
On Monday, Arizona lawmakers joined activists in hosting an anti-deportation discussion panel at South Mountain Community College.
The event, “Resisting Mass Deportation,” featured State Senator Catherine Miranda (D-LD11) and State Representative Brian Garcia (D-LD08) along with American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Arizona executive director Victoria Lopez, Living United for Change in Arizona (LUCHA) Arizona members, and Arizona Luminaria staff writer John Washington (also the author of the books “The Dispossessed: A Story of Asylum at the US-Mexico Border and Beyond” and “The Case for Open Borders”).
The ACLU of Arizona and LUCHA Arizona arranged the panel.
“Trump’s mass deportation agenda has oversaturated the news. His administration is pushing the moral and legal bounds of our country to expedite deportations, disregarding people’s rights and humanity in the process,” read the ACLU event page. “At the same time, the Arizona state legislature is advancing several bills that would force our state to do the anti-immigrant bidding of the federal government, use state resources to fuel the mass deportation machine, incentivize police to prioritize immigration enforcement over public safety, and more.”
A press release from the ACLU described the panel as a means of organizing “to take direct action to stop anti-immigrant legislation advancing in the state legislature.”
One such bill of concern for the anti-deportation faction is SB1164, the “Arizona ICE Act.”
The Arizona ICE Act would enable officials or agencies of Arizona or a county, city, town, or other political subdivision to enter into agreements with any federal agency for the purpose of enforcing federal immigration laws. The legislation would also prohibit officials or agencies of Arizona as well as counties, cities, towns, or other political subdivisions from establishing, adopting, or enforcing “any policy, pattern, or practice” that hinders cooperation with federal immigration authorities in immigration enforcement. SB1164 also allowed local governments to access federal resources and state agencies to issue grants for purposes of immigration enforcement.
The House Government Committee passed the Arizona ICE Act last week.
Miranda, who co-chairs the Latino Legislative Caucus, spoke out against the bill recently. She claimed the bill would only “worsen public safety.” Miranda expressed confidence in Governor Katie Hobbs’ intent to veto the bill.
“Arizona knows from experience that encouraging local agencies to engage in federal immigration enforcement will lead to racial profiling and discrimination, particularly against Hispanic, Latino, and other immigrant communities,” said Miranda.
Hobbs’ lack of support for the bill would conflict with her recent pledge last month to secure the border and reduce illegal immigration. Hobbs issued an executive order reminiscent of her predecessor, Doug Ducey, which directed the Arizona Department of Public Safety and Arizona Department of Homeland Security to create a joint task force, Operation Desert Guardian, to expand border security. The task force partners with the federal government and local law enforcement to stop transnational crime organizations within the border counties.
Under the Trump administration, border encounters dropped by over 90 percent and drug smuggling has slowed tremendously. Cochise County Sheriff Mark Dannels confirmed as such in a recent interview with KTAR News.
“Whether you like Trump or not, it’s irrelevant. It’s working,” said Dannels.
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
by Jonathan Eberle | Apr 2, 2025 | News
By Jonathan Eberle |
Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs has vetoed SB1119, a piece of bipartisan legislation aimed at prioritizing affordable and reliable utility services for Arizonans. The bill, sponsored by Senator Tim Dunn (R-LD25), sought to direct the Residential Utility Consumer Office (RUCO) to focus exclusively on minimizing utility rates rather than considering environmental policies that could contribute to higher costs.
In a press release following the veto, Senator Dunn criticized the decision, arguing that it would negatively impact consumers already struggling with rising costs. “SB 1119 would have required the Residential Utility Consumer Office to focus its efforts on fighting for the safest and most reliable utility service achievable at the lowest retail rate possible, instead of prioritizing any costly radical environmentalist agendas,” Dunn stated. He went on to say that the veto was “short-sighted” and would ultimately burden Arizona residents.
Utility costs have been a growing concern for Arizona residents, particularly in the wake of inflation and increased energy demand. The state’s energy policies have often been a point of contention, with debates centering around balancing affordability with sustainability. RUCO, an independent agency that represents residential utility customers, currently considers multiple factors when making policy recommendations.
Supporters of SB 1119 argued that the bill would have strengthened consumer protections by ensuring that RUCO prioritized affordability above all else. The veto is expected to spark further discussions among lawmakers and stakeholders on how to bring more affordable utility rates to Arizonans. As the state continues to grapple with rising utility costs, future legislative efforts may seek to address the concerns raised by both proponents and critics of SB 1119.
Jonathan Eberle is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
