by Staff Reporter | Feb 6, 2026 | News
By Staff Reporter |
Republican lawmakers in the Arizona House are continuing their investigation into Gov. Katie Hobbs over an alleged pay-to-play scheme.
On Monday, House Speaker Steve Montenegro (R-LD29) announced the House advisory team obtained outside counsel from out of state to investigate the connection between Hobbs and a Glendale group home, Sunshine Residential Homes, independently.
Montenegro said in a statement that the connection between the governor and the group home constituted special treatment derived directly from political donations. The lawmaker said that the addition of outside counsel was necessary to achieve the full independence an investigation of this significance needed.
“The advisory team has done serious, disciplined work, and their recommendation to bring in independent counsel is the right next step,” said Montenegro. “The House will not look the other way when taxpayer dollars and vulnerable children may have been used as leverage in a political scheme. We will follow the facts, consider the findings, and ensure transparency and accountability in state government. Arizonans deserve nothing less.”
The outside counsel is Justin Smith with the Missouri-based James Otis Law Group. The law group was founded by Trump’s solicitor general, D. John Sauer.
Smith is the listed counsel in President Donald Trump’s lawsuit against a woman, E. Jean Carroll, alleging battery and defamation. Carroll sued Trump for defamation after he publicly denied her 2019 claims of him sexually assaulting her in the 1990s.
That petition is before the Supreme Court.
According to Montenegro, Smith will conduct records review and interviews. All findings will go directly to the advisory team and House leadership.
Advisory team members are State Reps. Selina Bliss (R-LD1), David Livingston (R-LD28), Matt Gress (R-LD4), Quang Nguyen (R-LD1), and Neal Carter (R-LD15).
Last November, that advisory team was created to follow up on 2024 media reporting alleging the pay-to-play scheme within the Arizona Department of Child Safety under Hobbs’ direction.
In the summer of 2024, the Arizona Republic reported that Sunshine Residential Homes received a unique 30% rate increase following a donation exceeding $400,000 to Hobbs and the Arizona Democratic Party.
Much of 2024 was spent attempting to determine who, if anyone, was fit to conduct an investigation into the allegations against the governor.
One of the earliest requests came from Republican State Sen. T.J. Shope, who asked Attorney General Kris Mayes to investigate. Mayes complied initially, but was immediately hit with other Republican lawmakers and state leaders asking her to recuse herself due to an alleged conflict of interest.
State Rep. Matt Gress asked Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell and Auditor General Lindsey Perry to investigate.
All three leaders are investigating. Mitchell and Perry are coordinating on one investigation, while Mayes will conduct her own investigation.
As reported last November, the work of the House’s advisory team will coordinate with these parallel investigations by the auditor general and county attorney, and the attorney general.
In February 2024, Sunshine Residential Homes owners Elizabeth and Simon Kottoor maxed out their donations to Hobbs’ reelection campaign. Each gave the maximum $5,400 contribution amount.
In October 2022, the Kottoors gave Hobbs’ initial gubernatorial campaign $10,000.
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by Ethan Faverino | Feb 3, 2026 | News
By Ethan Faverino |
Congressman Abe Hamadeh (R-AZ-08) issued a strong condemnation of Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes’ recent comments that appear to justify violence against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents under the state’s “Stand your Ground” law.
Hamadeh described Mayes’s remarks as “reprehensible but entirely predictable,” attributing them to the consequences of placing a “far-left political activist” in the state’s top law enforcement role.
The controversy stems from an interview Mayes gave to 12News anchor Brahm Resnik, where she warned that Arizona’s self-defense laws could lead to a “recipe for disaster” in potential clashes between residents and federal immigration officers.
According to the interview, Mayes suggested that residents could open fire on masked ICE agents if they believe their life is in imminent danger, citing the state’s “Stand Your Ground” law, which permits the use of deadly force in self-defense on one’s property.
“It’s kind of a recipe for disaster because you have these masked federal officers with very little identification, sometimes no identification, wearing plain clothes and masks,” Mayes said during the interview.
She further described ICE agents as “very poorly trained” and emphasized, “We have a Stand Your Ground law that says that if you reasonably believe that your life is in danger and you’re in your house or your car or on your property, that you can defend yourself with lethal force.”
When Resnik sought clarification, asking, “But to be clear, you’re not telling folks you have a ‘license’ if you are threatened, to shoot a peace officer,” Mayes responded, “No, but if you are being attacked by someone who is not identified as a peace officer, how do you know? If somebody comes at me wearing a mask, and I am a gun owner, and I can’t tell whether they are a police officer, what am I supposed to do?”
Hamadeh highlighted that Arizona’s “Stand Your Ground” law does not permit the use of deadly force against law enforcement officers acting in the line of duty.
In the interview, Mayes also vowed to hold federal agents accountable, stating, “We are watching you. If you violate an Arizona law, I will prosecute you.”
Mayes’ office has launched a new webpage encouraging the public to report alleged misconduct by federal agents, including submitting videos and images. “We are encouraging people to send us their videos, and they have every right under the First Amendment to record those videos,” she added.
Congressman Andy Biggs (R-AZ05) blasted Mayes and Governor Katie Hobbs on X.
“It took nearly a week for @katiehobbs to comment on Kris Mayes’ horrendous remarks about shooting ICE agents. Shameful. That’s not leadership and it’s certainly not someone who supports our law enforcement. Arizonans know it shouldn’t take days to speak up for public safety heroes.”
U.S. Rep. David Schweikert (R-AZ-01) echoed concern, blasting only Mayes’ rhetoric as “reckless” in a post on X. “Let’s not pretend this was some careful legal seminar,” Schweikert wrote. “This was the attorney general of Arizona freelancing a scenario where bullets start flying and then shrugging it off as ‘just the law.’ That is reckless on its face. If your job is to enforce the law, you do not go on TV and hand out a permission structure for violence, then act surprised when people hear it as a green light. Words matter. Especially when they come from the state’s top lawyer.”
Ethan Faverino is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Staff Reporter | Feb 2, 2026 | News
By Staff Reporter |
The Republican majority at the Arizona House and Senate are advancing legislation to ensure full income tax conformity.
The state remains without conformity since Gov. Katie Hobbs rejected a solution by the Republican-led legislature amounting to $1.1 billion. Republicans are trying to bring another solution to the table with HB 2785. It’s unclear if Hobbs will pull up a seat for it.
Earlier this month, Hobbs vetoed legislation that would have aligned Arizona tax code with many of the congressional changes passed last summer under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
The governor accused Republicans of giving tax breaks to special interests and increasing taxes on working senior citizens. Hobbs said she would only agree to the Democratic minority’s Middle Class Tax Cuts Package.
“I urge you to rethink your partisan political theater and send the Middle Class Tax Cuts Package to my desk,” said Hobbs. “We should not hold tax cuts for over 88 percent of Arizonans hostage in order to force through tax breaks for special interests. Other questions of tax conformity must be decided through budget negotiations, following the precedent set by Governor Ducey.”
Unfortunately for the governor, the Arizona Department of Revenue (ADOR) had already advised Arizonans on how to file under federal tax law changes.
Several days before the governor issued her veto, ADOR notified lawmakers of the impossibility of altering their forms during the filing season. This latest bill from Republicans would codify ADOR’s instructions to taxpayers. Senate Finance Committee Chairman J.D. Mesnard (R-LD13) said the bill wasn’t the preferred approach since it wouldn’t provide as much relief to working families.
“The Department of Revenue has already told taxpayers how to file, and we are compelled to make sure the law and that guidance align, especially since the Department has publicly advised taxpayers not to wait to file,” said Mesnard. “Doing nothing would only guarantee more confusion and force families and businesses to fix the government’s mistakes later. We will never support a plan that requires taxpayers to amend their returns because state leaders failed to act when it mattered. It would be completely unjust.”
Without conformity, Arizonans have no way of knowing the accuracy of their filings. It’s likely taxpayers will need to refile, and even possibly pay more than they are prepared to pay.
House Speaker Steve Montenegro (R-LD29) said Hobbs was to blame for the present burden of impossible compliance facing Arizona taxpayers. The speaker said the governor has refused to communicate further with Republican leadership on conformity.
“Arizona taxpayers are being asked to file on forms that do not clearly match state law, while the Governor offers no answers and no alternative plan,” said Montenegro. “We asked for clarification privately. We asked publicly. We sent a detailed letter. We received silence. With tax season underway, waiting is not an option. This legislation exists because executive inaction left taxpayers exposed, and the Legislature has a responsibility to step in and restore clarity.”
Senate President Warren Petersen (R-LD14) said it was Hobbs’ agency that introduced the deductive provisions for wealthier filers to which she objected.
“It’s unfortunate the Governor has chosen not to work with us. The Legislature is stepping in to provide certainty by conforming state law to the tax forms her DOR has already released, including the State and Local Tax Deduction,” said Petersen. “The Governor would call that provision a tax break for the rich. We do not support the SALT deduction, but her agency has already included it on the forms, leaving the Legislature no choice but to address it. Tax reform was meant to make filing simpler and more predictable, not create confusion, anger, and frustration for Arizona taxpayers.”
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
by Staff Reporter | Feb 1, 2026 | Education, News
By Staff Reporter |
Arizona Senate Republicans are refusing to let a parental rights bill die under Gov. Katie Hobbs’ heavily-used veto pen.
Senate Republican leadership revived the legislation through a concurrent resolution, passed out of committee on Wednesday. This legislative pathway allows the slim Republican majority to avoid another inevitable veto from the governor.
SCR 1006 from Senate Majority Leader John Kavanagh (R-LD3) directly challenges the supremacy of transgender-affirming policies and practices within schools.
“Parents have a fundamental right to know what’s happening with their kids at school, and students deserve privacy and safety. No 14-year-old girl should be forced to stand naked in a shower with an 18-year-old man who thinks he’s a girl,” said Kavanagh. “Families shouldn’t be sidelined, and schools shouldn’t be forced into confusion. This reflects what most Arizonans already believe, and it gives them the final say.”
If passed, the resolution would have voters decide whether to require schools to obtain parental permission prior to engaging in transgender-affirming behaviors: referring to a minor student by a name other than the one listed on school records, or referring to a minor student using pronouns that differ from that student’s biological sex.
Voters would also decide whether public schools must provide reasonable accommodations: access to a single-occupancy or employee restroom or changing facility for any individual unwilling to use the facility designated for their biological sex.
Lastly, voters would decide whether individuals could sue public schools for subjecting them to transgender-affirming policies, such as encountering an individual of the opposite sex in a restroom or changing facility designated for their biological sex, or being required to share sleeping quarters with a person of the opposite sex.
Gov. Hobbs vetoed two bills that contained these legislative provisions last year (SB 1002 and SB 1003). In identical letters, Hobbs said the state had more pressing matters than asserting parental rights over transgenderism within schools.
“[These] bill[s] will not increase opportunity, security, or freedom for Arizonans. I encourage the legislature to join with me in prioritizing legislation that will lower costs, protect the border, create jobs, and secure our water future,” said Hobbs.
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
by AZ Free Enterprise Club | Jan 31, 2026 | Opinion
By the Arizona Free Enterprise Club |
For years, the Left has been working tirelessly to flip Arizona blue. Armed with a secret network of tax-advantaged funds, political nonprofits, and union dollars, their aim has been to turn our beloved, freedom-loving state into the next Colorado or California. In fact, many groups on the Left waged high stakes to flip Republicans’ paper-thin control of the state legislature in 2024.
And how did that turn out? A historic landslide victory for President Trump while the Left actually lost ground in Arizona’s legislature. Apparently funneling millions of dollars to liberal causes doesn’t make up for bad ideas.
Now, with the 2026 midterm election a little over nine months away, the latest voter registration numbers are in, and they show an encouraging trend. Republicans have expanded their registration advantage over Democrats to 7.64%—the largest lead in state history—while Democrats continue their free fall in party registration.
Even more impressive is that these gains are not isolated to a few particular areas of our state. Every single county in Arizona has become MORE Republican since the 2024 election. That’s right. In the counties where Democrats have larger voter registration numbers than Republicans, the gap has closed. And in counties where Republicans have larger voter registration numbers than Democrats, the gap has widened. In fact, the gap between registered Republicans and Democrats in Maricopa County has increased by more than half a percent in just the past year.
Yet perhaps the most surprising trend behind this growing Republican advantage is that while Republicans have been able to register a lot of new voters, the same cannot be said for the Democrats…
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