by Staff Reporter | Dec 11, 2024 | News
By Staff Reporter |
Maricopa County Republicans no longer wish to challenge the voter-approved transportation sales tax.
The Maricopa County Republican Committee (MCRC) filed a motion to dismiss their lawsuit against Proposition 479 on Sunday.
The attorney for MCRC’s lawsuit, Bryan Blehm, filed the motion to dismiss on behalf of plaintiffs Craig Berland (chairman) and Shelby Busch (first vice-chairman).
Proposition 479 was styled as a continuation of a half-cent sales tax first established in 1985 and last renewed in 2004. The tax revenue funds Maricopa County infrastructure and will last until 2045.
Just short of 60 percent of voters passed Proposition 479. Polling months ahead of the election indicated this to be the case. The proposition came out of a Senate bill advanced by Republican leadership in both legislative chambers, SB 1102, which Senate President Warren Petersen hailed as “the most conservative transportation plan” in Arizona history.
Not all Republican leaders agreed. Arizona Freedom Caucus members expressed opposition to the Senate bill, as did the “conservative watchdog groups” they referenced.
“[This proposition is] a massive win for Hobbs and the Democrats,” said caucus member State Representative Justin Heap.
The Arizona Free Enterprise Club and Goldwater Institute also opposed Prop 479. The two entities claimed in remarks of opposition submitted to the county that the proposition would mostly fund transit.
Per the Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG), 40 percent of the sales tax revenues is slated for the construction of freeways and highways, 22 percent for arterial roads and regional transportation infrastructure, and 37 percent for transit.
Democratic leadership at all levels stood in support of the proposition’s passage and opposition to the MCRC lawsuit, from Governor Katie Hobbs to Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego.
MAG Regional Council also joined the county to argue for dismissal of the lawsuit. Kevin Hartke, MAG chairman and Chandler mayor, said in a statement to InMaricopa that the lawsuit went against the majority of voters and their desire for transportation funding.
“We won’t let a flawed claim stand in the way of our 40-year legacy of building one of the best transportation systems in the country,” said Hartke. “The transportation plan unanimously approved by the region’s elected leadership, sent to the ballot by the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors and overwhelmingly approved by the voters of Maricopa County, is critical to the quality of life of our residents and the continued strength of our local economy.”
MAG predicts the tax will generate up to $15 billion in revenue (using 2020 dollars) and slash commute length to an average of 30 minutes through 2050, even with an estimated influx of 1.7 million residents and 900,000 jobs.
MAG Executive Director Ed Zuercher indicated that county officials weren’t going to cease moving forward with their transportation plan, even if the lawsuit had progressed.
“The regional transportation plan that was unanimously approved by MAG’s mayors, tribal and county leaders, and supported by business leaders and the voters, will be implemented on schedule,” said Zuercher.
In reporting from last week, Arizona’s general contractors also sided with the efforts to protect the sales tax. The Arizona Chapter of Associated General Contractors of America had criticized MCRC’s lawsuit as “frivolous” and based on political contentions advanced by “disgruntled partisans.”
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
by Staff Reporter | Dec 7, 2024 | News
By Staff Reporter |
Arizona’s unified organization of general contractors are in opposition to a lawsuit by local Republican Party leaders over the voter-approved sales tax that, ultimately, benefits them.
The Arizona Chapter of the Associated General Contractors of America (AZAGC) said in a press release that the latest lawsuit from the Maricopa County Republican Committee (MCRC) challenging the passage of Proposition 479 was a “frivolous” action undertaken by “disgruntled partisans.”
Prop 479 continued an existing .05 cent sales tax, revenues which fund Maricopa County’s infrastructure and, naturally, the general contractors that build it. MCRC filed suit on Monday in the Maricopa County Superior Court.
MCRC argued against the claim that Prop 479 amounts to a mere continuation of the state’s decades-old sales tax. In their lawsuit, MCRC argued that the proposition instills a new tax for new projects. What’s more, the committee argued that the proposition didn’t pass the 60 percent voter threshold needed for a new tax.
The measure gained 59.82 percent of the vote (out of two million voters); the measure was approved with 80 percent turnout.
Voters first established the half-cent tax in 1985 and last renewed it in 2004. The tax extends through 2045 under the proposition, which established a 20-year continuation. Maricopa County Association of Governments (MAG) estimated generated revenues to amount to $15 billion under 2020 dollars.
40 percent of the sales tax revenues go to freeways and highways, 22 percent go to arterial roads and regional transportation infrastructure, and 37 percent go to transit.
MAG further estimated that funds generated under the tax would allow for infrastructure that would keep the average commute length at 30 minutes through 2050, even after adding 1.7 million residents and 900,000 jobs.
Prop 479’s investment plan concerns reducing the average afternoon commute by one-third and reducing congestion by 51,000 hours on critical freight corridors daily. It also concerns increasing the number of amenities within a 30-minute drive by 12 percent, creating $2.4 billion in net new economic activity per year, saving local businesses $1.6 billion per year in travel time savings, and creating and supporting 31,600 jobs annually.
AZAGC President David Martin predicted the courts would dismiss the lawsuit before it gained any ground, but not soon enough to mitigate the damages of unnecessary costs to taxpayers. Martin avoided mention of the fiscal opportunities that contractors stand to make with the success of Prop 479.
“It’s clear this frivolous lawsuit has no merit and will eventually be thrown out by the courts” said Martin. “It’s hypocritical that these ‘conservatives’ insist on having tax dollars wasted defending a lawsuit that clearly will not stand up in the courts.
AZAGC claimed in its press release that the .05 cent sales tax is necessary because all benefit from county infrastructure, including MCRC members.
“The roads in Maricopa County are funded by the ½ cent sales tax as well as other taxes. Members of the MCRC use these roads to get to and from work, take their kids to school and go to the grocery store,” said the press release. “Instead of paying their fair share for public streets, members of the MCRC would rather have drivers stuck in traffic away from their families and pay exorbitant maintenance costs for damage caused by potholes.”
Among those siding with AZAGC were top Democratic leaders like Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego. The mayor also issued a statement on the matter, adopting similar language to AZAGC in denouncing the MCRC lawsuit as “malignant,” “deeply flawed,” and “misguided.”
“Maricopa County voters overwhelmingly passed Prop 479 because they understand that a strong transportation system isn’t political—it’s critical to our future,” said Gallego.
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
by Corinne Murdock | Jul 11, 2023 | News
By Corinne Murdock |
Multiple Arizona GOP groups deny involvement in an event featuring controversial right-wing speaker Nick Fuentes that purported to have their sponsorship.
The event, hosted by the Arizona chapter of College Republicans United (CRU), claimed support for the event from the Maricopa County Republican Committee (MCRC), the Maricopa County GOP, Yavapai County GOP, Pima County GOP, expelled State Rep. Liz Harris, State Rep. John Fillmore (R-LD16), Prescott chapter of the John Birch Society, and Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America.
The MCRC stated that it had never authorized, sponsored, or promoted the event in question.
The other featured guest speaker — the January 6 prisoner Jake Angeli-Chansley, more widely known as the American Shaman — also spoke out. Angeli-Chansley claimed that while he accepted the invitation to speak, he wasn’t made aware of Fuentes’ invitation.
“When I agreed to speak at the AZ College Republicans United event I was not aware that I’d be sharing the stage with someone who wants a 16 year old wife,” said Angeli-Chansley. “Should I back out? Or should I do the event & blow this schmuck out of the water & expose a false prophet?”
State Rep. Alexander Kolodin (R-LD03) debunked the several GOP groups’ endorsement of the event after speaking with the groups about their alleged support.
“The GOP Committees I have spoken to were surprised to hear about it!” wrote Kolodin. “Whoever is doing this should be treated as a saboteur!”
MCRC Chairman Craig Berland also disputed involvement of MCRC or the Maricopa County GOP in a press release.
Former State Rep. and Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) leader Adam Kwasman reported that the Pima County GOP denied involvement or support as well.
The GOP group issued their own statement later through Chairman Dave Smith.
“The Pima County Republican Party never authorized nor agreed to sponsor or promote, the Arizona College Republicans United event billed for July 30, 2023,” stated the Pima County GOP. “The Pima County Republican Party holds true to the values of the Republican Party, upholds the principles of the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the Declaration of Independence, the laws of the state of Arizona and that of our country.”
In response to the backlash, CRU stated that they “love Messianic Jews and all ethnicities who accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.” As of press time, they haven’t followed up their original event announcement with clarification on their inclusion of the GOP groups that dispute their involvement in the event.
Fuentes has advocated for the expulsion of Jewish people from the U.S., and repeatedly pledged his love for Adolf Hitler.
The contested event is part of CRU’s second state and national convention taking place in Prescott.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
by Corinne Murdock | Aug 27, 2022 | News
By Corinne Murdock |
Maricopa County reportedly failed to record one of their unstaffed drop boxes for at least three weeks.
The Maricopa County Republican Committee (MCRC) discovered the error after they requested the video feed for two drop boxes late last month. In response to the request, the county reportedly discovered that they failed to record the unstaffed drop box located at the Maricopa County Juvenile Court. The county reportedly began to record the drop box the day after the MCRC request, on July 28.
MCRC explained in a Saturday press release that the county delayed their request and responded with the wrong video feed initially before admitting that they never recorded the footage due to “a glitch or human error.” They asserted that this mistake only worsened GOP voters’ sentiments about drop boxes.
“Maricopa County Republicans do not trust drop boxes. We have very serious concerns about unstaffed drop boxes. However, we have grave concerns about unstaffed and unmonitored drop boxes where the lack of video recording goes unnoticed for 3 weeks,” said MCRC.
The county confirmed to MCRC that the drop box footage was live-streamed — just not recorded for subsequent review.
MCRC requested that the county decommission the drop box’s further use for the upcoming November election.
MCRC said that the footage of the other drop box, located at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center (MCTEC), contained no concerning issues.
AZ Free News reached out to the Maricopa County Elections Department multiple times for comment concerning the error. They didn’t offer comment or an explanation by press time.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
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