by Daniel Stefanski | Nov 10, 2023 | News
By Daniel Stefanski |
Two Arizona legislators are proposing changes to the state’s hospital.
Last week, Senators Catherine Miranda and T.J. Shope wrote an opinion piece for the Arizona Republic with their legislative recommendations to improve the Arizona State Hospital over the next session.
The bipartisan duo revealed that their thoughts stem from concerns “about shortcomings in Arizona’s behavioral health system, especially the system of care for folks with a serious mental illness.” There were three areas that the lawmakers identified for change, which were “better oversight and governance of the Arizona State Hospital, improved community reintegration resources, and more secure residential treatment options.”
In their article, Miranda and Shope telegraphed their legislative proposals for all three areas. For ‘oversight,’ the two made the case that the setup for the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) running and regulating the state hospital is “flawed, and that the Legislature should split up the two to improve the oversight and care for patients. The senators hope to make this happen by ensuring that “the superintendent of the facility would report to an independent, appointed governing body composed of people with experience overseeing complex psychiatric facilities.”
For ‘reintegration,’ Miranda and Shope proposed the development of “a small ‘community reintegration’ unit to serve as a transitional unit for patients who are approaching discharge from the state hospital but who still need structured care.” This proposal was already identified as a “critical gap” by the state’s hospital in its Clinical Improvement Plan.
For ‘facilities,’ Miranda and Shope discussed the need for “persons with serious mental illnesses” to have “safe places to receive treatment with more structure and better qualified staff than are available in existing residential behavioral health group homes.” The senators asserted that former-Governor Doug Ducey’s final budget “included funds to build three such secure residential treatment facilities, including funding to staff them,” but that “those funds were swept out of the current budget.”
Senators Miranda and Shope won’t have to wait long to start the engine on their recommendations to change the Arizona State Hospital with the first day of the new legislative session around two months away.
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Daniel Stefanski | Sep 18, 2023 | News
By Daniel Stefanski |
The 2023 Super Bowl may be long over, but political fallout is continuing into the start of the next football season.
On Thursday night, veteran Arizona reporter Dennis Welch and one of his colleagues released a story that “according to public records, the Arizona Office of Tourism gifted the Governor’s Office twelve tickets (to the Super Bowl)” and that “members of Hobbs’ staff used the remaining half dozen… worth tens of thousands of dollars.”
Two of the six Hobbs’ staffers who reportedly received tickets to the Super Bowl in Glendale, Arizona are no longer with the office, having departed earlier this year.
The Arizona’s Family journalists shared the existence of A.R.S. 41-1232.08, which bars “elected officials and public servants from accepting (the free tickets).” The statute reads, “A state officer or state employee shall not accept an expenditure or single expenditure for entertainment from a principal, designated lobbyist, authorized lobbyist, lobbyist for compensation, public body, designated public lobbyist or authorized public lobbyist or any other person acting on that person’s behalf.”
Republican legislators were quick to react to the breaking news, The Arizona Freedom Caucus posted, “Corruption in Governor Hobbs’ administration! Katie Hobbs’ staff accepted free Super Bowl tickets estimated to cost $7,000 per ticket. AZ has laws that make it ILLEGAL for Public Servants and Elected Officials to accept gifts over $25.00 in value. This is flat out corruption.”
Senate President Pro Tempore T.J. Shope wrote, “I purchased my nosebleed seats and these folks go for free in I’m sure way better seats than what I paid for? Cool scam for them eh Dennis Welch? Rules for thee and none for me is the mantra of the Governor Hobbs’ Administration I suppose…”
Freshman Representative Cory McGarr opined, “I’m sure we will see a full Hunter Biden investigation. Nothing to see here.”
Shope also responded to an account that had attempted to argue that the Governor’s Office reported actions were “perks of being in a high office,” saying, “Huh breaking the law is NOT ‘one of the perks’ of being in high office, nor should it be. Why would I want to break the law when I can pay for them honestly. I’m sure that’s difficult to understand for some but being ethical is something three generations of elected Shope’s have had in common. These are the people educating your kids folks…people who think people in high office have a right to break the law.”
In their report, the journalists revealed that “the previous Governor, Doug Ducey, received twenty tickets to the 2015 Super Bowl in Glendale,” and that they were told “Ducey paid face value for his ticket and distributed the remaining tickets to veterans groups.” The journalists added that “at the time, Ducey prohibited his staff from taking free tickets over concerns it was against the law.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Daniel Stefanski | Sep 17, 2023 | News
By Daniel Stefanski |
The crisis at America’s southern border continues to have historic repercussions for Arizona.
On Wednesday, Fox News reporter Bill Melugin revealed that thousands of migrants illegally crossing the southern border into Arizona were being released into border communities. He wrote, “NEW: Per Border Patrol sources, street releases of migrants who crossed illegally are beginning today in the Tucson, AZ sector due to CBP facilities being overcapacity. The Tucson sector alone saw over 2,000 illegal crossings yesterday in a 24 hour span. Mass releases underway.”
Melugin added, “We have a cameraman in the sector right now, where large numbers of single adult men from Africa have been crossing illegally, including many from Senegal. People from all over the world arrive in the Tucson sector.”
The information specific to the Tucson sector followed a report from Melugin the previous day, where he shared the following – “NEW: Per CBP sources, yesterday alone, Border Patrol apprehended over 7,400 illegal immigrants at the southern border, & when combined with CBP ports of entry, there were over 9,100 migrant encounters in one day. I’m told CBP released 5,000+ yesterday w/ a notice to appear. As of this morning, CBP had over 21,000 people in custody.”
NewsNation reporter Ali Bradley also chimed in on the situation on the ground in Arizona, focusing in on the southeastern part of the state. She stated, “Migrants are being released into Cochise County communities right now – Sheriff Mark Dannels confirms the releases are a direct result of over-capacity by CBP. Sheriff Dannels is frustrated with the situation saying, ‘The migrants being released are from outside Cochise County but were bussed to Cochise County, processed and then released. Cochise County is a rural county with limited resources leaving these migrants vulnerable. In short, this lack of humanitarian consideration poses risk for the migrants.”
Members of the Arizona Legislature weighed in on the topic of border security this week. Senators T.J. Shope and Priya Sundareshan debated the issue on social media after Sundareshan reposted a video targeting the Trump administration for environmental abuses and more, writing, “Horrific, permanent destruction of our Sonoran desert treasures, just to hastily and shoddily construct an ineffective barrier and monument to racism.”
Shope responded, “Chair of Dem AZ Senate election effort believes securing our border is ‘monument to racism.’”
Senator Sundareshan retorted, “I think even your side knows that there are ways to use modern technology to achieve border security, instead of this medieval and ineffective approach. But y’all built a wall to prove you were ‘doing something.’”
Shope volleyed, “My side knows an all-of-the-above approach works. Physical barriers, law enforcement officers, and yes, modern technology. Not sure why that’s so hard…”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Corinne Murdock | Sep 2, 2023 | Education, News
By Corinne Murdock |
State Senate President Pro Tempore T.J. Shope (R-LD16) requested an investigation into the Arizona State University (ASU) athletic department.
In a letter to Arizona Board of Regents (ABOR) Chairman Fred DuVal on Wednesday, Shope said that an investigation is warranted into ASU Vice President for University Athletics and Athletics Director Ray Anderson due to years of improprieties and embarrassments.
“Whether looking at the questionable hiring of Mr. Anderson’s friend and former client Herm Edwards as the head football coach, to the multimillion-dollar buyout of Mr. Edwards, to the now self-imposed bowl ban, the raft of improprieties and frankly embarrassing issues that have occurred during Mr. Anderson’s tenure lead one to wonder just what is next and whether anyone is holding anyone accountable,” wrote Shope.
Shope said that student-athletes and coaches have suffered greatly under Anderson’s administration.
“These series of events have become insults to the hardworking student-athletes who are desperate to prove themselves this season, as well as the new coaching staff who are trying to resurrect the program, and ultimately, the Arizonans who wish to take pride in their local universities,” said Shope.
Anderson denied that his office controlled the timing of the Sun Devils’ Sunday announcement of their self-imposed ban over the upcoming bowl, issued five days before the season opener. The ban followed an investigation into allegations that former football coach Herm Edwards had committed multiple recruiting violations.
Back in 2021, The Athletic issued a breaking report that the NCAA was investigating ASU’s football program for hosting high school prospects during the COVID-19 dead period, which lasted from March 2020 to June 2021. That investigation remains ongoing. In a press release announcing the self-imposed bowl ban, Anderson cited the investigation as the reason for their preemptive action.
“In light of the ongoing investigation and our membership obligation to maintain the confidentiality of the matter, we will not be commenting further at this time,” said Anderson.
Shope asked ABOR to look into why ASU paid Edwards $4.4 million in a buyout agreement rather than firing him, and why that buyout, if justified, prompted ASU to wait until this week to impose the bowl ban. Shope also asked ABOR to determine whether ASU intentionally announced the bowl ban after the April 2023 undergraduate transfer portal deadline in order to prevent players from leaving the university.
After Edwards got his ASU buyout, he rejoined ESPN as an NFL and college football analyst.
As noted by Sports Illustrated, ASU issued its self-imposed ban about six weeks after the NCAA Committee on Infractions indicated it would avoid revoking postseason competition for any colleges or universities that break their rules.
The ban also comes several weeks after ASU announced its move to the Big 12 Conference next year, along with University of Arizona and University of Utah. ASU has been part of the Pac-12 Conference since 1978.
Initial celebration over ASU’s move to the Big 12 was promptly clouded by a remark from Anderson that left a bad taste in fellow conferees’ mouths. Anderson said he had no desire to travel to Morgantown, West Virginia for competitions; he later apologized for the remark.
ASU fans and students have also called for Anderson’s firing.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
by Daniel Stefanski | Aug 11, 2023 | News
By Daniel Stefanski |
Arizona’s Democrat Governor is moving ahead with her plans to talk to the state’s utility companies to address the heatwave. This week, Governor Katie Hobbs announced that she had “scheduled a roundtable meeting with utility company leadership for August 18.”
Hobbs plans to use the event to “highlight her administration’s efforts to protect Arizonans during the historic heat wave and discuss actions utilities can take to address future challenges.”
In a statement, Hobbs said, “Extreme heat can be devastating when not properly addressed. That’s why I’m taking action to provide relief through additional resources and collaborating with utilities, local organizations, cities, and county officials. Together, we will keep Arizonans safe through this historic heat wave and ensure our state is prepared for future emergencies.”The governor also revealed that her Office would “provide $50,000 to Valley Interfaith Network for staffing, water, and expanded cooling center service throughout Arizona.”
Hobbs’ announcement followed a controversial letter sent to Arizona utility companies at the end of last month, in which she asked for “written plans outlining how they will protect Arizonans during this devastating heat wave.”
The governor directed the utility companies to focus their plans on the areas of Disconnects, Grid Security, Emergency Response, Customers in Arrears, and Community Service.
Republicans and Democrats largely broke to partisan corners with their responses to the governor’s efforts on this front. Phoenix Councilwoman Laura Pastor tweeted, “Phoenix has been experiencing a historically hot summer – if a statewide or even citywide power outage were to happen, lives would be lost. We need to know what to do during that situation and how we can help our residents. Governor Hobbs is asking the right questions.”
The Arizona Democratic Party also weighed in, posting, “As Arizona faces a historically hot summer, Democrats are delivering real relief! Thank you Governor Hobbs.”
Republican Representative Matthew Gress took an opposing view to the governor’s announcement, writing, “Governor, you *do* know the utilities already submitted those plans and briefed the Commission…back in April…right? And you do realize the excessive heat warning has been in effect for nearly a month? We’ve hit new records for several weeks now? Every time, our utilities performed flawlessly. But really glad you weighed in weeks after the heat wave started! You’re really on top of things.”
Representative Joseph Chaplik added, “Another example of an unqualified Hobbs Governor/CEO of AZ. As Gov, you should have already known all this from communicating with APS and SRP over the last 9 months with preparation for the summer. We all know we get hot in the desert during July. No need to publicize your late demands. You should be thanking them for being prepared.”
Long-time Arizona journalist Howie Fischer pointed out that the governor’s request to state utility companies was “not within her constitutional duties (but was) the role of the Arizona Corporation Commission.”
Senate President Pro Tempore T.J. Shope agreed with Fischer, tweeting, “Correct, it’s not within Governor Hobbs constitutional duties. Perhaps her interns oughta watch one of the Senate Committee on Natural Resources, Energy and Water Committee hearings that Senator Sine Kerr chairs so she can learn about energy plans and how the utilities plan for summer.”
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
