The House Government Committee has unanimously endorsed a bill that would grant the status of official nickname to a phrase that already graces most license plates and the Arizona Office of Tourism's Web site.

Rep. Sam Crump R-Anthem, the sponsor of H2019, said he got the idea from Marshall Trimble, Arizona's state historian.

Trimble told the committee he'd just assumed that the nickname was official, but a note from a fifth-grade girl in California pointed out that it wasn't.

"This little girl's letter is really making a difference," Trimble said.

If the bill becomes law, the nickname will join the list of official Arizona items, including the saguaro blossom as  state flower, the bola tie as state neckwear, petrified wood as state fossil and Arizona ridge-nosed rattlesnake as state reptile.

Tina Miller, director of communications for the Arizona Office of Tourism, said that making "The Grand Canyon State" official would give authority to the phrase that's vital to Arizona.

"We're promoting our best asset," Miller said.

Sidney Levy, the Coca-Cola distinguished professor of marketing at the University of Arizona's Eller College of Management, said strengthening the connection between Arizona and the Grand Canyon might have economic value.

"To be known as the Grand Canyon State is useful for attracting tourists," Levy said. "And tourists are always economically helpful."

Crump's bill was headed to the House floor by way of the Rules Committee.

Trimble told the Government Committee that Arizona has several unofficial nicknames, such as "the Copper State", "the Sunset State" and "the Apache State," but "the Grand Canyon State" is the most appropriate.

"The Grand Canyon is ours. We're proud of it. Plus, if we don't make it official, California is threatening to steal it from us," Trimble joked.

Some of Arizona’s official state symbols

By Cronkite News Service

Here are some of Arizona’s official symbols, as recorded by the Arizona Capitol Museum:

_ State Bird: Cactus Wren
_ State Flower: Saguaro Blossom
_ State Tree: Palo Verde
_ State Neckwear: Bola Tie
_ State Gemstone: Turquoise
_ State Amphibian: Arizona Tree Frog
_ State Fossil: Petrified Wood
_ State Butterfly: Two-Tailed Swallowtail
_ State Reptile: Arizona Ridge-nosed Rattlesnake
_ State Fish: Arizona Trout
_ State Mammal: Ringtail