Key Points:

• Republican lawmakers have reintroduced 87 previously vetoed bills this session
• Hobbs’ office said the resurrected bills are “frustrating” and “political theater”
• The resurrected bills are among the record-breaking 2,116 proposals introduced this year

Arizona’s lawmakers introduced a record number of bills this session, but several of those bills have already met Gov. Katie Hobbs’ veto pen in past legislative sessions.

Eighty-seven bills introduced by lawmakers this session were previously vetoed by the governor, according to an Arizona Capitol Times analysis. Hobbs, a Democrat, has long accused Republican lawmakers of intentionally sending her bills they know she does not support in order to run up the score on her veto record. 

“It’s beyond frustrating to see Republicans recycling the same vetoed bills, fully aware they’ll be rejected again,” said Liliana Soto, Hobbs’ press secretary, in a statement. “Instead of working to improve the lives of Arizonans, they’re stuck performing political theater just to boost their numbers and blame the governor.” 

Hobbs has broken the state’s veto record twice, once in 2023 with 143 vetoes and again in 2025 with 174 vetoes. The governor has already vetoed one bill this session, a Republican-backed tax conformity plan, and no other bills were on her desk as of publication. 

For their part, lawmakers have introduced a record-breaking 2,116 bills, resolutions and memorials this session. Republican lawmakers have defended reintroducing bills previously vetoed by Hobbs, saying they advance policies supported by Arizona voters.

Many of the previously vetoed bills were reintroduced without any changes, meaning they are almost certain to be shot down again if they reach Hobbs’ desk. Those include “veto bait” bills that the governor has pledged repeatedly to block, like policies targeting LGBTQ+ individuals, restricting access to voting and increasing immigration enforcement actions. 

Some proposed policies are already on their second veto, like House Speaker Steve Montenegro’s House Bill 2902 which affirms the Legislature’s support for the electoral college and was already vetoed in 2023 and 2025. Four other bills introduced this session have also received vetoes in two previous sessions.

Lawmakers are also bringing back vetoed bills as concurrent resolutions that could be sent to the ballot this year to bypass the governor’s approval. Sen. Wendy Rogers, R-Flagstaff, is once again hoping to get a red light camera ban sent to voters this year, while Sen. John Kavanagh, R-Fountain Hills, combined two of his previously vetoed bills into one ballot referral. 

Kavanagh’s Senate Concurrent Resolution 1006 would require schools to provide “reasonable accommodations” instead of allowing transgender students to use gendered bathrooms and would prohibit teachers from using a student’s preferred pronouns without parental consent. 

“The two concepts … were run as separate bills vetoed by the governor, which is why they’re going as a ballot initiative,” Kavanagh told the Senate Government Committee on Jan. 28. “I have no doubt that this will pass by high-60% of the voters because these are positions that almost everybody believes in.”

Four concurrent resolutions featuring previously vetoed provisions will have to jostle with over 100 referrals for space on the ballot this year. Republicans sent 11 ballot measures to voters in 2024, but only four were approved. 

Rogers is the most prolific sponsor of resurrected bills this session, having introduced 13 bills that were previously vetoed. Sen. Mark Finchem, R-Prescott, introduced 12 previously vetoed bills, while Rep. Gail Griffin, R-Hereford, introduced eight. 

Some lawmakers reintroduce their own vetoed bills, while others have introduced vetoed bills that were sponsored by a different lawmaker in a previous session. And many of the resurrected bills have been introduced in both chambers, only increasing the number of previously vetoed proposals for lawmakers to consider. 

Not all of the resurrected bills are completely partisan though. Republican Sen. Shawnna Bolick’s Senate Bill 1431 includes several provisions of the previously vetoed bill known as the Starter Homes Act. It is co-sponsored by Republicans and Democrats in both chambers of the Legislature. 

The 2026 bill differs slightly from the one vetoed in 2024 as lawmakers have worked with stakeholders to address their concerns, but it is unclear whether those changes will make it palatable to the governor. 

Several of the resurrected bills are being heard in committees or on the House and Senate floors in the next few weeks. Whether they make it to Hobbs’ desk for another veto stamp remains to be seen.

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