PHOENIX — Gov. Katie Hobbs said Tuesday she’s looking forward to the end of Attorney General Kris Mayes’ two-year-long investigation into t whether she was involved in a “pay-to-play” scheme.

But the governor still won’t commit to actually sitting down for an interview with Mayes’ investigators about the state’s decision to sharply boost the money it paid to a company housing children in foster care. The company was owned by a major political contributor to Hobbs and the Arizona Democratic Party.

Mayes, a Democrat like Hobbs, said earlier this week she plans to complete the inquiry into the contract with Sunshine Residential before the November general election.

Mayes confirmed four months ago she had asked the governor to answer questions.

Christian Slater, the governor’s press aide, said at the time that the governor’s office had been in contact with Mayes and was “looking forward to this wrapping up.”

“We are in communication with her,” Hobbs said on Tuesday in response to questions from Capitol Media Services. “I look forward to the conclusion of the investigation.”

The governor also repeated her assertion that she was not involved in the Department of Child Safety’s decision to give back-to-back increases in state payments to Sunshine Residential.

“That is all I have to say on that,” the governor responded.

In 2022, Sunshine gave $100,000 to a committee that was seeking donations for the governor’s 2023 inaugural. Only Arizona Public Service, at $250,000, was a larger contributor.

Nearly $1.7 million was raised for the event, which the governor’s office said ultimately cost $207,000. And under the law at that time, everything not spent on the fundraiser could legally be used for political purposes.

Even before the 2022 election, though, Sunshine contributed $200,000 to the Arizona Democratic Party. And there was another $100,000 donation in 2023.

This is relevant because the state was deciding in 2023 whether to increase the amount of money DCS was paying Sunshine for housing of foster children.

Sunshine initially requested more money from DCS in early 2023. Matthew Stewart, the governor’s first pick to head the agency, rejected that.

The governor withdrew his nomination after it became clear the Senate would not confirm him.

But in May, DCS, now led by former state lawmaker David Lujan, agreed to raise the standard rate from $140 per bed to $195, a 30% increase.

Sunshine said unless it got more money, it would make more of its beds available to the federal government, which was looking for places for immigrant children, according to DCS spokesman Darren DaRonco. He said such a move — the feds were paying $225 — would have meant fewer places for DCS to place its foster children.

Then Sunshine got a new contract boosting its rate to $234.

The Arizona Republic reported that Hobbs and her campaign manager had dined with Simon Koottor and other company leadership as the contract was being finalized. But her office has maintained she never influenced the contracting decision. 

Mayes opened her probe in June 2024.

The attorney general was asked earlier this week whether, in refusing to answer questions, Hobbs had decided to ignore the investigation.

“The answer is ‘no,’” Mayes responded.

“You cannot blow off the Attorney General’s Office,” she said. “Full stop. No one can.”

But the attorney general also suggested that she will move ahead on the probe — with or without the governor’s cooperation.

“We are going to get the information that we need,” Mayes said.

“When we have a result, we will make an announcement,” she said. “And we are near the end of the investigation.”

Hobbs on Tuesday said she is confident that Mayes’ inquiry “is going to show exactly what the director (Lujan) said, that I was not involved in the decision … and the department acted in the best interests of foster kids in Arizona.”

Despite the governor’s assurances, the probe has resulted in political fallout.

That includes legislation crafted by Sen. T.J. Shope, R-Coolidge, which sought to require anyone seeking a state contract to disclose any money donated to the campaigns of the governor, gubernatorial candidates and any of their committees.

Hobbs vetoed that bill twice calling it a “political stunt” because it was aimed only at candidates for the governor’s office. Shope responded by saying it is the governor’s office and the agencies it oversees that award contracts, not state lawmakers.

Republican gubernatorial hopeful Andy Biggs has keyed in on that.

“Katie Hobbs has shown throughout her term she’s willing to hide donations and veto bills that would shine a light on the contractors and corporations trying to influence her administration,” he said in a statement in June.