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Recent Articles from Ben Giles
AG opinion gives authorities more leeway in opposing marijuana legalization
An opinion by Attorney General Mark Brnovich allows elected officials to spend taxpayer dollars to influence elections as long as they’re not explicitly advocating for voters to cast ballots a particular way.
Not really so bad: Lawmakers say their approach to school funding is misunderstood
Lawmakers made broad claims about education spending this year, from Gov. Doug Ducey’s administration promoting a “classrooms first” theme on social media to frequent boasts of spending more on education than at any time in Arizona’s history.
2015 Session Wrap Q&A: Senate President Andy Biggs
The stars aligned for Senate President Andy Biggs in 2015. The numbers don’t show it, but the makeup of the Senate proved more conservative. A new governor worked well with Republican leadership in the Senate. Meanwhile, Biggs was once again a force behind the budget and took the lead to end the session in record time.
2015 Session Wrap Q&A: Senate Minority Leader Katie Hobbs
Sen. Katie Hobbs was one of many new leaders at the Capitol this session. She was tasked with leading an entirely-new Democratic leadership team in the Senate while dealing with a new governor and a veteran Senate president in Andy Biggs.
ACLU says it will follow through on lawsuit against Montgomery
The American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona said Wednesday it will sue Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery after he failed to comply to its demand he provide same-sex married couples with mandated adoption services.
Ducey orders agency to allow gays to foster, adopt children
Gov. Doug Ducey ordered the Department of Child Safety to allow married same-sex couples to jointly house foster children and adopt. Ducey ordered the policy change in response to an Arizona Capitol Times report that DCS had quietly reversed a policy that had allowed married same-sex couples to jointly adopt or provide foster care.
DCS bars gay couples from being foster, adoptive parents
The Department of Child Safety quietly reversed a policy in February that allowed married same-sex couples to jointly serve as foster parents or adopt from the more than 16,000 children under the state’s care, even though federal courts have declared Arizona’s ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional.
New Arizona ballot initiative would tax and regulate marijuana like alcohol
Officials with the Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol in Arizona, formerly the Marijuana Policy Project of Arizona, filed the initiative with the secretary of state this afternoon, setting the stage for a potential vote on legalization in 2016 – six years after Arizonans narrowly voted to legalize medical marijuana.
‘Mass confusion’ led to death of revised revenge porn bill
The Arizona Senate’s unilateral decision to adjourn left numerous bills for dead, including a measure designed to outlaw “revenge porn” and settle an ongoing lawsuit against the state.
Bump in state revenues could be offset by new law
The state’s ending balance in fiscal 2016 could be better than the Legislature predicted when it adopted a budget in March, unless Gov. Doug Ducey signs a bill conforming state business taxes to the federal standards.
State Supreme Court rules in favor of medical marijuana users
Arizona government officials are barred from taking any actions that disallow medical marijuana patients from taking their medicine, even as a term of probation, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled April 7.
Bill making it tougher to recall elected officials sent to governor
The House on April 1 gave final approval to HB2407, which demands strict compliance with constitutional and statutory requirements for referendum and recall efforts – or else a judge may toss out the voter-driven effort.
