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Redistricting redux? Tobin wants special election on new district maps
Republican lawmakers’ dormant war with the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission is flaring up anew, as House Speaker Andy Tobin has introduced a host of measures that would set a special election so voters could decide whether to use legislative and congressional maps drawn by the Legislature instead of those approved last month by the volunteer panel.
School lunch opt-out stirring emotional debate
Despite stiff opposition from teachers and health advocates, the Republican-led Senate is pushing ahead with a bill that would give schools the ability to opt out of the federal school lunch program, which provides free or reduced-price meals to low-income pupils.
Lost and found: Brewer releases letter to Obama
In the letter she delivered to President Barack Obama just before she wagged her finger at him during a tense discussion Wednesday, Gov. Jan Brewer urged the president to take notice of Arizona’s economic recovery and reiterated her longstanding request that he tour the Arizona-Mexico border with her.
Group seeks to alter immigration discussion in Arizona
A coalition of businesses, religious organizations and political figures is pushing an ambitious project to change the tone of the immigration discussion in Arizona and steer it toward policies that promote comprehensive, more humane and nuanced solutions.
Obama reprises State of the Union themes, praises Intel
With Intel’s Chandler factory serving as a backdrop and an example of the kinds of high-tech manufacturing jobs he wants to bring back to the United States, President Barack Obama reprised much of his State of the Union address in Arizona during a speech today.
Standing before thousands of cheering supporters and Intel employees, Obama praised the microprocessor manufacturer as the type[...]
Paton to run in vast CD1, won’t seek Giffords’ seat
Former state legislator Jonathan Paton is making another run for a congressional seat, but he won’t be seeking to replace U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who resigned her seat today a year after she was shot in the head in an assassination attempt.
Shooter considering banning public testimony on budget bills
The chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee said Tuesday he is considering banning all public testimony when lawmakers take up the state budget later this year.
Pierce isn’t so keen about buying back state buildings
While he likes parts of the governor’s spending plan, Senate President Steve Pierce isn’t completely convinced that the state can afford to buy back the buildings it mortgaged during the fiscal crisis two years ago.
Kelly files to run for Giffords’ seat
Jesse Kelly, the Republican who narrowly lost to U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in 2010, filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission today to run for the seat she is vacating.
Scramble to replace Giffords spawns new and old names
U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords’ surprise announcement on Sunday that she would resign from Congress leaves prospective candidates with an extremely short timeframe to decide their political futures.
Burges sworn in as newest senator
Won over by her legislative experience, Maricopa County’s supervisors today picked Rep. Judy Burges to replace former Sen. Scott Bundgaard.
Burges, who has been a lawmaker since 2005, became the Senate’s newest member later in the afternoon, when she took her oath of office and was promptly escorted to her new seat.
No relief for hospitals in Brewer’s budget
With an uptick in state revenues, Gov. Jan Brewer is proposing to alleviate some of the pain the state’s Medicaid providers have been experiencing.
The governor wants to give a 3 percent rate increase to state health care providers, including physicians, behavioral health professionals and nursing facilities.
But one group that is among the worst hit by years of incessant b[...]
