Grijalva: Social Security, Medicare will be there for future generations
Social Security and Medicare will be there for those who need them now and for future generations as well, U.S. Rep. Raúl Grijalva told a group of senior citizens Thursday.
Officials say ACA teleconference call meets open meeting law
At the Arizona Commerce Authority’s first four board meetings, more than two dozen business leaders and policymakers sat at a table that wrapped around half of the second-floor conference room in the Executive Tower, with so many others in attendance that chairs became scarce.
Capitol Quotes: September 2, 2011
This week’s most outstanding utterances, gibes and quips.
Cost-benefit study of prisons late, but state going ahead with 5,000 more private beds
The Department of Corrections has long been out of compliance with a law requiring the director to complete a cost-benefit analysis comparing private and state-run prisons every two years.
DOC Director Charles Ryan, who took over the job in January 2009, said he started working on his analysis a few months ago.
But House Minority Leader Chad Campbell insists that’s not [...]
GOP gun raffle in Giffords’ district still on; Dems outraged
After a day of outrage from Arizona Democrats over a Pima County Republican Party raffle for a Glock handgun – the brand used in the assassination attempt of Tucson Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords – House Minority Leader Chad Campbell said he will ask every member of the Legislature and Gov. Jan Brewer to sign a letter asking the party to cancel the fundraiser.
Current IRC map became more competitive over time
Arizona Democrats have said they want a legislative map that will be used for the next decade to significantly increase the number of competitive districts in order to give more voters an actual choice when they go to ballot boxes every other November.
Necessity questioned of law sparked by controversial union contract provision
A law that took effect this week will either defend the state process of awarding public contracts from abuse by unions or do nothing but make Republican legislators feel good. It all depends on who you ask.
Democrats donate special session paychecks to nonprofit organization
A handful of Democratic lawmakers held a press conference today to announce they are donating their special session paychecks to a nonprofit employment assistance organization and chastise their Republican colleagues for not extending federal unemployment benefits.
Specialty license plates run amok
If a cactus and sunset don’t suit a driver, Arizonans can now opt for one of the 49 specialty plates when they register their cars.
But some call the numerous specialty plates, including the ironic Tea Party plate and one for the embattled Phoenix Coyotes, a threat to public safety and private groups using the government to pad their bottom lines.
The long and short of 100 days: Faced with vetoes, some GOP lawmakers question quality of bills in fast-paced session
As legislators were filing into their offices in January, preparing for the start of the 50th Legislature, Republican leaders set a lofty goal: to be finished in 100 days.
Lawmakers’ voting participation remains high in shorter session
Records from the past three legislative sessions point to a simple truism of the citizen-legislature model: The shorter the session, the better the attendance.
By keeping a 100-day session — the length prescribed by legislative rules — 27 of the Legislature’s 90 members voted on every bill that was brought to the floor, and only one lawmaker missed more than 20 percent of floor vo[...]
UpClose with Chad Campbell: House Dems strive for transparency, cite ‘broken’ budget process
With a mere third of the House of Representatives being Democrats, Minority Leader Chad Campbell knew it was going to be an uphill battle trying to put a dent in the Republicans’ agenda this past session.
Predictably, the Democrats couldn’t get their proposals for tax reforms into the budget, nor could they stop a torrent of conservative legislation. But Campbell said that they did [...]