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As promised, no gym in the basement
Gowan is spending another $642,000 on carpet in the House, according to records provided by the chamber. The speaker is putting in new carpet on the first, second and third levels. The new carpet will also be installed on the House floor and members’ lounge, replacing the almost-new carpet Gowan installed in those areas after being elected speaker late last year.
With any luck, we’ll know on Monday
With the US Supreme Court’s redistricting ruling looming in Arizona’s political foreground, one railbird with knowledge of the situation said Biggs and Gowan plan to call a bipartisan joint legislative committee to start drafting maps and collecting public comment, should the court rule in the Legislature’s favor.
Absence makes the rumor mill spin faster
Farley said he suspects it was no accident that Biggs and Gowan were no-shows at Ducey’s press conference last week to announcing his land trust reform plans, and neither is their silence on the issue since the announcement
Rep. Doubting Thomas remains skeptical
Several Republicans have told our reporter they’re not buying everything Gowan says about scaling back planned renovations in the House basement. “I don’t believe it. I think they’re waiting for the kerfuffle to die down,” one House Republican said.
It’s a no-go for ‘Extreme Makeover: House edition’
Several House Republicans were surprised to hear that the nowscrapped renovation plans to the chamber would cost more than $2 million. But not all of the caucus was surprised that the project was estimated to cost double what sources had originally said.
House construction estimate up to $2 million, but Gowan scales back
The proposed renovations to the Arizona House of Representatives building were estimated at more than $2 million – double what sources had originally said the project would cost, documents released by the Arizona Department of administration show.
2015 Session Wrap Q&A: House Speaker David Gowan
After only a few months on the job, Arizona House Speaker David Gowan is still getting his footing. Gowan, a Republican from Sierra Vista, sat down with the Arizona Capitol Times to discuss the trials, tribulations and successes of his first year leading the House.
Gowan pursues House renovations despite GOP revolt
Reaction was quick and decisive when House Republicans learned of Speaker David Gowan’s plans for a second large-scale renovation of the chamber in the past six months.
Apparently, the Speaker’s the last to know
Gowan has been hosting meetings with the Republicans who signed the letter decrying his “excessive spending” and said the outrage they have expressed anonymously in this publication and in Republic columns isn’t reflected in those meetings, which haven’t been “heavy.” Asked if the plan for construction in the House is still on, Gowan at first backtracked, saying he didn’t even know t[...]
Boiling over
One of the Republicans who signed a letter rebuking Gowan over proposed House renovations affirmed that it reflects deeper issues that many in the caucus have had with how the speaker has run the chamber.
Communication deficiency prompted letter to Gowan
Several Republicans who signed on to the letter charging Gowan with “excessive spending” and calling for a biparitisan committee of all future expenditures said they did it for a variety of reasons, but chiefly because they weren’t even notified about the project beforehand.
Legislative leaders recap the session
The tone for this year’s legislative session was set when Senate President Andy Biggs and House Speaker David Gowan stood with Gov. Doug Ducey as he introduced his budget in January, observed political consultant Stan Barnes.
