After selecting a Republican business leader and a Democratic state capitol veteran to lead her transition team, Secretary of State and Democratic Gov.-elect Katie Hobbs looked closer to home for her chief of staff. Hobbs announced that Allie Bones, the current Assistant Secretary of State, will take on the top job in her administration. 

The newest update to the Arizona Voters’ Agenda survey found Arizonans believe their elections are secure, and identified priorities as increasing housing affordability, addressing water shortages, reforming immigration policies and investing in critical infrastructure, transportation and education.   

There are two very different candidates and two very different opinions and solutions to conquering today’s issues from the candidates for Congressional District 1.

Opposing the PRO Act and any of its misguided policies, whether in the PRO Act itself, or any provisions that may be covertly slipped into other, unrelated legislation, will be key to maintaining our momentum. 

Franchising has provided the means for untold numbers of Arizonans to support themselves and their families. During this period of economic uncertainty, Arizona’s congressional delegation should be lowering – not building – barriers to franchising and similar opportunity.

I read the article on "Small business economy needs immigration reform" with interest and dismay. The distortion of the facts and misrepresentation of the feelings and attitudes of Arizonans is unfortunate. 

New businesses are the drivers of job growth and we are fortunate that Arizona is home to more than 70,000 immigrant entrepreneurs. The household income of our state’s undocumented immigrants is $5.1 billion per year. They pay $556.5 million in taxes and have a spending power of $4.5 billion annually. The bottom line is that Arizona is stronger when we are inclusive and welcoming to all people.  

It is also imperative that Arizona has a comprehensive statewide plan for other impacts of the changing energy landscape. That means developing a coordinated approach on issues like electric vehicle infrastructure and energy storage to ensure that rural Arizona has a seat at the table and that new technologies can be rapidly adopted by consumers and utilities alike.     

Arizonans understand the benefits of transitioning to clean energy. Working together, we can make this part of the Arizona we want.

The federal government is considering up to $2 trillion in spending on efforts to boost the economy, including rebuilding aging infrastructure like highways and bridges, and investing in technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It’s critical that Arizona’s entire congressional delegation leverage any potential federal funding to only grow our state’s clean energy economy.