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Session UpdateAfter having Monday off for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the Legislature began the process of going through bills in earnest. Most every committee met this week and heard both agency continuation bills and policy matters. Legislation that the League followed is detailed below.Read more... Governor Brewer: FY 2010-11 BudgetLast Friday, January 15, 2010, Governor Brewer followed through on her State of the State promise and released an Executive Budget.In her speech she noted the budget's focus will continue to be the state's deficit, which the Governor's Office calculates as $1.4B in FY 2010 and $3.2B in FY 2011. As a result the document outlines measures to address the remainder of FY 2010 budget, as well as FY 2011. Read more... Election YearThe fact that 2010 is an election year in which all 90 seats in the legislature will be on the ballot, has an impact on the state legislative process and on the political futures of a number of members.Read more... Immigration Bills ReturnThe Senate Public Safety and Human Services Committee narrowly passed Senate Bill 1070 -immigration; law enforcement; safe neighborhoods - sponsored by Senator Russell Pearce (R-Mesa) on Wednesday. The bill is a variation of legislation that failed to pass the House late in last year's session. The bill mandates that local police prioritize immigration enforcement before other public safety concerns. The bill was opposed by The Arizona Association of Chiefs of Police (AACOP) and other civil rights groups. The League did not take a position at this time because we want to work with Sen. Pearce to address our concerns. Several committee members also expressed concerns about the bill language, so we expect changes along the way. The bill passed out of committee on a 4-3 party line vote.Municipal Sales Tax on UtilitiesOn Thursday, the House Ways and Means Committee considered House Bill 2407- municipal sales tax; utilities - sponsored by Representative Frank Antenori (R-Vail). This bill proposes to exempt utilities provided to customers outside the incorporated limits of a city or town from sales tax. It also prohibits a city or town from increasing the sales tax on a particular class of taxpayers unless you raise the tax on all other classes by the same amount. It further requires any increases in municipal sales tax rates paid by a public service corporation to be approved by the Arizona Corporation Commission.Read more... Photo Radar Under ScrutinyTwo bills advanced in the House Transportation Committee on Thursday that will severely curtail the state's ability to conduct photo enforcement. Senate Bill 2085 - photo enforcement; citation issuance - sponsored by Representative Lucy Mason (R-Prescott), requires any state photo enforcement citations to be issued by a law enforcement officer at the time of violation. A second bill, House Bill 2213 - photo enforcement; contracts; public agencies - sponsored by Representative Andy Biggs (R-Gilbert), prohibits the Department of Public Safety from renewing or entering into a photo enforcement contract with a third party vendor without approval from the Legislature.Read more... Public Meetings and NoticesHB 2209 public meetings; notices requires public bodies to post all public meeting notices online. Representative Michele Reagan (R - Scottsdale) and Representative Andy Tobin (R - Paulden) are the sponsors. The bill requires public bodies to conspicuously post on their website, rather than filing with the appropriate office, a statement indicating where all public notices of their meetings will be posted. The Commerce Committee adopted a League-suggested amendment that allows cities and towns the option of posting the meeting notice location statement on their own website or an association of cities and towns website. The League wanted to alleviate the burden of this requirement on municipalities that may not have the technical ability to comply with the bill. HB2209 as amended passed the Commerce Committee unanimously.The Weekly Spotlight - Representative Rae WatersRepresentative Rae Waters, (D - Phoenix) represents the Democrats, Republicans, and Independents of District 20, which includes Ahwatukee, South Tempe, and West Chandler. She also serves on the Kyrene Elementary School District Governing Board, first elected to that position in 1998, where she has served three terms as president.Read more... |
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Legislative Bulletin is published by the League of Arizona Cities and Towns. Forward your comments or suggestions to league@azleague.org. |
