Another week is “in the can.” This week may have been one for the record. Over 400 bills were introduced. That brings the total to over 1000, and it is not over yet. Those of us who try to read these bills and try to make sense of them may be walking around with that far away look in our eyes for some time to come. A sad case of quantity over quality.
SB1164 – Brophy-McGee: This is the infamous “Red Flag” bill that Ducey wants so badly. Those of us who have experienced Communism first hand tend to bristle at the thought that any politician, especially Republican, would even contemplate such an egregious piece of legislation. For starters, it most likely violates the 2nd, 4th, and 5th amendments. It has been assigned to the Senate Judiciary Committee, but a hearing has not been scheduled as of this writing. People who are so inclined are encouraged to contact committee chairman Eddy Farnsworth and request that this bill NOT be brought up for a hearing. efqrnsworth@azleg.gov 602-926-5735.
HB2321 – Friese: This is the Democrats’ version OF A RED FLAG BILL. It is not an exact copy, but close enough. It contains the same egregious violations of our constitution as does SB1164. Thankfully, it has not been assigned to committee.
HB2602 – Rivero: This is the exact bill that Carter of ld15 tried so hard to pass last session. She even strike-all amended it to another bill in an effort to sneak it through, but it still failed. Why she is not running it this session is anyone’s guess, but a good guess is that this is an election year and she has a credible challenger. Read this bill. If you do not like what you see, you may want to help Barto unseat Carter in ld15. This bill amends ARS 15-1809 as it calls for special tuition rates for students that have graduated AZ high schools, regardless of their residency status. Not a terrible thing, so why the furor? This bill has another part to it that supporters try to conceal because it is awful and it is the part that gives illegal aliens the same tuition break as legal residents. It does so by adding two words to ARS 1-502. Here is the critical language, “I. For the purposes of this section, “state or local public benefit” has the same meaning prescribed in 8 United States Code section 1621, except that it does not include commercial or professional licenses, POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION, benefits provided by the public retirement systems and plans of this state or services widely available to the general population as a whole.” ARS 1-502 requires a lawful presence in order to get any state or local benefits. By adding ‘postsecondary education’ to the exceptions, college students who are here illegally qualify for the same benefits as lawful residents. HB2602 has not been assigned to committee yet.
HB2031 – FILLMORE: School marshals. Opponents of this bill tend to characterize it as allowing crazed gun-toting red necks roaming the school grounds chumping at the bit to shoot something, or someone. The reality is that those who participate in this program will be screened and trained in the proper behavior. They are the alternative to hiring hundreds of policemen at astronomical costs. HB2031 was held in the House Public Safety Committee. In other words, it did not advance.
HB2084 – PETERSEN: Finally some good news. This bill prohibits the imposition of unreasonable permits for the building of an international boundary wall that is built on private land. It cleared the House Federal Relations Committee 4-3. A minor victory, but a victory nevertheless.
We quit on this positive note. To follow all the bills that we are tracking, go to Facebook and search AZRRT. To read the bills themselves, go to www.azleg.gov Then enter the bill number in the box on the upper right hand section of the main page.
Folks who are interested in learning more about the AZ legislative process are urged to check out the articles found on our website, https://azpeopleslobbyist.com/