Since day one of this COVID-19 pandemic scare, many of us citizens have been complaining that, while we needed to take this virus seriously, it did not warrant the level of overreach and overreaction undertaken at all levels of government.
Every day that goes by it becomes more evident that we were right. The level of economic disruption caused by governments far exceeds any reasonable and justified government intervention.
According to the U. S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, we have gone from a nearly perfect 2.2% GDP growth rate to a depression inducing -4.3%. This is not a typo – the economy has actually reduced by 4.5%.
Unemployment has gone from what economists regard as “full employment” at 3.5% to a whopping 15.5%. And we are not done yet.
Therefore, it behooves our Arizona Legislature, “the people’s” branch of government, to take decisive action to help alleviate some of the damage caused by government.
Last week we saw the sad spectacle of our State Senate adjourning, thereby neglecting its duty to our citizens. The Senate must get back in session because failing to do so will put them in violation of our state constitution.
The Arizona constitution, under Article 4, Part 2, Section 9 reads in part: “Neither house shall adjourn for more than three days, nor to any place other than that in which it may be sitting, without the consent of the other.”
But even if senators are not concerned about following the constitution, there is important unfinished business that they need to address, including but not limited to the following:
- Pending Bills: Taking final action on important bills that cleared one chamber and still need action in the other chamber.
- Liability Reform: We need to pass legislation that protects businesses from lawsuits by people who claim they contracted the COVID-19 virus as a result of being present at the place of business. Obviously, those operators who display gross negligence must still be held accountable.
- Enforcement reform: The punishment must fit the crime. It is imperative that we reduce the penalties for business owners who violate business closure orders. This is especially important because the rules are being applied in a capricious and unfair way. For example, a local jeweler can go to jail for doing business, but customers can buy jewels at Walmart with impunity.
But legislators are not likely to move unless they are encouraged to do so. To that end, everyone should contact legislators and request, either by phone or by e-mail, that legislators get back to doing the work they were elected to do.
To obtain a list of house member phones, go to https://www.azleg.gov/MemberRoster/?body=H
For the same list for senators, go to
https://www.azleg.gov/MemberRoster/?body=S
To contact legislators via e-mail the easy way, go to
https://azpeopleslobbyist.com/
[metaslider id=65385]