P.L.A.N. Update - Blizzard of Bills‏

Here we are -- day 159 of the legislative session; June 30 (the last day of the fiscal year) just 11 days away. The Senate, having waited to work on "non-budget" bills until a budget had been passed, now is working late and on Fridays to consider an avalanche of bills. In this rush to deal with the huge backlog of bills, it's very hard to follow the issues. Citizens have a limited opportunity to share their views and impact the process, so mistakes will happen. As happened last session, some good bills will certainly fall through the cracks. Even more worrisome, some bad bills will pass because there wasn't an opportunity to thoroughly study and understand them.

Bills of Interest

Here are bills you may find of interest that are moving through the legislative process.

On Monday afternoon, the Senate Natural Resources, Infrastructure and Public Debt Committee are expected to vote on several measures dealing with State Trust Land Reform (HCR 2030 and SB 1077). Although the bill language is not yet available, it is an important issue. State trust land measures have been voted on numerous times by Arizona’s voters. Many are wondering if this measure will move forward given this unusual legislative session.

HB 2269: Landlords; Tenants; Foreclosures (Rep. Sam Crump, R – Anthem) requires contact information from entities that acquire properties through foreclosure to be disclosed in the property deed. Also, tenants of rental properties must be contacted prior to a trustee sale. This bill passed Third Read in the House 41 – 14 and now awaits a hearing in the Senate Government Institutions Committee. Phoenix supports this bill.

HB 2431: Vicious Animal Assault; Classification (Rep. Steve Montenegro, R – Litchfield Park) establishes a class 3 felony on persons that intentionally or knowingly cause a dog to bite or inflict serious injury upon another person. This bill passed the House Committee of the Whole and now awaits a Third Read vote in the House.

HB 2465: Scrap Metal; Theft; Dealers (Rep. Jerry Weiers, R – Glendale) increases the list of prohibited items (catalytic converters, water meters, manhole covers, etc.) that dealers cannot purchase unless authorized. The bill also requires dealers to electronically submit transaction records to the Arizona Department of Public Safety and make a database of such records accessible to local law enforcement. HB 2465 passed Third Read in the House 46 – 5 and now awaits a hearing in the Senate Commerce and Economic Development Committee. Phoenix supports this bill.

HB 2258: Consumer Fireworks; Novelties; Sales (Rep. Andy Biggs, R – Gilbert) allows for the sale of “consumer fireworks” and “novelties” by dealers licensed by the state fire marshal. Licensing revenues would go into a new fund and used for enforcement of the regulations required by the bill. Staff is concerned with the fire safety and preemption aspects of the bill. HB 2258 passed the House by a vote of 34 – 21 and now awaits a hearing in the Senate Government Institutions Committee.

The budget showdown between the Governor and legislative leaders took an unprecedented turn this week when Governor Brewer requested that the Arizona Supreme Court force transmittal of the 10-bill budget package passed by the legislature to her office. Lawyers representing both sides will present their arguments to the court at 10 a.m. on June 23. In the meantime, both legislative leaders and the Governor are collecting information and developing a plan for a government shut-down in case a budget is not in place by June 30.

Our city's budget for next fiscal year (July 2009-June 2010) was adopted in February and includes difficult cuts that impact services in our community. Remember to SHOP PHOENIX and tell your legislators to protect city revenues!

Source: P.L.A.N.