By Gloria Gomez/UA Don Bolles Fellow/AZ Mirror PHOENIX — A $13 billion dollar budget, sold by Republican lawmakers as a continuation of last year’s budget while the legislature debates how to spend its current $5.3 billion dollar surplus, was promptly shot down in its first hearing in a House Appropriations Committee. Two Republican lawmakers joined the…
By Gloria Gomez/UA Don Bolles Fellow/AZ Mirror PHOENIX — Religious organizations would be granted wide berth to remain open during health crises if a bill sent Tuesday to Gov. Doug Ducey is signed into law. The Republican-backed House Bill 2507 prohibits lawsuits against religious organizations on the basis that the organizations are religious, operate during a state…
By Gloria Gomez/UA Don Bolles Fellow/AZ Mirror PHOENIX — The future of classroom COVID-19 mitigation measures now lies in Gov. Doug Ducey’s hands: A bill the state Senate approved Monday would force schools to seek parental consent if they want to keep their students masked up. If the governor signs House Bill 2616 into law, school districts…
By Gloria Gomez/UA Don Bolles Fellow/AZ Mirror PHOENIX — An audit of Pima County’s Regional Transportation Authority Plan found it falls short by $149 million, putting 11 projects at risk. The plan was enacted in 2006, after voters passed a one half cent sales tax dedicated to a spate of projects to improve roads and public transit….
By Gloria Gomez/UA Don Bolles Fellow/AZ Mirror PHOENIX — Faith-based adoption and foster care agencies in the state who make decisions based on their religious views are now free to do so without any threat of lawsuits thanks to a new law signed this week, and opponents say that could hurt foster kids across the…
