Tag: Arizona State Legislature
Connections Spotlight — CCC&Y 2023 Legislative Position
In lieu of taking individual positions on bills this year: CCC&Y has had a voice at the table for many advocacy positions that support our partners and others to advocate for the well-being of children and families in our State. We also continue sharing action alerts and updates from our trusted partners so that you can stay informed and utilize the Request to Speak system to show your support or opposition.
Many of the bills are evolving so quickly that an organization with our limited resources would risk doing you an injustice by taking a formal position that may need to change multiple times in this current climate. However, please know we are at the table and will continue to voice concerns and support during this session.
AEA Legislative Update: March 5, 2023
2023 Priority Bills
Crossover week has finally wrapped up at the legislature, which means we have more information about what bills are likely to make it through both chambers and onto Hobbs’ desk. Still moving: bad bills on guns and firearms training at schools, attacks on LGBTQ youth, book banning bills, tax cuts and voucher expansions. Ugh!
We’ve put together a bill tracking page to help you follow where priority bills are in the process. Check it out here! We’ll be updating it frequently, so bookmark the page for future reference.
Check out bill list >>
If you haven’t yet, make sure to sign in to RTS in opposition to these bad bills!
Read More
AEA 2023 Legislative Update
On December 14, 2022, AEA hosted a members-only webinar with AEA President Marisol Garcia, AEA Legislative Liaison Isela Blanc, and AEA member and Arizona Senator Christine Marsh on what to expect in the 2023 legislative session.
Watch Webinar >>
Friends of ASBA Educating Arizona — Education Doomsday Countdown
Today marks a significant step closer to education doomsday. There are less than 150 days left for the legislature to intervene and override the Aggregate Expenditure Limit (AEL). If the legislature fails to act by March 1, 2023, then district schools across Arizona will be forced to cut $1.3B statewide from their budget.
When the Legislature passed this year’s budget, it was a known fact that the money appropriated to K-12 education would exceed the Aggregate Expenditure Limit contained in the Arizona Constitution.
Help us make sure this issue remains top of mind and reshare our daily doomsday countdown clock posts on Facebook and Twitter or share your own post using the links below to tell us what education doomsday means to your school community:
Children’s Action Alliance — Who’s for Kids and Who’s Just Kidding
Late last month, the Arizona State Legislature finished its annual session in the middle of the night and with only a few days to spare before an impending state government shut down. Lawmakers finalized a budget and decided on several bills that had been stalled by the budget negotiations. Over 1700 pieces of legislation were introduced and nearly 400 made it all the way through the process this year. It was fast and furious, and it left a lot to sort through once it was all over.
Children’s Action Alliance — Budget Proposal Shortchanges Arizona Children and Families
The Arizona legislature is considering a new state budget proposal this week as they seek to avoid a state government shutdown with only 8 days remaining before the deadline. While we wish we could praise this budget proposal for including some new investments that we have been seeking for many years, unfortunately, those new investments do not outweigh the fact that overall, this is a budget that shortchanges the future for Arizona children and families.
State lawmakers have an unprecedented $5 billion revenue surplus on-hand as they work to craft the state budget. The revenue surplus provides an opportunity to make much-needed new investments for things that have been underfunded for years, like K-12 public education, children’s access to health care, and early childhood education. It also requires lawmakers to make fiscally responsible decisions that will avoid huge budget cuts the next time there is an economic downturn.
Arizona Education Association — Legislative Update
Support the Educators’ Budget for Teacher Appreciation Week
SIGN PETITION
Next week is National Teacher Appreciation Week! To show your appreciation and keep great teachers in the classroom in Arizona, sign on to support the Educators’ Budget!
Arizona has a budget surplus of $5.3 Billion, and legislators don’t appear to be any closer to agreement on a state budget. AEA has created the Educators’ Budget that addresses the teacher shortage and makes voters interests in public education a priority. Read the Educators’ Budget >>
Children’s Action Alliance — Mid-Session Update Part 2: Shameful bills that preserve prejudice in name of protecting children
Last week, we took the legislative lull between committee work and the presentation of the proposed budget to tell you about some bills that would have improved the lives of children and families in Arizona that were either not considered or died without making much headway. As the pause at the Capitol continues so does our midsession update. If last week’s update could be titled “the good”, this week can be called the “bad and the ugly.” These are misguided proposals that harm children and families, and unfortunately have either already been signed or are well on their way to becoming law. The common theme running through these bills: Preserving prejudice in the name of protecting children.
Arizona Education Association — Legislative Update
It was a short week for legislators with the House adjourning on Tuesday and the Senate on Wednesday. Both will resume work on Monday, but are expected to adjourn soon after to work on budget negotiations.
Reports from the Capitol say legislators have encountered budget gridlock and some are shopping around the idea of passing a “skinny budget” that would maintain current spending levels without touching the $5.3 billion surplus. The Arizona Primary Election is earlier this year and lawmakers are unable to campaign until the session is over, so many are anxious to get the budget negotiations done.
Children’s Action Alliance — Mid Session Update
The Spring season in Arizona is already well underway. Everything is blooming, the weather is warming, delayed Spring Training has given way to Opening Day and for those who pay attention to what is happening at the Capitol, we enter a new phase of the Legislative Session. Each year the session begins on the second Monday in January and is SUPPOSED to adjourn “sine die” (terminate for the year) no later than Saturday of the week in which the 100th day from the start of the session falls. This year, the 100th day is April 19th and that means the session should end no later than April 23rd.
Though this is the benchmark, in recent years that has rarely happened.
