SB1463 ~ Tax Deductions, Sewer Expenses

UPDATE: This bill was held in committee as many of the Republican members of the committee were not in attendance due to illness.

ACTION ALERT!!!

IMPORTANT SEWER TAX DEDUCTION BILL TO BE HEARD IN COMMITTEE NEXT WEEK...WE NEED YOUR HELP!!!

Senator Gould and I have sponsored SB1463 Tax Deductions; Sewer Expenses which would allow a taxpayer to deduct the amount paid for residential sewer expenses during the taxable year.

This bill scheduled to be heard in the Senate next week so loosen up your fingers, stretch the muscles in your hands and write to members of the Senate Finance Committee expressing your strong support of this legislation! Beg, plead, and twist their arms to pass this legislation by explaining the horrid situation of the sewer expansion, the financial burden placed on homeowners in tough times.

These are the email addresses for the Senators that sit on the Senate Finance Committee:

rBurns@azleg.gov
RGould@azleg.gov
BLeff@azleg.gov
KCheuvront@azleg.gov
DMcCuneDavis@azleg.gov
JWaring@azleg.gov
PGorman@azleg.gov
rMiranda@azleg.gov

Log on to the legislative website during the committee hearing and leave your comments in support of our effort. Remember to thank Senator Gould for his sponsorship!

Third Read Calendar for 2/18/08

Third Reading of bills is the final reading of the bill before the entire body of the House where House members vote Y or N to support or oppose the bill. If the bill's passage is successful, the bill goes to the Senate where the process begins again.

House members must take their seats at their desks and are not allowed to move about during the Third Read process. If a legislator needs to communicate with another legislator during Third Read, emails can be sent back and forth. At times members may not have their computers on the floor so notes are passed back and forth via the pages.

I am going to try to post all Third Read calendars, as these calendars provide a complete list of bills that have sucessfully made their way through their committee assignments to be voted on by the entire body of the House of Representatives. If you don't have time to offer suggestions on tweaks to the bills as they make their way through the system, the ideal time to comment on a bill...to sway the opinion of your legislator is before they vote, before Third Read.

The following bills will be voted on Monday afternoon. You can look up the bill summary on the http://www.azleg.gov/ website. Just enter the bill number in the space provided at the upper right-hand side of the page.


Bill Number Short Title

HB2099 premium tax credit; STO contribution

HB2105 tax refund check-off boxes

HB2106 sales tax; electronic payment delinquency.

HB2107 delinquent information tax returns; penalty

HB2108 income tax credit review schedule

HB2130 residential property tax; homesite area

HB2204 DES; notice; documents; electronic service

HB2206 unemployment insurance; liability; liens; service

HB2263 parental consent; abortion

HB2378 counties; debit card acceptance

HB2406 county auctions; easement exemption

HB2410 open meetings; public opinion

HB2420 flood control districts; property

HB2443 constables; ethics; training.

HB2479 governmental swap agreements; conditions

HB2554 justice courts; criminal actions; jurisdiction

HB2671 driver licenses; document of gift

Live Proceedings at the House: Check It Out!

Click the post heading to watch live committee hearings in the House or Senate or peek in on Third Reads on the Floor to see how your legislator votes!

ADOT Public Meeting ~ HWY 95 Re-Alignment

Tuesday, March 4, 2008
6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Presentation at 6:30 p.m.
Lake Havasu Aquatic Center Gym
100 Park Ave.
Lake Havasu City, Arizona 86403

The Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT), Mohave County, and Lake Havasu City, in coordination with the Federal Highway Administration and Bureau of Land Management, have initiated a study of potential corridors in which to realign the portion of State Route (SR) 95 that passes through Lake Havasu City. SR 95 would potentially be realigned between Milepost (MP) 175 and MP191 to a new corridor east of Lake Havasu City.

The study will identify feasible corridors in which SR 95 could be realigned. It is anticipated that the findings of this study will be carried forward for further, detailed study. The purpose of the meeting is to gather public input on issues, concerns, and opportunities to be considered during the study. The comments received from this meeting will be used to help identify critical issues for the SR 95 realignment.

Study team members will be present to answer your questions and address your concerns. Maps of the project area and informational exhibits will be available for viewing at the meeting.

For additional technical information:
Elijah Williams, phone: (480) 503-2250
email: elijah.williams@epsgroupinc.com.

Written comments may be submitted by April 4, 2008, to
ADOT c/o Laura Nordan,
875 W. Elliot Rd., Suite 201,
Tempe, Arizona 85284
fax (480) 763-8601
email: laura.nordan@jacobs.com.

Americans with Disabilities Act: Persons with a disability may request a reasonable accommodation, such as a sign language interpreter, by contacting Laura Nordan at (480) 763-8715. Requests should be made as early as possible to allow time to arrange the accommodation. This document is available in alternate formats by contacting Ms. Nordan.

How a Bill Becomes Law

From the Arizona League of Cities and Towns website:

Arizona Bill is a three page pictorial that explains the process it takes for an idea/bill to become statute/law. Great explantation for kid and adults alike.

Fiscal Report Card: Governor Gets an F

I stumbled across this article as I am catching up on my reading today and it adds insight to why today the state faces a $1.2 Million dollar deficit for the current fiscal year and a $2+Million Dollar deficit for FY09. You won't see the blame put upon Napolitano though, no, as she continues to grow government programs, stubbornly insisting that we borrow more money, digging ourselves, our future generations, further into debit.

BTW, check out the grades awarded to then governors Huckabee and Romney.

An Ounce of Prevention is Worth What?

This article, from the respected Cato Institute dispels the myth that I hear perpetuated so often by those who testify/lobby for the health care industry that if we (legislators, government) would only "invest money now, on the front end" that it would save us money in the long run. Though I have long held this belief, verification from the Cato Insitute is satisfying.

Statewide Water Advisory Group Meeting

Friday, March 14, 2008 is the next Full SWAG Meeting

Meeting Time is 10:00a.m. to 12:00p.m.
Arizona Department of Water Resouces
3550 N. Central Avenue
2nd Floor Upper/Middle Verde Conference Room

-----THIS MEETING IS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC-----

***If you have any questions regarding this meeting please contact:Michelle Moreno Direct Line: (602) 771-8530 orNan Flores Direct Line: (602) 771-8526

Water Adequacy Meeting in Parker

Arizona Department of Water Resources
3550 North Central Avenue, Phoenix, Arizona 85012
Telephone 602-771-8586
Fax 602-771-8689
Web Page: www.azwater.gov

NOTICE OF PUBLIC MEETING

ADWR has initiated an informal stakeholder’s group to discuss proposed rule amendments of the assured and adequate water supply rules related to modifications required by SB 1575, the “Adequacy Bill” recently passed by the Legislature.

Date: Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Time: 11:00 a.m.
Place: La Paz County Board of Supervisor's office meeting room
1108 Joshua Avenue, Parker, Arizona, 85344

The meeting is open to the general public. A copy of the agenda for the meeting is posted below.

AGENDA : Adequacy Rule Modification

Initiation of Informal Stakeholder process (February – June)

Initiation of Formal rule process (July – October, effective November)

Areas to be modified:
· Public Notice of applications (March)
· Criteria to include water supply projects completed in 20 years (March)
Criteria to estimate water demand for any projected use in the same GW basin (April)
· Aquifer specific criteria for physical availability (June)
· Cleanup/Comment response, & Summary (June - July)

Summary of Adequacy Bill (SB 1575)

Guidelines for Exemptions

Close

Persons with a disability may request a reasonable accommodation, such as a sign language interpreter, by contacting the Arizona Department of Water Resources at (602) 771-8500. Requests should be made as early as possible to allow time to arrange the accommodation.

Controversial Bill Alert ~HB2833 Bullet Serialization

House Bill 2833, introduced by State Representative Martha Garcia, (D-13), would require that all handgun and “assault weapon” ammunition manufactured or sold in Arizona to be coded with an individual serial number, and entered into a statewide database at the time of sale.

Encoded ammunition would be registered to the purchaser and would include the date of transaction, the purchaser’s name, date of birth, driver’s license number, and the serial number of the ammunition.

This dangerous legislation could be bound for a hearing this legislative session if a handful of anti-gun legislators have their way. Similar legislation failed several years ago in California and just today Hawaii failed to pass one of two Senate versions after NRA and the Hawaii Attorney General testified against the measure.HB2833 seeks only to harass law-abiding gun owners as criminals are not likely to purchase their ammunition through legal channels. Please take a moment to contact your State Legislators and voice your opposition to House Bill 2833.

Bullet serialization efforts are making their way across the country looking for a foothold and it is vital that Arizona not be the first!

SB1080 ~ OUI Bill Stalls in Committee

Read the East Valley Tribune's recent article about the SenateTransportations Committee Member's concerns with Senate Bill 1080. (Senator Ron Gould chairs this powerful committee.) Although this bill did not pass out of committee, I believe with some tightening of language, this bill still has legs. I am sending an email to the bill's sponsor with some drafting suggestions.

If you are in public safety/law enforcement and want to view the bill as written, not just the summary I posted previously, please visit the http://www.azleg.gov/ website. Any suggestions on how to massage the verbiage is appreciated.

Check Out My Voting Record

Check out my voting record on issues such abortion, regulation, taxes, children and family issues at Project Vote Smart. You can look up your other elected officials there too!

SB 1080 ~ OUI Watercraft (Drunken Boating)

Note: This bill stalled in the Senate Transportation Committee and was held at the request of it's sponsor, Senator Linda Gray. To contact her, email her at LGray@azleg.gov.


FACT SHEET FOR S.B. 1080
operating under the influence; watercraft

Purpose
Increases penalties for persons convicted of operating a watercraft while intoxicated or who refuse to submit to an alcohol or drug test.

Background
It is unlawful for any person who is under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs to operate or be in actual physical control of a motorized watercraft. This is commonly referred to as operating under the influence (OUI). If a person’s blood alcohol concentration (BAC) is 0.08 or more, it is presumed in a trial that the person was under the influence of intoxicating liquor. A person also commits an OUI if he or she has a BAC of 0.08 or more within two hours of operating or being in actual physical control of the watercraft. Statute requires a person who operates a watercraft in Arizona to submit to an alcohol or drug test if the person is arrested for an OUI offense. A person who refuses to submit to such a test is subject to a civil penalty of $1,250.

Currently, a person convicted of a first time OUI offense pays a minimum of $1,250 in fines and assessments. Statute allows the court to impose community restitution and suspend any imposed sentence if the person completes alcohol or other drug screening, education or treatment (treatment). If a person is convicted of a second OUI violation within 60 months, the person is sentenced to 90 days in jail, 30 of which must be served consecutively, must pay a minimum of $3,000 in fines and assessments and may be ordered to perform community restitution. The judge may suspend all but 30 days of the sentence if the person completes treatment.

A person commits extreme OUI if the person has a BAC of 0.15 or greater within two hours of operating or being in actual physical control of a motorized watercraft. The person must pay a minimum of $2,250 in fines and assessments and must be sentenced to at least 30 consecutive days in jail, ten of which may be suspended if the person completes treatment. If a person is convicted of an extreme OUI offense and has previously been convicted of an OUI offense within the past 60 months, the person is sentenced to 120 days in jail, 60 of which may be suspended if the person completes treatment. Additionally, the person is subject to fines and assessments of at least $3,000 and may be required to perform community restitution.

Finally, a person commits aggravated OUI, a class 4 felony, if the person commits a third or subsequent OUI or extreme OUI offense within the past 60 months. The person is subject to fines and assessments of at least $3,750 and is sentenced to four months in prison for a third violation and eight months in prison for a subsequent violation.
S.B. 1080 aligns OUI penalties with current DUI sentencing requirements, fines and assessments, except in some circumstances judges have discretion to suspend a portion of extreme OUI sentences, but not extreme DUI sentences. The fiscal impact associated with this legislation is unknown. While city and county jails and the Arizona Department of Corrections may have an increase in the sentence duration of OUI incarcerations as a result of this legislation, fines and assessments collected as a result of OUI convictions may also increase.

Provisions
Operating Under the Influence
1. Requires a person convicted of OUI to serve not less than ten consecutive days in jail and specifies that the person is not eligible for probation or suspension of execution of sentence unless the entire sentence is served.

2. Allows the judge to suspend all but 24 hours of an OUI sentence, instead of the entire sentence, if the person completes a court ordered treatment program.

3. Increases the look-back period, from 60 to 84 months, for determining a second time or aggravated OUI offense.

4. Requires a second time OUI offender to perform at least 30 hours of community service, instead of allowing the court to order the person to perform community service.

5. Removes the requirement that the person pay the costs of treatment.

6. Disallows a judge to do the following:
a) if the judge determines that the person requires further treatment, to require the person pursuant to court order to obtain treatment under the court’s supervision from an approved facility.
b) to review a treatment determination at the request of the state, the defendant or on the judge’s initiative.

7. Removes the requirement for a treatment facility to report to the court whether the person has successfully completed the treatment program.

8. Eliminates immunity from liability for political subdivisions processing or utilizing the services of a person ordered to perform community restitution for an OUI offense.

9. Disallows the court to provide in the sentence that the person be released from jail for up to 12 hours per day and five days per week to continue his or her employment or studies.

10. Disallows an OUI offender to be eligible for a home detention program.

11. Removes the requirement that the court allow the allegation of a prior conviction or other pending OUI charge filed 20 days or more before the date the case is tried and removes the ability of the court to allow the allegation of a prior conviction or other pending OUI charge filed any time before the date the case is tried.

12. Disallows any OUI conviction to be used to enhance another conviction.

13. Eliminates the requirement for probation to be supervised.

Extreme Operating Under the Influence
14. Requires a person convicted of an extreme OUI to pay an additional assessment of $250 and provides rules for the transfer of the monies to the Driving Under the Influence Abatement Fund.

15. Requires any fine, assessment, restitution and incarceration costs to be paid before the above assessment.

16. Requires a person convicted of an extreme OUI with a BAC of 0.20 or more to pay a minimum fine of $500 for the first offense and $1000 for a second OUI offense within 84 months.

17. Prescribes the following minimum sentences for persons convicted of extreme OUI with a BAC of 0.20 or more, and prohibits the person from being eligible for probation or suspension of execution of sentence unless the entire sentence has been served:
a) 45 consecutive days in jail for a first time extreme OUI offender.
b) 180 days in jail, 90 of which must be served consecutively, for a second extreme OUI offender.

18. Requires, instead of allows, the court to order a second time extreme OUI offender to perform at least 30 hours of community restitution.

Aggravated Operating Under the Influence
19. Specifies that a person is guilty of aggravated OUI if he or she commits an OUI offense while a person under 15 years of age is aboard the motorized watercraft.

20. Classifies the above aggravated OUI offense as a class 6 felony.

21. Specifies the following minimum terms of incarceration for persons convicted of the above aggravated OUI offense:
a) 10 consecutive days, for a first offense OUI if the person’s BAC was below 0.15 (all but 24 hours may be suspended).
b) 90 days, at least 30 of which must be served consecutively, for a second offense OUI if the person’s BAC was below 0.15 (all but 30 days may be suspended).
c) 30 consecutive days, for a first offense extreme OUI if the person’s BAC was at least 0.15, but below 0.20 (all but 10 days may be suspended).
d) 45 consecutive days for a first offense extreme OUI, if the person’s BAC was 0.20 or more.
e) 120 days, 60 of which must be served consecutively, for a second offense extreme OUI if the person’s BAC was below 0.20 (all but 60 days may be suspended).
f) 180 days, 90 of which must be served consecutively, for a second offense extreme OUI if the person’s BAC was 0.20 or more.

22. Requires the court, in addition to any other penalty prescribed by law, to order a person convicted of aggravated OUI to pay an additional assessment of $250 and provides rules for the transfer of the monies to the DUI Abatement Fund.

23. Requires any fine, assessment, restitution and incarceration costs to be paid before the above assessment.

24. Excludes the following time periods when determining the 84 month look-back period for aggravated OUI:
a) the time that a probationer is found to be on absconder status.
b) the time that a person is incarcerated in any state, federal, county or city jail or correctional facility.

Alcohol Concentration Tests and Refusal to Submit

25. Requires both of the following, instead of one of the following, to be true in order for results of a breath test administered to determine a person’s BAC to be admissible as evidence:
a) duplicate tests were administered and the test results were within 0.02 alcohol concentration of each other.
b) an operator observed the person charged with OUI for 15 minutes, instead of 20 minutes, immediately preceding the administration of the test.

26. Removes the Department of Health Services as an agency that can approve a quantitative breath testing device or an operational checklist for conducting breath tests.

27. Increases the civil penalty from $750 to $3,000 and the additional civil penalty from $500 to $1,000 for refusing to submit to a blood alcohol concentration test.

Watercrafts
28. Allows the Arizona Game and Fish Commission to register a watercraft for up to a period of 36 months, instead of 18.

29. Requires the operator of a watercraft involved in a collision, accident or other casualty to do the following:
a) immediately stop the watercraft at the scene or as close as possible to the scene of the collision, accident or other casualty, but immediately return to the scene.
b) remain at the scene of the collision, accident or other casualty until the operator has given his or her name, address and identification of his or her watercraft to any person injured and to the owners of any property damaged.

30. Eliminates the class 2 misdemeanor classification for not immediately stopping a watercraft to allow a peace officer to come aboard, and instead designates as a class 5 felony wilfully fleeing or attempting to elude a pursuing officer who is ordering the operator ashore to correct any unlawful condition, issuing a written warning or repair order or issuing a citation.

31. Requires the law enforcement watercraft to be appropriately marked to show that it is an official law enforcement watercraft.

Miscellaneous
32. Makes technical and conforming changes.

33. Becomes effective on the general effective date.

SB 1470 ~ Photo Radar; Prohibition on Highways

FACT SHEET FOR S.B. 1470
photo radar; prohibition on highways

Purpose
Prohibits the use of photo enforcement systems on state highways to detect speed
violators.

Background
Photo enforcement systems, commonly referred to as photo radar, utilize digital cameras,
computers and radar sensors to detect violations of speed limit and red light laws.

There are two types of photo radar systems, fixed and mobile. A fixed photo radar system
is the most common form of photo radar and can be installed on the side of a road or mounted
overhead in gantries, while a mobile photo radar system is mounted on a mobile device that
usually takes one of two basic forms: 1) a photo radar camera or sensor that can be moved from
one fixed location to the next; or 2) a photo radar camera or sensor that is mounted in a van or
tethered to a vehicle.

Photo radar typically utilizes two cameras to identify the vehicle and driver involved in
speeding or red light violations. One camera is utilized to produce an image of the oncoming
driver’s face while the other camera is used to identify the vehicle’s rear license plate.
Under most contracts in Arizona, when traffic violations are detected using photo radar,
the photo radar vendor reviews and validates the citation. Upon validation, a traffic citation is
filed against the registered owner of the vehicle in the appropriate municipal court having
jurisdiction over the violation. After the citation is filed, notice is sent by mail to the vehicle’s
registered owner. If the owner does not respond, a process server is sent to serve the complaint to the owner in person or may leave copies at the owner’s home with another resident of suitable
age and discretion. If the person in the photograph is not the registered owner of the vehicle,
municipalities may allow the owner to identify the driver and transfer responsibility for the
traffic citation.

Currently, there is only one statute, A.R.S. § 28-654, governing the use of photo radar to
identify traffic violations in Arizona. The statute requires local municipalities using photo radar
systems to display signs indicating to drivers on the road that a photo radar system is present and operational.

There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this
proposed legislation.

Provisions
1. Prohibits a photo enforcement system from being used on state highways to detect violators
of speed restrictions.
2. Becomes effective on the general effective date.

Last Call for E-Verify Demo

Dear Friends,

Over 1,000 people have participated in the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry E-Verify webinars since August. With the new employer sanctions law in effect, every Arizona employer is required to use E-Verify to confirm the work authorization of new hires.

The Arizona Chamber will continue to hold these sessions each Thursday at 11 a.m. through the end of February. Beginning in March we will offer the webinars on a monthly basis. The sessions will be at 11 a.m. on the following dates:

Feb 14
Feb 21
Feb 28
Mar 20
Apr 17
May 15
Jun 17

It is vital that every employer learn about E-Verify and sign up for the program in order to be in compliance with Arizona law. To register for a webinar, send your name, company information, and participation date to info@azchamber.com.If you have any questions about the webinars, the Arizona law, or E-Verify, please don't hesitate to contact our office.

You can also view the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Employer Handbook on our website at: http://zewola.com/fs/d:l/wwau4vjfif4z8m/wwj10e11e68jqc/1

Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry
602.248.9172

Havasu Household Hazardous Waste Day

Havasu's Household Hazardous Waste Day is Saturday, March 1, 2008.

London Bridge Shopping Center, better known as the Swap Meet, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Household hazardous products will be disposed of safely and in most cases, recycled.

Items accepted include:
motor oil, anti-freeze, brake fluid, batteries, tires, pesticides, pool chlorine, paints, gasoline, acids, cleaners, bleaches, aerosol cans, propane tanks and other products labeled caution, warning, danger, toxic or flammable.

Please remember that items must be labeled and secured to prevent leaks.

Standard solid waste such as trash, furniture, appliances, rubbish and tree/brush trimmings will not be accepted.

Call the Lake Havasu City Fire Department at (928) 453-3313 for more information.”

No Driver's License for Illegal Immigrants

Utah House votes to repeal driver cards for immigrants in country illegally...not a bad idea!

Arizona~Great Place for Business

According to Chief Executive Magazine, as a place to do business Arizona ranks 5th in the nation with Texas snagging the top spot. California finished dead last.

Things That Make Your Blood Boil...

Read this article about the Peach Springs School District and tell me that your blood doesn't boil first over the mismanagement, then over the fact that this gentleman still has a job.