How Arizona Will Be Affected by the Lieberman-Warner Global Climate Change Legislation

"...The Lieberman-Warner legislation promises extraordinary perils for the American economy, should it become law... Implementing S. 2191 would be costly in Arizona, even given the most generous assumptions."

Read this short article about how the Lieberman-Warner legislation would effect Arizona, in particular.

LOOKING BACK: One Year Ago

NOTE: I was going through my archived emails and I found this email that I sent out one year ago tomorrow so I thought I would post it as a reminder of what I have been through and how far I have come. Praise God!!!

Good Morning to all!

(Writing to you from Lake Havasu…great to be home now more than in PHX as budget talks are winding down and session is almost over. Make a note that we can be reached more easily here in LHC for the remainder of the year.)

Just a quick note to let you know how much I love you guys and am very grateful for your prayers, cards, and emails with sweet words of encouragement. Frank and I are so thankful God has surrounded us with family and friends like you that are faithful and forgiving, focused on the future. By the grace of God, with your support I recently received my 60 day chip from AA and have just over 2 months sober!

I can honestly say that I am thankful that my struggles with alcohol are known to all for the publicity motivated me to seek help. Entering rehab at Calvary Center in Phoenix was one of the best decisions I have ever made. They offer a faith-based program for recovery from alcohol, drugs, and gambling addictions in addition to a more traditional tract. I expected the majority of people in rehab would be from the Phoenix area. Was I surprised to find out that it was exactly the opposite…people from all over the country made up the majority of the clients! Apparently Calvary Center has an outstanding reputation (including being praised on the Dr. Phil show) and costs only a fraction of the price of other 30 day programs. God is working there…what a wonderful place!

Click on this link http://wwwdev.psysolutions.com/facilities/calvary/site/ for more information.

I am sure that many of you are curious about my legal situation and so I will give you the straight dirt as opposed to the half-baked stuff you find when you “Google” my name. The truth is that I am in legal limbo. No charges have been filed as of yet, no prosecutor has this case, no court assigned, that is besides the court of public opinion. Some folks think that because of this lack of action that I am getting special treatment. I can tell you this, I would rather the process commence ASAP. I made a horrid decision to drink and drive and am not attempting to escape prosecution, not at all. The actions of the La Paz county prosecutor have caused the delay; he created a conflict of interest when he emailed me shortly after my arrest and now outside authorities are involved. Though I wish this consequence of my poor judgment behind me, I know for certain that my timing is no match for God’s timing and that my future is in His hands. It is unfathomable but Frank and I have great peace despite the unknown and that only comes from Him.

"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus" (Phil. 4:6-7).

From the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, pp 83-84
"We are going to know a new freedom and a new happiness. We will not forget the past nor wish to shut the door on it. We will comprehend the word serenity and we will know peace. No matter how far down the scale we have gone, we will see how our experience can benefit others. That feeling of uselessness and self-pity will disappear. We will lose interest in selfish things and gain interest in our fellows. Self-seeking will slip away. Our whole attitude and out-look upon life will change. Fear of people and of economic insecurity will leave us. We will intuitively know how to handle situations which used to baffle us. We will suddenly realize that God is doing for us what we could not do for ourselves".

Again, thank you for your love and forgiveness,

Trish

AZ Citizens Defense League

This is a wonderful website with so much to offer, but the best feature offered, in my opinion is the past that categorizes 2008 proposed legislation along with the bill summary and status. WOW...though I do not agree with the League's position on a couple pieces of legislation mentioned, this is quite a useful tool for those trying to stay "in the know".

A Woman's Right to Light

I found this petition online when surfing the Internet, attempting to stay abreast of all things Arizona. The proposal is called "A Woman's Right to Light" and no, it has nothing to do with smoking. The verbiage of the measure is as follows:

"We, the undersigned, call on the Arizona Legislature to pass a law that states that a woman has the right to drive to a lighted, populated area when being stopped by law enforcement at night, for her safety and that of the officer."

The woman would be required to signal the officer by turning on her hazard lights and reducing her speed to a specified limit to communicate her intention to stop in a lighted area.

QUESTION: Is this necessary?

Found on a Phoenix-based Real Estate Blog

"Here is the scam. The Arizona Legislature is mandating that the state’s power companies generate 15% of their power from renewable sources by 2025 (never mind for the moment that this will never happen once the consumer sees the price for being green). Now one of the power companies already generates 3% of its power from the hydro system we discussed and the environmental lobby feels like that gives it a head start on meeting its goal. Ergo, hydropower should be defined as a non-renewable resource. Go figure. You do the right thing and they don’t even say thanks. They just pile on a bit more.
I don’t want to get into a debate or write a rant about the whole global warming mania but this sort of logic shows how much this whole issue is about politics and power and how little it is about truly doing something about CO2...Whether or not a small utility in Arizona needs to up its commitment to renewable energy sources by 3% because it already gets 3% of its power from renewables will not make a bit of difference to the planet’s atmosphere. It will contribute mightily to the sense of cynicism the larger debate in engendering."

Final Passage Calendar for Monday, June 2, 2008

HB2064-->e-learning task force

HB2105-->tax refund check-off boxes

HB2470-->board of behavior analysts

HB2622-->exemption; preconstruction services

NOTE: "FINAL PASSAGE" for a House Bill means that a House Bill made it all the way through the process in the House and was sent to the Senate and got "AMENDED" or changed in the Senate. When a bill is amended in the Senate, the bill must come back to the House for a vote before the entire body. If the bill as amended passes then the bill is transmitted to the Governor. Senate bills amended in the House also go through a similar process.

Third Read Calendar for Monday, June 2, 2008

SB1117-->hospitals; single group licenses

SB1128->omnibus; occupational therapy board
(Usually, I am a "NO" on omnibus bills as inveriably they have a bunch of junk in them to make them paletable to all. In reality, they should probably be split into several different bills. That way, I can support the good proposals and vote against the bad. I cannot understand why members insist on running OMNIBUS bills.)

SB1153-->improvised explosive device; definition

SB1291-->towing companies; release of vehicles

SB1337-->centennial funding; capitol renovation
(Unless I change my mind, which is very doubtful, I will be a "NO" on this bill. With revenue shortfalls continuing to loom in the future and unrestrained spending both past and present...as much as we need a new capitol...I just believe this falls short in the list of priorities.)

AFT 2007 Legislative Ranking

Finally made it to CHAMPION OF THE TAXPAYER!

I would love to be recognized as HERO but it is a tough year for that, budget-wise. That is not going to stop me from trying though.

ATF 2006 Legislative Ranking

With the election coming up, I thought things like this chart of rankings from the Arizona Federation of Taxypayers might help you rate your legislators.

AFT 2005 Legislative Rankings

My first year in office, greener than green, and I still manage to rank as "FRIEND OF THE TAXPAYER". Click the title of the post to see how other legislators rank.

Goldwater Institute Legislators Report Card

This link will take you to 2005-2007 Scores for Gould, McLain, and myself. 2008 Report Cards will be out early fall, I believe.

State Tax Revenue Falling Short

This East Valley Tribune article provides a good synopsis our current fiscal situation and some potential short-term solutions. That the shortfall is approximately $2.2 Billion dollars comes as no surprize to me...the $1.8 Billion Dollar figure is just a figure that was agreed upon by the Governor and leadership earlier this year.

National Do Not Call Registry

NOTE: Since Frank and I have been spending more time at home, we have noticed an increase in telemarketing calls. I thought it time to reregister our numbers on the National Do Not Call Registry. Any new numbers registered will not expire due to federal legislation that went into effect in February of this year.

From the website:

"The National Do Not Call Registry gives you a choice about whether to receive telemarketing calls at home. Most telemarketers should not call your number once it has been on the registry for 31 days. If they do, you can file a complaint at this Website. You can register your home or mobile phone for free."

Mercy and Grace ~ Another Great Example of Good in this World

KOMONEWS.COM
By Michelle Esteban
Watch the story

KIRKLAND, Wash. -- "It will take thousands of dollars and several surgeries to reconstruct a local man's face. James O'Neal compares himself to the Elephant Man. A genetic disease left his face horribly disfigured, but that could soon change. O'Neal knows his deformity shocks people. He knows others with the same genetic disorder would rather hide than work, but for 7 years James has proudly worked the registers at the Kingsgate Safeway..."

This is a must-read inspirational true story of a brave man, determined woman and the power of Mercy and Grace! Kudos to Safeway and Kinkos for taking part in this grassroots effort to make a difference in a life of one in need.!

A Message From State Representative Russell Pearce

Avoiding Arizona’s Fiscal Train Wreck
By Bob Burns and Russell Pearce

Arizona has the largest budget deficit in the country, and the growing gap between state tax revenues and projected spending will soon force the state government into a gigantic fiscal train wreck.

For Fiscal Year 2009, which begins on July 1, Gov. Janet Napolitano and the liberal majority in the Legislature want to spend $11.4 billion. The amount of tax revenue available to spend is $9.4 billion. That leaves a gap of $2.0 billion.

The Governor has proposed a variety of approaches to the deficit, including a $500 million increase in unconstitutional debt, a $90 million increase in traffic-camera fines, and a $60 million shift in prison burdens to Arizona counties.

Combined with a $300 million K-12 rollover and a $200 million payment from the Rainy Day Fund, her approaches would reduce the deficit by roughly $1.2 billion—still nearly a billion dollars short of closing the gap. In the real world, there are only three possible solutions to the deficit:

1) Raise taxes.
This is the worst option. Arizona families and businesses already labor under heavy tax burdens, and a recession is a bad time to make those burdens worse. Even so, the Governor has already proposed increasing state property taxes by $250 million, and is heading up an effort (the TIME Coalition) to increase state sales taxes by 18 percent.

2) Increase (unconstitutional) debt.
This is another bad option. Increasing debt usually means increasing future taxes. Further, the debt service payments required for the Governor’s proposed debt schemes would soon be over $200 million a year—meaning that the fiscal holes in 2010 and beyond would be that much deeper. To climb out of those holes, Arizona would have to see spectacular economic growth, with revenue growth of over 15 percent per year for three years in a row.

3) Reduce spending.
According to the Governor’s budget office, state government spending now consumes 7.01 percent of the state’s economy—more than it has at any time since 1980. Our proposal is to reducing spending to more reasonable levels.

We have identified more than $1.5 billion in reductions to state agencies. Combined with the K-12 rollover and a payment from the Rainy Day Fund, those reductions would balance the budget without increasing debt or taxes.

Although it sounds like a lot, $1.5 billion in operating budget reductions to the Executive’s request would take us back to the overall spending levels we had in FY 2007—not exactly the end of the world. Government spending as a portion of the state economy would still be larger than it was in FY 2003, before the Governor and Legislature went on a five-year spending binge.

Further, many of the agency reductions we propose could be avoided if a majority in the Legislature would refer to the November ballot a measure (HCR 2044) by which the voters could give the Legislature emergency discretion to temporarily suspend voter-protected spending mandates. As it is, much of the state budget is on autopilot, with automatic spending increases of over $500 million a year.

Sadly, there may not be enough fiscal conservatives in the Legislature to get $1.8 billion in spending reductions to the Governor’s desk, or to refer HCR 2044 to the ballot. That means large increases in unconstitutional debt. And, if the fiscal train really goes off the tracks, it could mean large tax increases and heavy long-term damage to our economy.

As Americans for Prosperity (http://www.aztaxpayers.org/) has explained, the only good card fiscal conservatives hold in this year’s fiscal-policy poker game is the wild card of grassroots taxpayer activism. With strong grassroots pressure on liberal legislators from both parties, the Legislature would be able to bargain harder with the Governor for spending reductions and refer HCR 2044 to the ballot.

To avoid future fiscal train wrecks, voters must enact a firm constitutional spending limit that will keep the government from growing faster than the economy. As the current train wreck shows, the Governor and the liberal majority in the Legislature simply do not have the will to restrain themselves when it comes to spending our tax dollars.

Rep. Russell Pearce (R-Mesa) is the Appropriations Chairman of the Arizona House of Representative, Sen. Bob Burns (R-Peoria) is the Appropriations Chairman of the Arizona Senate.

Action Alert: Your Help Needed

Firefighter Events is excited to announce that a portion of the ticket sales for their 2008 Yamaha Waverunner raffle will be allocated to assist Seth Kemp, a 10-year-old Lake Havasu City boy diagnosed with a rare form of lymphoma.

The raffle will be done in conjunction with the 8th Annual Firefighter Regatta & Poker Run weekend in Lake Havasu City, AZ. With three prizes offered, the winning ticket(s) will be drawn Saturday June 7th at 9 p.m. in the Nautical Inn Convention Center.

For more information you can contact Mike Kemp at 928-208-5759

Tickets are limited with only 500 available and the winner need NOT be present to win so don't miss out. Proceeds benefit various charities supported by Firefighter Events with the majority of proceeds going to the Firefighter Cancer Support Network.

PICK UP LOCATIONS: Stop by the locations listed below to purchase your ticket:
Walt's Motorsports & Marine 1551 S. Palo Verde- LHC
Car Toyz 512 N. Lake Havasu Ave.- LHC

For a purchase of a ticket you can get three chances of winning:

• the Wave-runner,
• a big screen TV (size 32" or bigger, but to be determined later)
• a trip to Havasu (it will include a hotel stay, dinner and a gas card).

Along with the purchase of a ticket part of the proceeds will go to Jeff and his family as well as supporting the Fire Fighter Cancer Support Group.

14 Months Sober!

Today makes 14 months sober! I thank my God, my husband, my family and friends for their prayers, frustration, fury, and forgiveness. I thank my supporters for their mercy and their grace.

Luke 24:47
It was also written that this message would be proclaimed in the authority of his name to all the nations, beginning in Jerusalem: ‘There is forgiveness of sins for all who repent.’

Catching Up ~ Abeit Briefly

Just a short post for now as I am, as they say in the South, "plum tuckered out". It has been a long day of signature gathering capped off by a farewell party for local radio-show host Steve Cleverly given to him by his friends at the radio station. Steve is an intelligent man, a fair interviewer, and a friend. I will miss his questions, his insight, and point of view. I wish him and his beautiful and classy wife well on their next endeavor.

Between signature gathering stops I did visit Lake Havasu City Hall to see Charlie Cassens and catch him up on all that is happening (and not happening) with proceedings in Phoenix. Charlie is great about passing word to our local officials and then onto Kingman and Bullhead City and I appreciate the job that he performs. I do not know if he gets recognition for his services to the citizens of Lake Havasu though he surely deserves some.

Though I am thankful for the extra day off from the legislature and put it to good use by visiting local business owners, saying hello to sorely missed friends, I do regret the decision of House and Senate Leadership to adjourn until Monday. The adjournment does provide them with time to meet with the Governor's staff and hammer out key budget proposals, though but to me, it does not pass the "smell-test".

On Wednesday I did participate in a small budget meeting held by House leadership Boone and McComish and will post about the discussion that took place in my next post but for now I must return some work-related emails before calling it a day. Tomorrow morning is the sunrise Chamber mixer at La Fiesta on McCulloch Blvd. in Lake Havasu and I plan to be there to welcome the morning with some long-lost friends.

Arrivederci ;)

Court: Polygamist Sect Children Should Be Returned to Parents

"The Third Court of Appeals in Austin ruled last week that the state failed to show that any more than five of the teenage girls were being sexually abused, and had offered no evidence of sexual or physical abuse against the other children."

Mohave Republican Forum Meeting

5:30 Dinner Meeting
Kingman Elk's Club
Tuesday, June 10th

SPEAKERS: Mohave County Sheriff Candidates, Sheriff Tom Sheahan & Challenger Ron Weaver, in addition to Mohave County Attorney Matt Smith, who is seeking re-election.

This gathering, open to the public, includes dinner for $10 per person. For information, please call Shirley at 753-5183, or Donna at 692-9872, or Laurie at 753-5581.

Favorite Hillary Clinton You-Tube Video

Awakening: Here We Go

Many of you so faithfully prayed for my sister (and her husband) when she was pregnant with twins, a boy and a girl. Precious little baby boy had some heart problems and was with us only four short months after being born. His beautiful sister just turned two. Praise God! Well, as the title of my brother-in-law's post says it all and I am asking for your faithful prayers again.

UPDATE: My sister and her husband are expecting! Praise God!!!!

Good Friends, Good Times

Senator Gould's oldest son got married a couple weeks ago and these are just some of the beautiful pictures of the wedding held at Calvary Baptist Church here in Lake Havasu. The reception was held at Shugrue's Bridgeview Room which is the same place Frank and I got married. The first photo was taken right outside Shugrue's on their lush lawn, almost under the famous London Bridge. Congratulations to Senator Gould and the entire Gould family!

Subway sandwich contest: Homeschoolers not wanted

"Subway, the sandwich restaurant, wants to hear your child's story – unless he or she is homeschooled."

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. Contest is open only to legal residents of the Untied (sic) States who are currently over the age of 18 and have children who attend elementary, private or parochial schools that serve grades PreK-6. No home schools will be accepted.


Subway's website promotion not only misspells "United" States, but offers the grand prize winner a "Scholastic Gift Bastket (sic) for your home."

Memorial Day

" 'Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.' "
— John 15:13

Today I give thanks to all of the brave men and women who have fought and those who continue to fight for our country.

Global Warming's New 'Consensus' - Opinion

"The Oregon Institute of Science and Medicine this week announced that 31,072 U.S. scientists signed a petition stating that '… There is no convincing scientific evidence that human release of carbon dioxide, methane or other greenhouse gases is causing, or will cause in the future, catastrophic heating of the Earth’s atmosphere and disruption of the Earth’s climate...'"

Legislators Need Fix for Budget Crisis

PHOENIX (AP) - Four months after starting their 2008 regular session back in January, Arizona legislators will return from the holiday weekend with plenty of work still on their plate.

Topping the to-do list: a new state budget, one that somehow erases $2 billion in red ink projected for what could be a $10 billion spending plan for the 2008-09 fiscal year that begins July 1.

Other topics awaiting action include meaty proposals on guest workers, child protection, gay marriage, drunken driving and a proposed rock 'n' roll theme park.

From the Detriot Free Press

"Janet Napolitano Another tough, Democratic woman in a Republican state, the Arizona governor, 50, won re-election in 2006 with 70% of the vote. Weathered criticism for vetoing tough anti-illegal immigration bills and proactively launched a state discount program for prescription drugs. But this maverick also has described Washington as a place where good ideas go to die."

FreeRice

FreeRice has two goals:

1 Provide English vocabulary to everyone for free.

2 Help end world hunger by providing rice to hungry people for free.

Say Nice Things About McCain, Earn “Points”

Points for praise...? Wish I'd thought of that, I say to myself with just a touch of snark.