50+ Extreme laws blocked by Governor Hobbs in just 5 months.
Thank You Governor Hobbs
When Katie Hobbs faced death threats from 2020 election deniers she did not back down. She put her well-being on the line to protect Arizona’s free and fair elections. Now as our Governor, she is once again answering the call by stopping extremist, election denying legislators who refuse to focus on the needs of Arizona families. In this uncertain economic time, her battle-tested leadership will empower her to fight relentlessly for all of us. With Governor Hobbs’ focus on results, the chaos and empty promises that have plagued our state for far too long are finally over.
Blocked by Governor Hobbs
VETOED BILLS 2023
Anti-Democracy
House Bill 2415 — Permanent early voting list change
VETOED: Creates unnecessary additions to state statutes while not solving any actual issues.
Hobbs’ Position: Arizona's active early voting list is secure and convenient for voters. I stand ready to sign bills that make voting more accessible, accurate, and secure. This bill accomplishes none of these goals.
House Bill 2560 – Images; voter lists; records; contest
VETOED: Threatens voter privacy and exacerbates conspiracy theories.
Hobbs’ Position: While I understand this bill is intended to further transparency in the election process, it could create serious problems. First, this bill threatens anonymity and privacy - core tenants of free and fair voting in our democracy. It also opens the door to the spread of additional election mis- and dis-information, which there is far too much of already. Finally, it places a burdensome, unfunded mandate on our election officials, who already face a multitude of challenges going into the 2024 election cycle. I do not doubt that this bill is well-intentioned, but it is clear to me that it creates more harm than good for Arizona's election officials and voters.
Senate Bill 1074 — Tabulating machine rules
VETOED: This bill neither strengthens our democracy, nor ensures that Arizonans can better exercise their fundamental right to vote.
Hobbs’ Position: The election equipment required by the bill, as well as the problem it purports to solve, does not exist. This bill neither strengthens our democracy, nor ensures that Arizonans can better exercise their fundamental right to vote. I stand ready to receive bills that do.
Senate Bill 1009 — Punishment for damaging monuments
VETOED: Is already covered by existing state and federal laws.
Hobbs’ Position: State law already provides adequate tools to prosecute criminal damage to the items contemplated in this bill, including Confederate monuments, and increasing the penalties will do little to deter such crime.
House Bill 2322 — Ballot signature verification standards
VETOED: Creates unnecessary additions to state statutes while not solving any actual issues.
Hobbs’ Position: The standards in this bill are already several years old and are more appropriately included as part of the Election Procedures Manual required by ARS 16-452, or as ongoing guidance developed by the Secretary of State in consultation with county election officials.
House Bill 2691 — Chain-of-custody requirements for ballots
VETOED: Creates unnecessary additions to state statutes while not solving any actual issues.
Hobbs’ Position: As I have stated previously, I am eager to work with the Legislature to advance legislation that strengthens our elections. This bill, unfortunately, does not advance that goal.
Senate Bill 1021 — Attorney General’s duties
VETOED: Existing state laws adequately outline duties.
Hobbs’ Position: Though the bill was amended to relieve the Attorney General of the duty to defend the constitutionality of state laws if she provides notice to the Legislature at least 10 days before any substantive or dispositive filing is due, there are often cases in which such filings are due in less than 10 days (e.g., expedited election cases or preliminary injunction deadlines).
The Attorney General, like other elected officials, swears an oath to support the Constitution and laws of Arizona and the United States. The litigation choices made by the Attorney General are therefore dictated not only by state law, but also by this allegiance to the Constitution and her ethical duties as an attorney.
Unfortunately, the legislature has been known to pass laws that its own lawyers advise would not survive constitutional scrutiny. On occasion, the legislature has even passed laws intended to prompt litigation. Rather than change state law to require the Attorney General to defend laws even under such circumstances, I encourage the legislature to be more exacting in its deliberations to ensure fidelity to the Constitution.
Senate Bill 1262 — Felony violation rearrest
VETOED: Would lead to due process concerns.
Hobbs’ Position: This bill raises due process concerns. I encourage the proponents to work with stakeholders in the interim and bring back a consensus proposal next session.
Senate Bill 1565 — AI in the election process
VETOED: Preventing state resources from being wasted on problems that do not exist.
Hobbs’ Position: I believe that there are opportunities to work together to tackle the challenges facing elections in Arizona. This bill, instead, attempts to solve challenges that do not currently face our State.
Government Overreach
Senate Bill 1184 — Eliminating tax on rentals/ Housing accessibility
VETOED: Does not guarantee that landlords will pass the savings on to tenants.
Hobbs’ Position: I appreciate the legislature's interest in addressing rising housing costs, particularly for renters. Lowering costs for Arizona families is a priority of my administration. Unfortunately, this bill suffers from two important defects at this time.
First, this bill lacks any enforceable mechanism to ensure relief will be provided to renters. As noted by the legislature's own attorney, provisions in the bill that purport to require that tax savings be passed on to renters face challenges under both the state and federal constitutions. If we are going to promise relief to renters, it's important that we are able to ensure they actually receive it. For working families faced with ever-increasing rental prices, this proposal just doesn't fit the bill.
Second, the bill includes an appropriation of roughly 270 million dollars over the next eighteen months. To approve of such an appropriation outside of a comprehensive budget agreement would be irresponsible. If the majority caucus is committed to such an appropriation, I expect that it will be brought to bipartisan budget negotiations for consideration.
Attacks on Education & School Safety
Senate Bill 1305 — Critical race theory in public schools
VETOED: Creates divisions and has no pedagogical value.
Hobbs’ Position: It's time to stop pushing students and teachers into culture wars rooted in fear-mongering and evidence-free accusations. Bills like SB1305 serve only to divide and antagonize.
I urge the Legislature to work with me on the real issues affecting Arizona schools: underfunded classrooms, a growing educator retention crisis, and school buildings in need of repair and replacement.
House Bill 2332 — Firearms training for students
VETOED: Does not address school violence.
Hobbs’ Position: Ensuring the safety of our students is a responsibility that belongs to all of us. Since taking office, I have met with gun safety advocates to discuss acts of preventable gun violence happening in our schools, colleges, and universities.
Mandatory firearm safety training in schools is not the solution to gun violence prevention. This requirement could lead to immediate and long-term impacts on the health and well-being of students, teachers, and parents. Nor is it prudent to allow parents to carry concealed weapons on school campuses. Allowing more guns on campus will not make a campus safer. Firearms on campus have the potential to confuse law enforcement as they arrive at an active shooter situation.
I'm focused on finding concrete solutions to gun violence prevention that protect Arizona families, including but not limited to, policy focused on trauma-informed emergency planning and safe, secure gun storage.
This session, Representative Jennifer Longdon introduced HB2192, also known as Christian's Law. The bill would have required gun owners to keep either ammunition or guns in a locked storage container or in a device that would render them inoperable without a combination or a key. The majority party decided to not give HB2192 a hearing in committee.
I will continue fighting for public safety measures that protect our schools and Arizona families from senseless acts of gun violence.
Senate Bill 1331 — Weapons on school campus
VETOED: Allowing more guns on campuses would not make them safer.
Hobbs’ Position: Ensuring the safety of our students is a responsibility that belongs to all of us. Since taking office, I have met with gun safety advocates to discuss acts of preventable gun violence happening in our schools, colleges, and universities.
House Bill 2474 — Student vaccinations
VETOED: Could cause public health issues and undermine public trust.
Hobbs’ Position: Vaccines are vitally important for the health and wellness of our state. This bill will undermine public trust in vaccines approved by the Federal Drug Administration.
Wasting Resources
House Bill 2440 — Utilities prioritizing 'reliable and affordable electric service
VETOED: creates regulatory uncertainty in instances where affordability and reliability may be at odds.
Hobbs’ Position: The Arizona Corporation Commission's (ACC) rate-making authority is defined in statute and bolstered by a significant body of case law that already compels the ACC to consider reliability and affordability in decision-making. HB 2440 is unnecessary and creates regulatory uncertainty in instances where affordability and reliability may be at odds.
Arizona's families are facing increased energy costs, disproportionately impacting the most vulnerable in our communities. My administration is working toward solutions that put dollars back in Arizonans' pockets, like rebate programs that provide vital support for families at risk of being unable to pay utility bills, while incentivizing energy-efficient home improvements that lower those bills from the outset.
I urge the Legislature to work with me on finding solutions that deliver direct assistance to Arizona families struggling with energy costs.
Senate Bill 1166 — State job applicants without college degrees
VETOED: Legislative mechanism it sought to set up is overly complex and cumbersome.
Hobbs’ Position: Ensuring that employment with the State of Arizona is available to as many talented individuals as possible is of great importance to me. The State's employees provide invaluable support to all Arizonans and it is my belief that we should ensure that all those that want to enter public service should have the opportunity to do so.
This bill, while working towards those goals, misses the mark and creates more problems than it solves. Ultimately, due to its unnecessary and unworkable administrative burden, I am forced to veto this bill. I am committed to signing legislation that works towards achieving the goals stated above in a less burdensome manner, and have done so today by signing HB2225.
Senate Bill 1101 — More power for third-party driver license providers
VETOED: Would create a significant public safety risk.
Hobbs’ Position: Authorized third parties (ATPs) may already offer the service to print an electronic certificate of title or a registration tab through the Arizona Department of Transportation's (ADOT) current process in which these items are printed from a central location. Allowing ATPs to print these security-enhanced certificates of title and registration tab stocks, outside of ADOT's central distribution model, poses a significant public safety risk.
