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Senate President Names New Appropriations Chair

August 19, 2011 By Leave a Comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 22, 2011
CONTACT: Mike Philipsen

Senator Shooter of Yuma will lead key committee 

(Phoenix, State Capitol)—-Senate President Russell Pearce announced today he is naming Senator Don Shooter chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee.

“Senator Shooter is a strong fiscal conservative. He works well with his colleagues and the Governor. He will put the taxpayers of Arizona first,” says President Pearce.

Sen. Shooter currently serves as Chair of the Appropriations Sub-committee on Rural Issues, Education & Natural Resources.

“It will be a year of reform, with a smaller, more efficient government. With this pro-jobs, pro-education, pro-public safety Senate we have a great opportunity to continue to move Arizona in the right direction,” says Sen. Shooter. “We will return in January with no deficit, thanks to the Senate’s hard work in delivering a balanced budget.”

“Senator Shooter will be an outstanding Appropriations chair, continuing our effort to stimulate the economy with lower taxes and reduced regulation,” says Pres. Pearce. “He understands the process and has a good working relationship with the House and the Governor. Senator Shooter has the time and willingness to work with Leadership on budget issues important to Arizona.”

Shooter replaces Senator Andy Biggs, who is now Majority Leader in the Senate.

“Senator Biggs will stay very engaged in the Appropriations process, and Appropriations Vice-Chair Ron Gould is a seasoned Senator and a longtime Appropriations member. With Senator Shooter moving into this leadership role, our Appropriations team becomes even stronger,” says Pres. Pearce.

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Filed Under: Press Release, State Budget, State Government, Taxation Tagged With: , ,

ACLU at it Again; Files Lawsuit Challenging Center for Arizona Policy-Supported Bill

August 19, 2011 By 2 Comments

ACLU at it Again; Files Lawsuit Challenging
Center for Arizona Policy-Supported Bill

Lawsuit ignores longstanding precedent from the U.S. Supreme Court

PHOENIX – The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has filed a lawsuit challenging HB 2384, which was signed by Governor Brewer earlier this year. Center for Arizona Policy (CAP) drafted and supported this legislation that ensures that donations to organizations that provide, promote, or provide referrals for abortion do not qualify for the state’s Working Poor Tax Credit.

The misguided lawsuit claims that HB 2384 violates the First Amendment rights of some organizations in Arizona because the policy is favoring life over abortion.

Yet the ACLU’s claims are in stark contrast to consistent precedent from the U.S. Supreme Court that government entities are allowed to create programs that support one type of behavior over another.

“There is no legitimate free speech issue here. Our nation’s highest court has said time and time again that government entities can offer benefits supporting childbirth over abortion,” said Center for Arizona Policy Legal Counsel Deborah Sheasby. “The longstanding public policy of our state is to promote life, and that is what HB 2384 does.”

The Legislature created the tax credit program to promote its own policy of ensuring that citizens’ immediate basic needs are met. This is a narrowly-crafted program, with specific parameters, for which less than five hundred organizations qualify. There are thousands of non-profit organizations that do not qualify, and this does not create any constitutional problems.

“In passing this bill, the Legislature rightly said that abortion does not qualify as an ‘immediate basic need’ and is therefore not the type of service that the charitable tax credit is seeking to promote. This legislation will not block one woman from having an abortion if she chooses,” said Sheasby.

Read more about Working Poor Tax Credit from the Department of Revenue here: http://1.usa.gov/fMLyAq

Read Center for Arizona Policy’s fact sheet on HB 2384 here: http://bit.ly/orlChc

Read HB 2384: http://1.usa.gov/ro4ePE

For more information, visit azpolicy.org or contact Aaron Baer, 602.456.1792

 

Center for Arizona Policy promotes and defends the foundational values of life,
marriage and family, and religious liberty.

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Filed Under: Judicial, Legislation, Sanctity of Life Tagged With: , , ,

Governor Brewer’s Statement on Obama’s Back Door Amnesty Plan

August 19, 2011 By 8 Comments

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 18, 2011
CONTACT: Matthew Benson

Obama Plan to Block Deportations Amounts to Backdoor Amnesty

“The Obama administration cannot get its amnesty schemes through Congress, so now it has resorted to implementing its plans via executive fiat. There‟s simply no other description for today‟s announcement that the federal government will not pursue the deportation of individuals who are in the country illegally but meet certain criteria.

“This plan amounts to backdoor amnesty for hundreds of thousands – if not millions – of illegal aliens. Especially disturbing is that it comes in the wake of the Obama administration sanctioning the sale of weapons to Mexican drug cartels – even as border states such as Arizona come under threat from those same illicit organizations. With this announcement, the President is encouraging more illegal immigration at the exact moment we need federal focus on border security.

“Just last month in speaking to the National Council of La Raza, President Obama rejected the idea of bypassing Congress and imposing immigration reform. He said, „Now, I know some people want me to bypass Congress and change the laws on my own. And believe me, right now dealing with Congress, the idea of doing things on my own is very tempting … But that’s not how our system works. That‟s not how our democracy functions. That’s not how our Constitution is written.‟

“President Obama got it right last month and got it really wrong today.

“Over the next 15 months, I‟m certain we‟ll hear a lot of talk from the Obama administration about its concern for border security. Those of us who truly care about the rule of law will remember the President‟s actions of today. We need to remind President Obama that we elected a president that serves beneath the law and did not anoint a king that is above the law.”

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Filed Under: Crime and Punishment, Elected Officials, Illegal Aliens, Illegal Employment, Illegal Immigration, Press Release Tagged With:

Rep Giffords requests campaign funds for home security upgrade… in Texas

August 19, 2011 By 20 Comments

The Hill is reporting that Arizona’s Congressman Gabrielle Giffords has requested that she be granted a waiver by the Federal Elections Commission to use donor money to upgrade her home security in Texas.

Excuse me but doesn’t Gabrielle Giffords represent the citizens of Arizona’s eight congressional district?

And why would an elected official who is already being compensated by the taxpayers not use their salary to pay for such an expense rather than tapping into donor campaign funds?

According to the report the estimated cost of the security upgrade is $2,209.

Giffords’ request is not exclusive. Apparently, Republican Lee Terry of Nebraska also requested and received permission to upgrade his home security but he lives and serves in the State of Nebraska.

Southern Arizona constituents should be asking two questions:

  1. Why not use regular congressional salary funds for the upgrade?
  2. Does the use of donor campaign money on a Texas property evade the issue of taxpayer dollars being used on a non-Arizona property?
Perhaps given the politically correct climate surrounding Giffords’ horrific situation this is making a mountain out of a molehill? Seeking intense rehabilitation in Texas where her husband resides was certainly her medical decision but Southern Arizona constituents are starting to question whether its in everyone’s best interest if Giffords continues to serve.
Filed Under: Elected Officials, Guest Opinion Tagged With: ,