After weeks of nonsense, this week’s Appropriations committees have a few good bills, including: HB2329, which sets up five-year loans to help disadvantaged first-time homebuyers afford a down payment, HB2338 would expand Arizona’s Medicaid system to include preventive dental care, SB1546, would set up a $100,000 grant program for district and charter school community gardens, and SB1544, which would help keep families together by raising the monthly stipend for kinship foster care parents (those related to the child).
Wanna support good bills at the state legislature? Contact the members of House Appropriations on HB2329 and HB2338, and the members of Senate Appropriations on SB1546 and SB1544. (See contact info below.)If you are signed onto Request to Speak, you can also weigh in on that system before these bills are heard in committee. HB2329 and HB2338 will be heard on Monday. SB1544 and SB1546 is scheduled for Thursday.
Sign onto RTS: https://apps.azleg.gov/account/signon
Monday:
HB2329, sponsored by Marcelino Quiñonez (D-11), would appropriate $12 million from the general fund to create the First Generation Home Buyers Down Payment Assistance Grant Fund. The fund would provide five-year loans for first-time disadvantaged homebuyers to use for down payments. The goal is to help people buy what may be the first home for anyone in their extended family. Scheduled for House Appropriations Committee, Monday and Wednesday. SUPPORT.
HB2338, sponsored by Amish Shah (D-5), would expand Arizona’s Medicaid system to include preventive dental care. This would help maintain overall health and wellness, and save money by helping people avoid serious dental problems. Research shows that gum disease (which is preventable with routine care) may play a role in the development of a number of other conditions, including Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, and respiratory disease. Currently, adults on AHCCCS get only emergency dental care; exams, X-rays, cleanings and other preventive dentistry is not covered. Scheduled for House Appropriations Committee, Monday and Wednesday. SUPPORT.
Thursday:
SB1544, sponsored by Lela Alston (D-5), would raise the monthly stipend for kinship foster care parents (those related to the child) to the same $600 per month that every other foster parent gets. Kinship foster parents are often grandparents raising grandkids; the bill sponsor, who has been working for parity for these families since 2019, says some families must send the children back to the state because they cannot afford to take care of them. Scheduled for Senate Appropriations Committee, Thursday. SUPPORT.
SB1546, sponsored by Lela Alston (D-5), would set up a $100,000 grant program for district and charter school community gardens. School gardens offer many benefits, including making healthy food more appealing to kids, helping fight hunger, and aiding emotional regulation. Scheduled for Senate Appropriations Committee, Thursday. SUPPORT.
Contact info. if you want to contact committee members:
House Appropriations
David Livingston (R-28) - Chair - dlivingston@azleg.gov / 602-926-4178
Joseph Chaplik (R-3) - Vice Chair - jchaplik@azleg.gov / 602-926-3436
Selina Bliss (R-1) sbliss@azleg.gov / 602-926-4018
Michael Carbone (R-25) mcarbone@azleg.gov / 602-926-4038
Lupe Diaz (R-19) ldiaz@azleg.gov / 602-926-4852
Tim Dunn (R-25) tdunn@azleg.gov / 602-926-4139
Matt Gress (R-4) mgress@azleg.gov / 602-926-4015
Quang Nguyen (R-1) qnguyen@azleg.gov / 602-926-3258
Barbara Parker (R-10) bparker@azleg.gov / 602-926-3681
Lorena Austin (D-9) laustin@azleg.gov / 602-926-3968
Marcelino Quiñonez (D-11) mquinonez@azleg.gov / 602-926-3285
Athena Salman (D-8) asalman@azleg.gov / 602-926-4858
Judy Schwiebert (D-2) jschwiebert@azleg.gov / 602-926-3390
Amish Shah (D-5) ashah@azleg.gov / 602-926-3280
Stephanie Stahl Hamilton (D-21) sstahlhamilton@azleg.gov / 602-926-3279
Senate Appropriations
John Kavanagh (R-3) - Chair - jkavanagh@azleg.gov / 602-926-5170
Jake Hoffman (R-15) - Vice Chair- jake.hoffman@azleg.gov / 602-926-3292
Ken Bennett (R-1) kbennett@azleg.gov / 602-926-5874
David Farnsworth (R-10) dfarnsworth@azleg.gov / 602-926-3387
Anthony Kern (R-27) akern@azleg.gov / 602-926-3497
Sine Kerr (R-25) skerr@azleg.gov / 602-926-5955
Lela Alston (D-5) lalston@azleg.gov / 602-926-5829
Eva Diaz (D-22) ediaz@azleg.gov / 602-926-3473
Brian Fernandez (D-23) bfernandez@azleg.gov / 602-926-3098
Raquel Terán (D-26) rteran@azleg.gov / 602-926-3308
No comments:
Post a Comment