Request to Speak Action: Stop AZ legislatures from making voting harder

Some state lawmakers are trying to make voting harder and elections costlier by proposing the following bills:

• SB1010 would allow anyone to order a recount of an election if they pay for it, thus delaying election results even when a recount doesn't make sense.
• SB1069 would redefine the word “permanent” by dropping voters from the Permanent Early Voting List if they miss voting their early ballots in two back-to-back elections.
• HB2039 would more than double the percentage of ballots that must be counted by hand, making elections more costly and time-consuming for no good reason.
• HB2054 would require the secretary of state to purge deceased voters, increasing the likelihood that eligible voters will be removed by mistake.
• All these bills will be heard in committee this week, so you can use RTS. Due to the stacked nature of committees, they will probably to proceed to the next step, so look ahead — contact your representatives for House bills and your senator for Senate bills to OPPOSE these bad pieces of legislation!

Please, weigh on on Request to Speak:

Sign on: https://apps.azleg.gov/account/signon

Sign up for a Request to Speak account here: https://www.cebv.us/rts.html

Scheduled for Thursday in the Senate Government Committee
(Weigh in on request to speak before Thursday or while it is still in committee.)

SB1010, sponsored by JD Mesnard (R-17), would allow anyone to request a recount of an election, through tabulation machines or by hand, and regardless of the margin of victory, as long as they post a bond to cover the cost. The proposal, which is being touted as a way to bolster confidence in elections, comes amid baseless allegations and conspiracy theories among Trump supporters of fraud in the 2020 election. County recorders on both sides of the aisle caution that lawmakers should keep in mind the time and personnel it would take to conduct such recounts. Scheduled for Senate Government Committee, Thursday. OPPOSE.

SB1069, sponsored by Michelle Ugenti-Rita (R-23), would strip voters from the Permanent Early Voting List if they fail to vote their early ballots in two back-to-back primary and general elections. This is at least the second year the bill has been introduced; it was on track to pass last year before the COVID shutdown. Numerous officials opposed the bill then, including the Secretary of State, Maricopa County Recorder and Arizona Association of Counties. No one testified in favor of the bill or even came forward with a problem the bill would have fixed. A solution in search of a problem. Scheduled for Senate Government Committee, Thursday. OPPOSE.

Scheduled for Wednesday in the House Government & Elections Committee
(Weigh in on Request to Speak by Wednesday's meeting or while it is being heard.)

HB2054, sponsored by Steve Kaiser (R-15), requires, rather than permits, the secretary of state to compare the records of deaths with the statewide voter registration database and purge deceased voters. Eligible voters often end up being removed by mistake, and federal law strictly governs how close to an election these purges can take place. Garrett Archer said he used to do this monthly when he worked for the Secretary of State's office. This solution in search of a problem should at least be paired with same-day voter registration so voters can correct any error. Scheduled for House Government & Elections Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.

HCR2001, sponsored by John Kavanagh (R-23), would ask voters to limit initiatives in Arizona to a single subject or be invalidated. In 2017, the Arizona Chamber of Commerce sued to knock the minimum wage increase initiative off the ballot, arguing that wage and sick leave provisions violated the single-subject rule. The Arizona Supreme Court rejected that argument, saying voters could do as they liked. If passed, this bill would provide a way around that. Instituting a single subject rule would make it all but impossible to place comprehensive citizen initiatives on the ballot. Scheduled for House Government & Elections Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.

Request to Speak Action: Stop AZ legislature from overturning the ACC’s renewable energy mandate

 Use Request to Speak to OPPOSE SB1175 and HB2248

Sign on to Request to speak: https://apps.azleg.gov/account/signon

Sign up for a Request to Speak account here: https://www.cebv.us/rts.html

In November, the Arizona Corporation Commission voted on a comprehensive set of new clean energy policies. If finalized, these rules will require Arizona utilities to deliver 100% carbon-free electricity by 2050 (with benchmarks along the way), invest in more energy efficiency and energy storage, and make utility planning processes more transparent. Our legislature, of course, sees this as a personal attack, so two bills are moving forward to ban the ACC from doing its job. (Called mirror legislation, which you may remember from the bill that became Prop 305, it involves two identical versions of a bill moving simultaneously in the House and Senate, in a process designed to fast-track legislation and limit public input.) And since our ACC was established in Article 15 of the Arizona Constitution, the bills may even be unconstitutional.

RTS to OPPOSE SB1175 and HB2248, you can make one or more of the following points in your comment:

• Clean energy is good for Arizona. It keeps electricity costs lower, consistent, predictable and reliable over the long term. Being a solar leader gives us more energy independence and control.
• This is not the Legislature's job. Managing energy policy is one of many reasons why the ACC exists and why Arizona voters elect their utility regulators.
• This silences voters. The ACC rules have gone through nearly two years of development and vetting, If we wanted this done, we would have said so.
• This would make our state an outlier. APS, TEP and SRP all have introduced plans to significantly reduce carbon emissions, as have neighboring states like New Mexico, Nevada and Colorado.

Scheduled for House Natural Resources, Energy and Water Committee, Tuesday at 2 p.m.

(Weigh in on Request to Speak before or while it is still in committee.)

HB2248, sponsored by Gail Griffin (R-14), would prohibit the Arizona Corporation Commission from regulating the types of electric generation used by public service corporations, retroactive to June 2020. In other words, the entity that is supposed to regulate power companies in Arizona would be left unable to require clean energy standards. This comes in the wake of landmark new rules the ACC passed in November which require state-regulated utilities to get 100% of their power from carbon-free sources by 2050. Newly elected commissioner Anna Tovar described the bill on Twitter as an unconstitutional overreach that would force the ACC to abdicate its power to the legislature. See mirror bill SB1175, also moving this week. Scheduled for House Natural Resources, Energy and Water Committee, Tuesday. OPPOSE.

Senate Natural Resources, Energy and Water Committee Wednesday at 9 a.m.

(Weigh in on Request to Speak before Wednesday or while it is still in committee.)

SB1175, sponsored by Sine Kerr (R-13), would prohibit the Arizona Corporation Commission from regulating the types of electric generation used by public service corporations, retroactive to June 2020. In other words, the entity that is supposed to regulate power companies in Arizona would be unable to require clean energy standards. This comes in the wake of landmark new rules the ACC passed in November which require state-regulated utilities to get 100% of their power from carbon-free sources by 2050. Newly elected commissioner Anna Tovar described the bill on Twitter as an unconstitutional overreach that would force the ACC to abdicate its power to the legislature. See mirror bill HB2248, also moving this week. Scheduled for Senate Natural Resources, Energy and Water Committee, Wednesday. OPPOSE.

Wanna do more? 

Then consider watching the committee hearings (House Tuesday at 2pm, Senate Wednesday at 9am). It's also not too late to testify remotely in the Senate. Here's how: RTS "no" on SB1175, click the "testify remotely" button, and email SenateNREW@azleg.gov by Tuesday at 9am for login instructions.

1. Use Request to Speak as usual; select "Yes - Remotely" under "Do you wish to speak?"
2. Send an email to the committee email address (listed here) at least 24 hours before committee hearing begins (not counting weekends and holidays)
3. You will receive an email with teleconference sign-in instructions.

Proposed Legislation puts AZ’s Renewable Energy Standards at RISK

State Rep Griffin has a bill -- HB2248 -- to overturn the Arizona Corporation Commission's power to regulate the types of electricity generation resources utilities use or acquire, and this includes renewable generation resources. This would overturn the ACC’s new renewable energy mandate.

The ACC will be holding a public meeting to discuss the legislature/Griffin bill today, Jan 15, at 1 pm. It is open to be viewed by the public. Here is the link:

The bill is on the agenda of the House Natural Resources and Energy Committee next Tuesday, Jan 19th. (That means you can use Request to Speak to oppose it and leave a short comment while it is still in committee. See more on RTS below.)

This bill will undercut the ACC's new renewable energy standard:

 

https://www.azleg.gov/legtext/55leg/1R/bills/HB2248P.pdf?

 Here's the backstory on this.

Rep. Griffin has this bill on the list of bills to be heard at next week's NREW committee hearing, Tuesday, Jan 19th at 2 pm.

Please, sign up for request to speak (RTS) (if not already signed up) and oppose the bill.

Rep Andres Cano is the Ranking Member of the House Natural Resources Committee. He can be reached at: acano@azleg.gov

Thank you for your help in opposing this bill!

Request to Speak info:

Sign on to Request to speak: https://apps.azleg.gov/account/signon

Sign up for a Request to Speak account here: https://www.cebv.us/rts.html

Please, sign up for the Request to Speak system so you can speak up on bills being heard in committee. While it is called the Request to Speak system, you do not have to speak, you can register your support or opposition to bills while they are in committee. When it asks, "Do you wish to speak" just click on, No. You can also use it to request to speak, as well.

Log in or sign up for Request to Speak. If you had an account previously, it is still active. You can request a new password if you forgot it. If you do not have an account, go ahead and set one up, but someone will have to help you connect with folks who can activate it for you, which sadly requires actually going to the Capitol. Contact: reply@emails.sierraclub.org

Prepare to Speak Out at AZ Legislature!

Prepare yourself to speak out about bad (and good) bills in committee at the Arizona State Legislature!

Rule number 1 of RTS: You do NOT have to speak to use it, but you can make your voice heard simply by clicking. If you don't want to speak, just click on "No." 

You can also leave a short 1 or 2 sentence comment explaining your position. 

It only takes a couple of minutes, once you learn how to use the app. 

Directions on how to weigh in on  Request to Speak:

 http://desktopactivisttucson.blogspot.com/2018/03/request-to-speak-time.html

If you already have an account, you can sign on using this link: 

https://apps.azleg.gov/account/signon

If you don't, you will need to sign up for a Request to Speak account here: https://www.cebv.us/rts.html