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Leadership ♦ Research ♦ Advocacy ♦ Newsletter ♦ Speakers ♦ Counties ♦ Alliances ♦ Calendar ♦ Contact
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 All of us at CSA were deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Gila County Manager Steve Besich. Steve was a dedicated public servant and a dear friend who will be greatly missed. Steve began his career with
 Steve is known by employees as Mr. B., Boss, and of course Mr. Besich. He has provided guidance, support, and leadership to us all. Throughout his career he never lost his passion for his work and for the employees and citizens of This week, the Joint Legislative Budget Committee (JLBC) released a list of options available to legislators to help balance the FY10 and FY11 budgets. JLBC explained that the list was composed of a broad range of options that are not necessarily supported by any member.
The options contain a number of county impacts, including:
Click here to view CSA's draft analysis of county impacts in the JLBC budget options.
 Counties and their emergency management departments were on the front lines last week as Arizona faced a major winter storm that dumped record-breaking inches of rain and snow across that state, stranding residents and causing evacuations in some communities. The storm led Governor Brewer, as well as a number of Arizona counties, to declare states of emergency. Northern Arizona received multiple feet of snow, leading to the closure of a number of interstates and highways due to dangerous road conditions.
Navajo, Apache, and Coconino counties joined with state and tribal agencies to coordinate an "unprecedented" response to the storm, which made many roads in Northern Arizona and on tribal lands impassable. “The winter storms of the last week have had a devastating impact on the reservation communities of the Navajo Nation and Hopi Tribe,” explained Navajo County Emergency Manager Dusty Parsons. “The combination of heavy snowfall followed by heavy rainfall has produced dangerous conditions for residents and drivers. A situation of this magnitude requires more than a piecemeal response.” Counties coordinated with the Nevada National Guard and are making plans to lend air support to evacuate residents or drop supplies.
In Southern Arizona, Pinal County handed out sandbags to residents in preparation for the storm. Pinal closed a number of roads and the county's emergency management team is working with residents to estimate damage from the storm. Some residents may be eligible for compensation, thanks to the Governor's declaration of emergency and a federal directive from President Obama to send disaster aid to the state.
Maricopa County coordinated multiple agencies, including the flood control district, to respond through the county's ALERT center. Flood control personnel monitored the storm in conjunction with the National Weather Service, and the Department of Transportation placed barricades to divert drivers from dangerous areas. The Department of Enviromental Quality also monitored runoff and prepared for clean-up efforts.
 Committee deliberations were in full swing this week at the Legislature as bills moved through the process and on to caucus and the floor. The last day for House members to submit bill requests was January 25, and the last day for Senate members is February 1.
Note: Committee of the Whole is abbreviated as COW.
The legislature acted on the following county-related bills this week:
HB 2063: solar energy; permit fees (Boone) was held in House Water and Energy.
HB 2196: campaign finance reports; penalty (J.P. Weiers) was approved 6-0 in House Judiciary.
HB 2250: Arizona's Job Recovery Act (Adams) was approved as amended in House COW and passed the House 34-25.
HB 2384: immigration laws; local law enforcement (Boone) was approved 4-3 in House Judiciary.
HB 2435: repetitive offenders; probation; marijuana offenses (Driggs) was approved as amended in House Judiciary 8-0.
SB 1018: photo enforcement procedures; justice courts (Pearce) was retained on the COW calendar.
SB 1029: law enforcement officers; disciplinary actions (R. Pearce) was approved as amended 7-0 in Senate Public Safety and Human Services.
SB 1100: county audits; public record exemption (R. Pearce) was approved 6-0 in Senate Government Institutions.
SB 1140: counties; boards of adjustment (Tibshraeny) was approved 6-0 in Senate Government Institutions.
Click here to watch the committee hearings live, or click here to view archived video of committees. (Agendas are subject to change; visit the legislative calendar for updates on daily calendars.) The legislature is scheduled to hear the following county-related bills next week:
HB 2114: provisional community college districts; bonding (Konopnicki) will be heard in House Education on Monday, February 1, in House Education at 2:00 p.m. in House Hearing Room 3.
HB 2215: tax assessment of retention basins (Biggs) and;
HB 2489: bonding; net premiums (Yarbrough) and;
HB 2502: taxation of solar energy property (Murphy) will be heard in House Ways and Means on Monday, February 1, at 2:00 p.m. in House Hearing Room 1.
HB 2335: municipal; county; expenditure limitation (Jones) will be heard in House Natural Resources and Rural Affairs on Monday, February 1, at 2:00 p.m. in House Hearing Room 4.
HB 2493: sexually violent persons; committment (Lesko) will be heard in House Judiciary on Tuesday, February 2, at 9:00 a.m. in House Hearing Room 4.
HB 2154: private easements; maintenance (Barto) and;
HB 2175: city annexation procedure (Crump) and;
HB 2428: county zoning hearings; appeal (Driggs) and;
HB 2451: line extensions; utility infrastructure; charges (Antenori) will be heard in House Government on Tuesday, February 2, in House Government at 2:00 p.m. in House Hearing Room 4.
HB 2165: vehicle emissions testing; onboard diagnostics (Nichols) will be heard in House Environment on Tuesday, February 2, in House Enviroment at 2:00 p.m. in House Room 5.
HB 2211: political subdivisions; volunteers; noxious weed (Reagan) will be heard in House Commerce on Wednesday, Febrary 3, at 9:00 a.m. House Room 5.
HB 2422: primitive roads; municipalities (Tobin) and;
HB 2424: defensive driving schools (Crump) will be heard in House Transportation and Infrastructure on Thursday, February 4, at 9:00 a.m. in House Hearing Room 3.
SB 1171: aggregate mining reclamation reports (S. Allen) and;
SB 1196: illegal dumping; penalties (S. Allen) and;
SB 1198: line extension; utility infrastructure, charges (S. Allen) will be heard in Senate Natural Resources, Infrastructure, and Public Debt on Monday, February 1, at 1:30 p.m. in Senate Hearing Room 109.
SB 1001: elected officials; print; visual media (Pearce) and;
SB 1019: evidence based programs; requirements reports (Pearce) STRIKER: EVIDENCE BASED PROGRAMS; STUDY COMMITTEE and;
SCR1033: repeal 1998 Prop 105 (Pearce) will be heard in Senate Appropriations on Tuesday, February 2, at 2:00 p.m. in Senate Hearing Room 109.
SB 1088: juveniles; discretionary transfer; adult court (L. Gray) will be heard in Senate Public Safety and Human Services on Wednesday, February 3, at 9:00 a.m. in Senate Hearing Room 3.
SB 1207: municipal annexation; county islands (Nelson) will be heard in Senate Government Institutions on Thursday, February 4, at 10:30 a.m. in Senate Hearing Room 1.
Visit the CSA Calendar of Events at www.countysupervisors.org/calendar.
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County Supervisors Association of Arizona
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