April 20, 2026

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What a week! We are at the time in session where action on the House and Senate floors starts to get lighter and budget games get going in earnest. Last month, Gov. Hobbs called a halt to budget negotiations, saying it wouldn't be productive until Republican legislative leaders participated in good faith and produced concrete budget numbers.

While the governor released her budget in January, Republican leadership is being coy. This past Monday, after waiting over three weeks, Hobbs promised to veto all bills sent to her desk until she sees their proposed budget. She then backed it up by promptly vetoing the bills they sent to her anyway.

Budget incoming whenever. After Hobbs issued her moratorium, Senate President Warren Petersen (R-14) told media on Monday that Republican lawmakers are “about ready to put a budget on (Hobbs') desk.” He said they will release their plan to the public once they confirm they have the votes to pass it along partisan lines. (A Senate spokesperson said Monday that will be “in a few weeks.”) Stay tuned.

Tricky negotiations. The dynamics this year are even more difficult than our usual divided-government chaos. First, Arizona has less money than it needs. Not only have Republican lawmakers painted themselves into a corner with the twin resource drains of Ducey-era "flat tax" and universal vouchers, but cuts from the federal government are pushing a mountain of costs down onto states. And then there's the fact that it's an election year: Gov. Hobbs and every member of the legislature will appear on our ballots, and multiple lawmakers (including the Senate president) are running to unseat Democrats in higher office. This dynamic adds pressure and amplifies preexisting political cracks in unpredictable places.

Bills. “The Legislature will now focus on amending bills and exchanging them between chambers rather than flooding the governor’s desk, Republicans told the Legislative Report.” In a petty move, the Senate scheduled floor votes on a small handful of Democratic House bills that are still alive, apparently daring the governor to veto bills from members of her own party. However no further bills had been transmitted to the governor by the end of the week.

What do they want? Senate Majority Leader John Kavanagh (R-3) has said ominously that their upcoming budget proposal will be “very different” and “less flexible” than the version they discussed with Hobbs in February. But Republicans have already revealed some deeply disturbing priorities:

• Full tax conformity. Mirroring last year's massive federal tax cuts to Arizona's state tax code is a breathtakingly expensive proposition that would cost our state $1.4 billion in lost revenues over the next 3 years. It also would mean another hefty tax cut for the state's wealthiest.
• Cuts to SNAP. Like a set of malevolent Russian nesting dolls, full conformity comes with more bad ideas tucked inside. It would necessitate even more drastic cuts to SNAP food assistance, adding to the nearly half of Arizona's SNAP recipients, including at least 180,000 children, who have already lost benefits. Meanwhile, Republicans in the legislature are seeking to add a staggering number of hurdles that those who apply for benefits will need to clear.

The truth behind Arizona’s SNAP free fall

As Arizona raced to comply with new federal SNAP rules, the state made food assistance harder to get than necessary.

Arizona AgendaNicole Ludden

• Federal vouchers. This week, Gov. Hobbs vetoed a bill that would have opted Arizona into the federal private school voucher program, which would layer federal tax credits on top of state dollars. Our friends at Save Our Schools Arizona have written extensively about what a bad idea that is; suffice it to say that the last thing Arizona needs is another voucher program. Republicans could still use the program as a bargaining chip in budget negotiations.
• No Prop 123. At least one key Republican has dismissed out of hand the chance of renewing Prop 123, a voter-approved measure that expired last year and which redirected roughly $300 million in interest from the state land trust to fund public schools. While these funds have been backfilled from the general fund so far, there's no guarantee this will–or can–continue. The governor has been clear that she is nonetheless looking to wrap a renewal into budget negotiations.
• What isn't there. Republican legislative leaders' budget discussions fly in the face of Arizonans' top issues: affordable housing, the cost of health care, access to child care, and more.

What Next? We've seen in previous years that budget proposals negotiated without the involvement of Gov. Hobbs and the Democratic caucus are DOA. Once again this year, we're almost certainly destined to see a prolonged budget fight butting right up against July — an exhausting and frustrating norm these days. Lawmakers continue to be more interested in partisan posturing than working for the people of Arizona.

⏰ If you have 5 minutes: Call your House representative to express your opposition to HB2133 (information below).

⏰⏰ If you have 15 minutes: Write the governor a veto letter on HB2133, which we wrote about last week. All the explanations and instructions are here.

⏰⏰⏰ If you have 30 minutes: Read up on Article V Conventions and call your senator to oppose voting for HCR2043.

⏰⏰⏰⏰ If you have 45 minutes: Republicans may not be movable on the budget, but they need to know we are paying attention. And Democrats need our support. A simple message for your 2 representatives and 1 senator can help: "Please vote for a budget that prioritizes the needs of everyday Arizonans, not millionaires and special interests."

⏰⏰⏰⏰⏰ If you have 60 minutes: Join us on Zoom for our CEBV Happy Hour conversation, packed with political analysis, conversation and community. Happy Hour meets every Sunday at 4 PM through the end of legislative session. We're looking forward to seeing you! 

The prospect of endorsing an Article V convention continues to loom over the legislature. The national group US Term Limits, funded by libertarian and conservative special interests, is ramping up pressure on state legislatures to endorse a convention that wraps term limits into the US Constitution.

Whether or not term limits are a good idea (and we believe they are not), calling a national convention that could potentially rewrite large parts of our founding document is unspeakably dangerous in these tumultuous times.

The House has passed HCR2043, with a concerning number of Democrats in favor. We have heard that Senate President Petersen has been calling Senate Democrats into his office promising to bring their bills to a vote if they pledge to support the resolution. A handful of Republicans are opposed, so the vote math is not adding up--yet.

Remember that there are no firm rules governing an Article V convention, and a pretext of term limits could sprawl into every area of our governing system. It's not worth the risk. See our suggested 30-minute action above ☝🏻 to help resist.

Last week, we wrote about HB2133, a bill inspired by Project 2025 that would potentially allow individuals to suppress cartoons, satire, or AI generated content in the name of "protecting children." A conference committee convened this week to smooth over differences between the House and Senate versions. The bill that passed the committee bulldozed Democrats' objections and is headed back to the House for a final vote.

The LGBTQIA Legislative Caucus released a statement continuing their strong opposition to the final bill. Said Caucus Co-Chair Rep. Brian Garcia (D-LD8), "HB2133 is about controlling information and erasing people. We are watching, in real time, how laws like this are being used across the country to push LGBTQIA people out of public life, starting with the digital spaces where so many find community, safety, and critical information about their sexual health."

If you have time, please write a veto letter to Gov. Hobbs urging her to veto the bill should it come to her desk. Full instructions are here.

In addition, if you live in the district of any of the lawmakers who voted in favor the first time around, please call to express your opposition.

👎 Cesar Aguilar (D-26) • caguilar@azleg.gov • 602-926-3953
👎 Seth Blattman (D-9) • sblattman@azleg.gov • 602-926-3996
👎 Lupe Contreras (D-22) • lcontreras@azleg.gov • 602-926-5284
👎 Alma Hernandez¹ (D-20) • ahernandez@azleg.gov • 602-926-3136
👎 Consuelo Hernandez (D-21) • chernandez@azleg.gov • 602-926-3523
👎 Lydia Hernandez (D-24) • lhernandez@azleg.gov • 602-926-3553
👎 Elda Luna-Nájera (D-22) • eluna-najera@azleg.gov • 602-926-3881
👎 Stacy Travers (D-12) • stravers@azleg.gov • 602-926-3917
👎 Myron Tsosie (D-6) • mtsosie@azleg.gov • 602-926-3157
👎 Kevin Volk (D-17) • kvolk@azleg.gov • 602-926-3498

This past week, Gov. Hobbs exercised her power to protect Arizonans from the following harmful, CEBV-opposed legislation. Her veto count this year now stands at 45. Contact her office to say thank you at 602-542-4331 or engage@az.gov.

Vetoed: Monday, April 13

• SB1142 (Bolick, R-2) would have made Arizona one of the first states in the nation to irresponsibly sign up for Trump’s federal voucher scam.
• SB1148 (Finchem, R-1) would have taken the responsibility of attorney licensing away from the State Bar based on the sponsor's personal grudge.
• HB2026 (Griffin, R-19) would have created a new loophole for developers to get around assured water supply requirements and pump more water than they're entitled to.
• HB2031 (Griffin, R-19) would have given applicants even more time to file for grandfathered rights in the Willcox Active Management Area, which was created two years ago.
• HB2055 (Griffin, R-19) would have dedicated state money to brackish groundwater recovery, which would have increased pumping of nonrenewable groundwater with toxic brine as a byproduct.
• HB2102 and HB2103 (Griffin, R-19) would have created new infrastructure to enable water hauling in active management areas, putting residents' water at risk from industrial agriculture, data centers, etc.
• HB2167 (Diaz, R-19) would have stopped Arizona's attorney general from filing “public nuisance actions,” such as a proposed, harmful aluminum smelting plant she is intervening against in Benson.
• HB2600 (Gress, R-4) would have required public schools to keep students in grades 6-8 out of student clubs (like Gender & Sexuality Alliance) unless they had written parental permission, dampening participation and worsening inequity.
• HB2787 (Diaz, R-19) would have banned Arizona from cooperating with the Mexican Wolf Reintroduction Program, ignoring the federal Endangered Species Act and putting this endangered wolf subspecies at risk.
• HB2811 (Gillette, R-30) would have unconstitutionally criminalized public “obstruction” of ICE, including speaking loudly and yelling around officers.

Vetoed: Tuesday, April 14

• HB2093 (Fink, R-27) would have repealed the statutory requirement for public schools to teach about mental health, on grounds that the concept is somehow part of a “woke agenda” in public schools. 

The Veto Queen is back: All 45 bills Gov. Hobbs has rejected in 2026

Katie Hobbs is adding to her vetoes record in 2026, swatting down SNAP crackdowns and Charlie Kirk-related bills.

Phoenix New TimesZach Buchanan

2026 Session Timeline

Tuesday 4/21: 100th Day of Session (the purported end goal; can be changed)
Tuesday 6/30: Constitutionally mandated deadline to pass a state budget

Committees & Contacts

Here's a handy list of lawmaker contact info, committee chairs and assignments.

CEBV Action Linktree

Want other ways to take action? Need to stay informed? Looking for our social media, inspiration, or self-care tips? Look no further than our Linktree.

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Congratulations, you made it to the end! 🎉 Please enjoy this 60-second clip of the theme from Cheers performed by Kings Return, a quartet who became social-media famous for singing unaccompanied in stairwells.