Arizona Legislature Has Busy Week

The House of Representatives voted 37-21 to allow people to carry guns into government buildings where there are not specific security measures in place.

Under the legislation, which passed without debate, the only time guns could be prohibited in public buildings would be if there are either armed security guards with x-ray machines or metal detectors, or armed law enforcement personnel on the premises.

The bill is moving on to the Senate for a final vote.

Photo Radar

Drivers hoping they’d be forever free of that flash of light at an intersection signaling they’d been caught by photo radar saw their hopes dashed this week when the Senate killed a ballot measure that would have outlawed the use of photo radar in the state.

It’s the second time the ballot measure has failed and bill sponsor Senate Majority Whip Frank Antenori, R-Tucson, would have to secure the permission of every state senator to put the measure up for a third vote.

Antenori’s aim had been to have the future of photo radar in Arizona be decided by voters, rather than strictly by lawmakers. The measure failed, 14-15.

Wrongful Births

The Senate voted 20-9 last week to protect medical practitioners from “wrongful birth” lawsuits.

Such lawsuits are levied when a woman claims her doctor did not let her know of prenatal test results indicating problems that might have led her to choose to have an abortion.

Bill sponsor Sen. Nancy Barto, R-Phoenix, said allowing such lawsuits support the idea that someone must be to blame whenever a child is born with a disability.

Opponents of the bill fear it will result in an infringement on reproductive rights.

The bill has been sent to the House.

Public Lands Fight

In the arena of state’s rights, the Senate passed a bill, co-sponsored by Sen. Sylvia Allen, R-Snowflake, that would force the federal government to turn control of its lands to the state.

The bid for claiming state control of public lands is already being called unconstitutional, but it didn’t stop lawmakers from voting 19-9 to pass the bill in the Senate and move it along to the House for approval.

Utah’s legislature passed a similar bill last week and sent the bill to Utah Gov. Gary Herbert for his signature.

The champion of Arizona’s bill, Sen. Al Melvin, R-Tucson, says federal regulations are harming key industries such as timber and mining. Fellow supporters assert the state could do a better job of managing public lands. In Arizona, a majority of the land is federally controlled.

Amazon Tax

The ire aimed at major retailer Amazon.com for its failure to collect sales tax from online customers wasn’t strong enough to push a law through the Senate forcing the online firm to do so.

Senators voted 8-20 for the bill, which would have required every company with a physical presence in Arizona to levy sales tax against purchases made by Arizona customers. A physical presence does not require headquarters, but could include a warehouse, an order fulfillment center or a distribution center.

Supporters of the bill are rankled that Amazon.com sells its goods to Arizona customers, but doesn’t issue sales tax, and it isn’t likely that all of its customers will voluntarily pay sales tax to the state for online purchases.

In the ongoing dispute, Amazon holds that because its parent company doesn’t have a physical presence in the state, it does not have to collect sales taxes from Arizonans. The company does have distribution centers in Arizona.

During the Senate session, an Amazon lobbyist said, if passed, the bill would violate the state’s constitution, which prohibits developing legislation targeting a specific company or individual.

While the bill’s champion, Sen. Melvin, says the proposed legislation is really a “jobs bill,” critics contend it threatens Arizona’s attractiveness to businesses that might be considering moving to the state.

While it’s unknown at this time whether Melvin will try to repackage his bill, it’s widely believed the issue will come around again in one form or another.

Recall Elections

A bill aimed at making it harder to remove lawmakers from office passed the Senate with a 17-11 vote, and is heading to the House.

Under the proposed bill, both a primary and a general election would have to be held as part of a recall effort. Currently, only a general election is required to oust someone from office.

The bill is viewed as a reaction to the recall of former Senator Russell Pearce, who some supporters say was removed following an abuse of the recall process.

Supporters of the bill say the same process used to elect an officeholder should be required to knock one out of his seat. Opponents of the bill say it would make the recall process far too difficult.

The Senate voted along party lines, with not one Democrat voting in favor of the bill.

Unemployment

Drug Testing

The Tribune-News reported previously on the Senate’s passage of legislation that would require applicants for unemployment insurance to pass a mandatory drug test before receiving benefits, and be subject to random drug testing as long as benefits are being accepted from the state.

The bill now advances to the House.

Algae Research Jobs

The House passed two bills last week that will improve the ability of

Arizona companies that conduct research on the production of algae as a viable and renewable source of energy to expand.

House Bill 2225 would give algae farms the same lower property tax rates as other farming properties, and House Bill 2226 would create opportunities to use State Trust Land for the purposes of “algaculture.”

A sponsor of both bills, Rep. Matt Heinz, D-Tucson, said, “The use of algae to convert light into biomass is a cutting edge, renewable energy resource technology. Our number one priority right now is creating jobs to rebound our economy. Our state must do everything it can to nurture new economic engines that will provide long-term economic stability for our state.”

“Arizona has a unique opportunity to become the epicenter for algae research, development and production worldwide,” said Dan Simon, president and CEO of Heliae Development, LLC, an Arizona-based algae technology company.

The bill has been transmitted to the Senate.

For an update on bills being considered by the legislature, visit azleg.gov.

“Our state must do everything it can to nurture new economic engines that will provide long-term economic stability for our state.”