The Capitol Roundup: August 17, 2018

Earlier this month, most of the laws enacted in the 2018 legislative session went into effect– including an expansion of the Silver Alert to include any missing person with a developmental disability.

The issue will significantly impact future initiatives but is also important to both supporters and opponents of this year’s initiatives. It is especially relevant for the Invest in Education citizens’ initiative; a legal challenge to the initiative asserts that the petitions did not properly describe the impact the measure would have on income taxes. This case resulted in the Maricopa County Superior Court ruling that the strict compliance standard is unconstitutional; supporters of the strict compliance standards say they will take the issue to the Arizona Supreme Court.

This week, Governor Ducey reiterated his commitment to his school safety plan that would create a Severe Threat Order of Protection process to allow judges to remove guns from individuals thought to be a threat. The federal government issued a reminder that Arizona may need to implement water conservation measures if Lake Mead water levels continue to decrease, and a judge heard arguments in a legal challenge to Arizona’s prohibition against turning in someone else’s ballot.

The Arizona Attorney General said that funds from the state’s medical marijuana program can be used for addiction treatments, and the Arizona Department of Education got federal approval of a plan to address the millions of dollars for special education programs that were misallocated.

The Arizona Supreme Court established a new committee to continue to evaluate recommendations and best practices for mental health and the judicial system, and upheld a decision to remove an Arizona Senate candidate from the ballot because of fraudulent petition signatures.

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