Rep. Lisa Fink

Maddy summaryHB 2766 requires Arizona cities and towns to apply municipal sales taxes uniformly to all food items (without differential rates), while exempting most food for home consumption, food packaging, and sales paid with SNAP benefits. It specifically excludes candy, confectionaries, soft drinks, and soda from the general food exemption, ensuring these remain taxable. The bill also exempts low-cost food sales to vulnerable groups (elderly, homeless, disabled) when purchased using SNAP benefits through approved programs. This amendment, effective January 1, 2026, modifies existing tax code to standardize food taxation and expand specific exemptions.

Maddy summaryHB 2729 creates a regulated marketplace for selling or leasing groundwater rights within Arizona’s Phoenix, Tucson, and Pinal active management areas. It allows owners of grandfathered groundwater rights to sell or lease portions of those rights (while reserving 35% of their original right), requiring detailed transaction notices to the Department of Water Resources. Buyers receive 65% of the groundwater forgone by sellers, and forgiven water is split 50/50 between aquifer recharge and reserved for future water supply applications. The bill mandates an online public exchange platform for these transactions and exempts conveyed groundwater from replenishment obligations and city water use calculations.

Maddy summaryHB 2707 prohibits health professionals and health care institutions in Arizona from denying care or providing substandard care based on a patient's vaccination status. The bill makes it unprofessional conduct for health professionals to discriminate in this way and bans health care institutions from adopting policies allowing such discrimination. It directly affects hospitals, clinics, and medical providers by requiring them to treat all patients equally regardless of vaccination status. The law changes existing professional standards to explicitly forbid this form of discrimination in healthcare settings.

Maddy summaryHB 2701 authorizes Arizona public school teachers and administrators to display or read specific patriotic materials in school buildings, including the national motto, pledge of allegiance, Declaration of Independence, founding documents, and state motto. It additionally permits county jail education programs and certain "accommodation schools" (like those in county jails) to display the Ten Commandments and patriotic poetry/songs, while excluding schools established under Section 15-465. The bill does not require schools to display these materials but provides legal permission for those who choose to do so. It applies directly to K-12 schools and county jail education programs within Arizona.

Maddy summaryHB 2188, titled "Defend the Guard Act," restricts Arizona's National Guard from being deployed in active duty combat without specific authorization. It requires either a formal U.S. Congressional declaration of war or a concurrent resolution passed by the Arizona legislature to deploy troops in combat. The bill defines "active duty combat" as participating in armed conflict, performing hazardous duties in foreign countries, or carrying out war-related tasks. This law directly affects Arizona's National Guard deployment decisions, ensuring they align with the bill's authorization requirements.

Maddy summaryHB 2636 changes Arizona's juvenile justice process by clarifying when juveniles aged 13-17 can be tried as adults in criminal court. It specifies that prosecutors must charge juveniles as adults for serious offenses like murder, sexual assault, armed robbery, or if they are "chronic felony offenders" (with two prior felony adjudications). The bill adds a new "infancy" defense allowing juveniles aged 13+ to argue lack of maturity requires excusal from adult prosecution, but this does not apply to the listed serious offenses. It also explicitly states children under age 7 cannot be prosecuted as adults. The law aims to standardize transfer hearings and clarify jurisdiction for juvenile court versus criminal court.

Maddy summaryHB 2055 creates a new exemption from required immunizations (for school, work, or licensing) if no vaccine meets seven specific safety and transparency criteria. These criteria include long-term cancer/fertility studies, two-year clinical trials with placebo comparison, public reporting of vaccine injuries, combined vaccine safety data, proof the vaccine is safer than the disease itself, and manufacturer liability for defects. The exemption applies to individuals or their dependents and cannot be restricted by state agencies. It does not change existing immunization requirements but establishes this narrow path for those whose vaccine fails to meet all seven criteria.

Maddy summaryHB 2056 prohibits all "geoengineering" activities in Arizona, defined to include weather modification, aerosol injection, cloud seeding, and solar radiation modification. It directly affects all individuals and entities in the state, including government agencies, universities, military forces, and private organizations. The bill requires the director to investigate credible reports, mandates public reporting of evidence via email or written submission, and imposes class 4 felony charges with $500,000 civil penalties per violation. Key provisions include a 24-hour reporting requirement for officials receiving evidence and a ban on activities that release aerosols, electromagnetic radiation, or other atmospheric pollutants. The legislature states these activities endanger human health, the environment, and agricultural operations.

Maddy summaryHB 2520 amends Arizona's duress defense law to limit when a defendant can claim they committed a crime due to threats of immediate physical force. Specifically, the defense cannot be used if the defendant intentionally created the situation where they faced duress, or for offenses involving homicide, serious physical injury, or certain violent crimes like aggravated assault or sexual offenses. This change directly affects criminal defendants in cases where they attempt to justify their actions using duress as a legal defense. The bill clarifies that the duress defense is unavailable for the most serious violent offenses, making it harder for defendants to avoid responsibility for those acts.

Maddy summaryThis bill amends Arizona law to set a salary cap for university presidents at twenty times the annual salary of state legislators. It directly affects Arizona Board of Regents (ABOR) university presidents and the Board itself, which appoints them. The key provision modifies Section 15-1626, subsection 2, to establish this maximum compensation limit, ensuring presidential pay does not exceed this threshold.