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NEWS ADVISORYNEWS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 12, 2007 Contacts: Sandy Bahr, Sierra Club - Grand
Canyon Chapter (602) 253-8633 2007 Arizona Legislative SessionLonger than most, better than many.Phoenix, AZ - A lengthy, but generally decent legislative session was reflected in report and score cards released today by the Arizona League of Conservation Voters and the Sierra Club's Grand Canyon (Arizona) Chapter. More legislators than ever received passing marks and, overall, there were many fewer bills aimed at limiting environmental protections. Some of the highlights of the session include the passage of a clean air bill (SB1552), passage of a bill to help protect the San Pedro River (HB2300), and passage of two strong clean energy bills - one to encourage energy efficiency in schools (HB2496) and another to protect homeowners from overzealous Homeowners' Associations when it comes to the installation of solar panels (SB1254). "It was encouraging to see the Arizona Legislature support real reductions in pollution and improvements to our air quality," said Sandy Bahr, Conservation Outreach Director for the Sierra Club's Grand Canyon Chapter. "There is still much more that is needed, but this bill is a step in the right direction and is important for protecting the public's health, especially that of children and the elderly." "The San Pedro legislation, which establishes protections of the river's base flows, is a crucial step toward saving one of our last free-flowing desert rivers as well as the wildlife that depend on it for habitat," said Kate Whalen, Government Relations Liaison with the Arizona League of Conservation Voters. "We still have a long way to go, but this measure sets an important precedent." Another plus for the session was what did not happen. There was no attempted raid on the Arizona Heritage Fund, which is unusual for the Arizona Legislature, and no measures made it to the ballot or the Governor's desk that undercut the initiative process. In fact, the Legislature demonstrated that it could actually work within the "confines" mandated by voters in the Voter Protection Act when important changes contained in HB2690 that furthered the purposes of the Clean Elections Law were passed with the necessary three-fourths vote. On the downside, the Legislature really did not give Arizona much needed strong water legislation. A bill requiring adequate water supplies was watered down significantly and requires a unanimous action by county supervisors to be implemented. A bill that establishes a fund for water infrastructure contains no protections whatsoever for rivers or streams, but it also contains limited funding, so perhaps the damage will be minimal. Some conservation requirements for cities and towns were weakened by replacing real measurable conservation requirements with vague and generally unenforceable "best management practices." The Governor vetoed a bill that would have significantly undercut communities' conservation programs and would have allowed irrigation districts to get in the development business further without actually meeting the conservation requirements. She earned a good score and "B" on the Sierra Club's report card. Eighteen lawmakers scored a 100 percent on the League's Scorecard, including 6 freshmen House members- Representatives Steve Farley, Chad Campbell, Lena Saradnik, David Schapira, Jackie Thrasher and Theresa Ulmer. The Sierra Club Environmental Report Card gave an "A" or "A+" to four Senators and 21 House members, including Senators Paula Aboud, Leah Landrum Taylor, Debbie McCune Davis, and Tom O'Halleran and Representatives Ed Ableser, David Bradley, Olivia Cajero Bedford, Chad Campbell, Robert Meza, Tom Prezelski, Pete Rios, Lena Saradnik, David Schapira, Kyrsten Sinema, Jackie Thrasher, Albert Tom, and Theresa Ulmer. The Sierra Club recognized Senator Landrum Taylor and Senator Allen for their "Special Achievements." After years of trying, Senator Landrum Taylor won passage of a bill to require better coordination of response to chemical fires. Senator Carolyn Allen put extraordinary efforts into moving a bill that will result in cleaner air - no easy task considering that development and agribusiness interests neutered the bill early in the session. The AZLCV also recognized Senator Allen, along with Representatives Lucy Mason and Steve Farley, as "Conservation Heroes". Additionally, the AZLCV named Senate President Tim Bee as its "Statesman of the Year" in recognition of the strong example he set by his cooperative, bipartisan leadership this session. The Arizona League of Conservation Voters is a membership based, non-profit, non-partisan conservation advocacy organization. The League is committed to mobilizing voters to elect pro-conservation candidates, influencing legislation and policy, and holding elected officials accountable to their constituents. For more information on the Scorecard, please log on to www.azlcv.org. The Sierra Club's Grand Canyon Chapter is a grassroots environmental organization with more than 14,000 members in Arizona. At the end of each legislative session it develops the report card in order to inform Arizonans about their legislators voting records on environmental issues. This year's grades are based on 14 House votes and 13 Senate votes on issues ranging from air quality to solar energy to protecting the San Pedro River. The Governor was also graded on 11 bills. The Sierra Club report card is available at www.arizona.sierraclub.org. ###
Sierra Club, Grand Canyon Chapter, 202 E. McDowell Rd, Suite 277, Phoenix, AZ 85004, (602) 253-8633 |