Last Week at the Legislature
Sunday, February 19, 2023
Keeping You Informed
We just completed the sixth week of the Arizona legislature's 56th session, and the decisions made or not made there about our schools, water, housing, healthcare, taxes, and other policies will affect all of us. It's my great honor to serve as your representative on the House Education, Appropriations, and Sub-Appropriations Committee on Budgeting and Finance. Here's a recap of what happened last week and a few key bills going forward.
Judy
Representative Judy Schwiebert, LD2
jschwiebert@azleg.gov
Attend our next Zoom Town Hall on Thursday, February 23rd at 7PM! I look forward to further updating you on what's happening at your Capitol, and addressing your questions. RSVP here.
Re: My Bill HB2160 on School Mental Health Professionals
Addressing the Student Mental Health Crisis
Today more than ever, young people are dealing with many complicated emotional and social issues. In fact, recent youth risk behavior surveys have revealed alarming trends in their mental health.. Among high schoolers, 41% of Arizona students report symptoms of long-term depression 21% said they had contemplated suicide, 16% had made a plan, and 10% had made an attempt.
School counselors, psychologists, and social workers are on the front lines of helping students feel safer, healthier, grounded, and purposeful. But they need reinforcements. Arizona's student-counselor ratio is 1-720, and the student-school psychologist ratio is 1-1128. the worst in the nation (where 1-250 is the recommended ratio for counselors and 1-500 for psychologists.) School social workers are just as rare in our state.
Because studies show that students are far more likely to seek and receive help at school, it's vital that we make it a priority to have more counselors, psychologists, and social workers in our schools.
That's why I've partnered with our state universities to propose HB2160 to fund school mental health professionals academies there to ensure we have a pipeline of these professionals. It would provide tuition-free education for people who want to enter these fields and promise to serve in our public schools. It's also vital that we create and fund more of these positions in our schools.
This past Thursday, Feb 16, I was proud to bring experts to testify on behalf of what they see happening among young people - and what the needs are in the school. Thank you so much to Dr. Kathy Bohan, School Psychologist, School Social Workers Laura Ilardo and Tarinda Craglow, and School Counselors Annette Riffe and Brenda Vargas. Here is a link to the hearing and the valuable information they provided. I am making it a priority to ensure we fund this academy and provide additional resources in the coming budget.
Update on My Bills Heard Last Week
Assyrian New Year HCR 2037 Passed
Thank you to members of the Assyrian American community in our district for speaking in the Government committee on Wednesday, Feb 15 on behalf of our bill HCR2037, a resolution honoring the New Year and their cultural contributions to our state.
Condo Bill HB2780 Defeated
I'm disappointed to report that my HB 2780 to protect condo owners from being forced out of their homes by out of state private investors was defeated in the Commerce Committee on Tuesday, Feb 14 after lawyers for the billionaire investors testified against it, calling its provisions unconstitutional. There is some bipartisan support for it from my seat mates and others, and I'm continuing to work with homeowners to find another way to protect Arizonans who want to stay in their homes.
We Passed the AEL Override for this year.... But We Still Need a Permanent AEL fix!
HCR2001 only allowed the legislature to override the old spending cap for this year. Unless we create a permanent fix, our students and their families will be threatened with steep cuts and possible school closure.
We should have made this permanent fix already instead of allowing opponents of public education to use it as a political football to bash and threaten public schools every year. I’m proud that a fellow member of our Teacher Caucus, Rep Jennifer Pawlik has submitted bills two years in a row to do just that! However, the one-vote Republican majority has ignored those bills.
Call to Action!
You may wish to email the Speaker of the House, Ben Toma, and the Chair of the Education Committee, Beverly Pingerelli, to urge them to ensure that we address a permanent solution in the budget going forward. We need to stop using our children as a political football and create a permanent fix to this outdated spending cap.
Gov Hobbs Executive Budget Proposal
Governor Hobbs' budget offers a vision of what an Arizona for Everyone looks like and outlines her priorities for the state. However, both chambers of the legislature will be hard at work to edit this budget and insert their own ideas.
Arizona faces many urgent issues which are addressed in this budget. In previous newsletters, I focused on her priorities for Education; Health & Housing; Government That Works; and Public Safety & Corrections. This week I'm featuring her priorities for Water and Natural Resources.
Natural Resources
The Fiscal Year 2024 budget makes targeted investments to preserve Arizona’s stunning landscapes and unrivaled natural beauty as well as protect the state’s forests and watersheds from the devastating effects of fire and drought.
● $333 million one-time General Fund deposit into the Long-Term Water Augmentation Fund, the second of three equal installments totaling $1 billion spanning fiscal years 2023-2025
● $15 million in one-time funding for a grant program to help rural, Latino, and Indigenous communities secure certified well drillers to access safe drinking water
● $10 million one-time deposit into the State Parks Heritage Fund for park development, historic preservation, non-motorized trails, and outdoor education
● $9.3 million in one-time funding for multiple agencies to support an enterprise approach aimed at increasing the water resiliency of State facilities and property
● $7.5 million in one-time funding to install the needed public infrastructure for electric vehicles at state facilities including State parks, Motor Vehicle Division offices, Department of Child Safety and Department of Economic Security customer facing offices, and other highly used locations
● $7.5 million in one-time funding to serve as a catalyst to partner with local entities in securing federal support and funding to restore interstate passenger rail service to Phoenix, which has not had interstate passenger rail service since1996
● $5 million in one-time funding from the General Fund to clean up perfluoroalkyl
and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) chemicals
● $5 million in one-time funding to increase capacity at the Department of Water
Resources to provide water resource management planning to local governments statewide and to identify groundwater shortages and set up Active Management Areas
Water Background
● The FY24 budget continues $333 million in funding for WIFA. That funding was allocated
in the FY23 budget.
● Our state is facing a dual challenge. We need more housing to support our record population growth and we need water to support these communities. Both are in short supply. Our budget makes targeted investments to seek real solutions.
● Arizona’s economy offers promise. Basic economics tells us we need to have the infrastructure to support this growth. That means real water management, affordable housing, good schools, access to broadband, and more. We’re not going to kick the can down the road. We’re taking action on each of these issues.
● Arizona is the best state in the nation. Companies and people alike know that. I believe in the power of prosperity. But it doesn’t just happen. We need to make tough choices to ensure our state is in a position for continued growth.
● We’re setting up resources for communities to follow the approach of AMAs and tap into expertise.
Highlights This Week
Clockwise: Parent's Day at the Capitol with students from Glendale Elementary School District who thanked me for voting to override the AEL and gave me a Kindness Champion bracelet.
I spoke at the House and Senate Democrats press conference about addressing our state's affordable housing crisis, including my bill HB2161.
I love the drawing gifted to me by students on Early Childhood Day at the Capitol, and have happily added it to my collection.
Speaking with members of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. Thank you to Tracy Thomas, Clayton Echard, and Maya Zuckerburg.
I so appreciated the chance to meet with young leaders from Aliento who shared their stories about what helped them become successful at learning English - and what did not. Thank you to Isabel Chavez, Marcus Houghton, Alitzel Bojorquez, Giovanna Escorcia, Regina Herrera, Lucia Gutierrez Ramirez, and Hidalty Gonzalez for your powerful voices.
