Democratic lawmakers support many of the same priorities as Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs — but not all their plans align.
This week, lawmakers and Hobbs kicked off this year’s legislative session. Hobbs made her annual State of the State speech, which took a bipartisan tone. Democrats also held a press conference where they announced their priorities.
On some topics, legislative Democrats seem to be in agreement with Hobbs. Several priorities Hobbs mentioned in her address also appeared in the Democrat’s priorities, like lowering prescription drug prices, and putting guardrails on private school vouchers.
But Democrats also prioritized some things that Hobbs didn’t touch on at all, like expanding LGBTQ rights and imposing gun control measures.
Overall, the Democratic priorities — and the tone of their press conference — leaned further left and came off as more hostile to Republicans than Hobbs’ address.
“Republicans have failed to adders our basic responsibilities. Instead, they have wasted time and money. ... Their failures have left Arizonans struggling,” Senate Minority Leader Mitzi Epstein (D-Tempe) said.
Tension between Hobbs and Democrats
The early disconnect could signal a repeat of last year’s dynamic, when there was tension between Hobbs and Democrats, particularly about the state’s budget. While negotiating a spending plan, Hobbs met several times with the Republican leaders of the GOP-controlled House and Senate, but the Democrats were not included.
Democrats were then asked to support the budget that Hobbs and Republicans had negotiated without them, and eventually did.
House Minority Leader Lupe Contreras (D-Avondale) and Epstein did not respond to requests for comment.
Democratic consultant Tony Cani attributes some of last year’s discord to the fact that Hobbs was in her first year as governor.
“I really don't think it’s an indication of a disconnect as much as it’s the way things work at the Legislature,” Cani said.
Disconnect on housing plans
For their part, Epstein said Democrats in the Legislature are more coordinated with one another than ever before.
“For the first time ever to my knowledge, the joint Democratic Caucuses have worked together to make a list of specific policies,” she said.
This year, perhaps the biggest area where Hobbs’ and Democrats’ plans seem to differ is housing. Hobbs said she wants to put just under $10 million into assisting families with down payment assistance and mortgage insurance relief. Meanwhile, Democrats held a joint press conference the first week of January to propose a five-point housing plan and detailed several plans for housing bills, such as capping corporate landlords’ ability to buy up Arizona housing.
Hobbs said at the time that she hadn’t seen the details of the legislative Democrats’ plan, but said she hopes she can get on board.
