A report by the state Auditor General says the Arizona Land Department did not inspect parcels leased for mineral exploration and extraction to make sure they were restored.
Companies can lease state trust land to search for minerals, such as copper.
The companies pay security deposits called bonds, which they can get back after the lease ends and the parcel has been labeled restored by state officials.
But the Auditor General says the Arizona Land Department did not do inspections in 14 of 18 cases reviewed. And the department paid back $45,000 in bonds without doing inspections.
The audit says the state paid a nearly $2 million lawsuit settlement over a child injured in 2020 when their ATV fell into a mine shaft.
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Arizona is now the first in the nation to issue a cosmetology license that allows beauty professionals to work across 13 participating states without having to take additional exams. -
The class consists of about 30 immigrants protected by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA.
