KJZZ's Sun Up is a weekday morning podcast giving you the Arizona news you need to start your day. It is the biggest stories of the day from KJZZ News.
Transcript
Phil Latzman: Hey greetings friends, this is KJZZ’s Sun Up. It is your daily news update from here in Phoenix, on our state and region. I'm Phil Latzman, your host for this podcast, a daily digest of Arizona news. As compiled, reported, and produced by our KJZZ news team, it's Thursday, the final day of April, the 30th, on this 2026. Friday on the way, and here is the latest news.
Well, Arizona Republicans passed a partisan budget plan out of the state House of Representatives on Wednesday. Republican House Speaker Steve Montenegro says Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs still is not involved in budget negotiations since she walked away from the table last month.
Steve Montenegro: We're going to continue to do our job. The governor, for whatever reason, I haven't received a call from her. She hasn't called me today, yesterday, the day before. The ball's in her court.
Phil Latzman: GOP Senate leader Warren Petersen says Republicans have the votes to pass it onto Hobbs next week. Hobbs says there are some things in the bill which have her support, but she's concerned about other elements. Both sides say they are now ready to negotiate.
A major measles outbreak in South Carolina has ended and the most active outbreak in the U.S. is now in Utah. The virus is continuing to spread here in Arizona as well, as Katherine Davis-Young reports.
Katherine Davis-Young: Arizona has had more than 300 cases since last summer, most of which have been near the Utah border in Mohave County. So far, 10 of Arizona's cases have been in the Valley. Measles is so contagious that at least 95% of the population needs to be immune in order to contain its spread, says Dr. Nick Staab with Maricopa County Public Health.
Dr. Nick Staab: I think what has helped us here in Maricopa County is, in general, in a lot of areas, we are reaching those higher levels of immunization.
Katherine Davis-Young: But Staab says there are likely more cases in Maricopa County than what's been confirmed, and he urges Maricopa County residents to take precautions as the virus continues to spread. Most importantly, getting vaccinated. Katherine Davis-Young, KJZZ News, Phoenix.
Phil Latzman: Arizona Democratic Representatives Greg Stanton, Yassamin Ansari, and Adelita Grijalva are proposing a bill that would codify a 12-hour time limit for detainees at ICE temporary holding facilities. That would include the detention center that's at Mesa Gateway Airport. Following a surprise visit to the facility in Mesa earlier this month, Stanton said it lacked, quote, "basic humanity," citing abhorrent conditions and treatment of detainees.
Greg Stanton: We're going to continue to go out there and inspect. This is not a one-time deal.
Phil Latzman: Stanton says the 12-hour time limit is essential for mitigating overcrowding at the facility. Well, conservation groups are threatening to sue federal land managers over a Canadian-backed mining project that's near the town of Mammoth in Pinal County. As Greg Hahne reports, the groups are concerned with possible disruptions to owl habitat.
Greg Hahne: The Center for Biological Diversity filed a notice of their intent to sue the Bureau of Land Management and Fish and Wildlife Service over the Copper Creek exploration project on Monday. Faraday Copper is drilling for copper resources to sell to an extraction company. The San Carlos Apache Tribe and the Lower San Pedro Watershed Alliance are also on the notice. The groups say BLM approved the mining project without taking into account habitat disruptions to the threatened Mexican Spotted Owl. Melissa Kryzer-Fry is with the Watershed Alliance.
Melissa Kryzer-Fry: When you protect an endangered species, you're also protecting the water for Arizonans who live in the area. And let's face it, we have a water problem at this point.
Greg Hahne: The notice says the groups will sue in 60 days if the BLM doesn't halt ongoing mining activities. Greg Hahne, KJZZ News, Phoenix.
Phil Latzman: A new report from the National Education Association shows Arizona has fallen to 49th in the nation for per-student spending. From the education desk, Bridget Dowd has more.
Bridget Dowd: The NEA report shows Arizona has the highest number of students enrolled per teacher of any state in the country. It also found that while educator pay has increased in recent years, it hasn't kept pace with inflation over the past decade, leaving many educators worse off. Darla Trujillo Knight is a special education teacher in Gilbert.
Darla Trujillo Knight: And unfortunately, salaries in our district are low and housing prices are quite high. After more than two decades in the classroom, my annual salary is just a little over $67,000, which isn't enough to cover our bills.
Bridget Dowd: Arizona ranks 39th in the nation for the average teacher starting salary. The report shows collective bargaining remains one of the clearest drivers of higher pay for teachers, which Arizona doesn't have. Bridget Dowd, KJZZ News, Phoenix.
Phil Latzman: Oh, just as the budget is being vetted, as we told you earlier, a new GOP state representative was sworn in yesterday at the state Capitol. We go back to the politics desk and Ben Giles has more on that.
Ben Giles: Navajo County Supervisors chose Sylvia Allen to replace former Rep. David Marshall, who resigned from the legislature last month to become the Navajo County Recorder. Allen is no stranger at the capitol. For years, she served as chair of the Arizona Senate's Education Committee and was known for staking out controversial positions and pushing conspiracy theories. Allen said she takes pride in again representing a sprawling legislative district that covers mostly rural communities north and east of Phoenix.
Sylvia Allen: I felt a joy when I thought about offering my name because I love my district, I love rural Arizona. It's in my DNA.
Ben Giles: Allen will serve out the remainder of Marshall's legislative term, which ends in January. Ben Giles, KJZZ News, Phoenix.
Phil Latzman: Well, Maricopa County residents have one more day to grill hot dogs and burgers in public parks, because a near-total fire ban will start tomorrow. Amelia Monroe reports.
Amelia Monroe: The ban is part of an annual effort to mitigate wildfire risk amid consistently below-average rainfall and dry conditions across Arizona. The near-total fire ban prohibits outdoor fires in Maricopa County, including all regional parks. It is scheduled to end on Sept. 30, but may be extended depending on weather conditions and fire risk. The use of campfires, fire pits, and charcoal grills are not allowed during its duration, but gas and propane grills will be permitted in designated areas, like developed and semi-developed campsites. Amelia Monroe, KJZZ News, Phoenix.
Phil Latzman: Earlier this week, the Goodyear City Council adopted new rules for e-bikes and scooters. The ordinances focused on safety, including banning kids 12 and younger from riding e-scooters and making helmets mandatory for anyone under 16 years old. Goodyear Deputy Police Chief Jose Gonzalez says enforcement will not begin until November.
Jose Gonzalez: We're going to take a six-month period to work with our digital communications partners to come up with an educational campaign to really kind of focus on educating our community on the do's and don'ts of e-devices within our community.
Phil Latzman: The new policy also allows for Goodyear city parks to post signs restricting operation and speed. The US Department of Justice has charged several former and current government and law enforcement officials in the Mexican state of Sinaloa with drug trafficking. The defendants are accused of conspiring with the Sinaloa Cartel to import narcotics into the U.S.. From the Fronteras Desk in Hermosillo, Sonora, KJZZ’s Nina Kravinsky has more.
Nina Kravinsky: One of the defendants is the current governor of the Mexican state of Sinaloa, Rubén Rocha Moya, who’s charged with drug trafficking and weapons offenses that carry a possible penalty of life in prison. The nine other defendants listed in the indictment unsealed in the Southern District of New York include a sitting Mexican Senator and the current Mayor of the state capital of Culiacán. In a post on social media, Rocha says he categorically denies the accusations against him. Mexico's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it’s received extradition requests from the United States government and that Mexico's Attorney General is reviewing the requests. Nina Kravinsky, KJZZ News, Hermosillo.
Phil Latzman: Cooling centers, hydration stations, and other seasonal heat relief services will begin operating across Maricopa County tomorrow on Friday. Arizonans needing heat-related assistance can dial 211 to find their nearest cooling center or arrange free transportation to those sites. Tara Bingdazzo is with the organization that runs 211.
Tara Bingdazzo: These services not only give them respite from the heat, but some of our cooling centers have case management available there to help them get connected to some of their other needs, you know, food, clothing, vocational rehab services.
Phil Latzman: 211 answered more than 16,000 heat-related calls last year. Bingdazzo says most of those calls came from older adults or people experiencing homelessness. In sports, baseball: Nolan Arenado hit a three-run homer, Ildemaro Vargas extended his hit streak to 25 games, Diamondbacks beat the Brewers 6-2 last night in Milwaukee. Vargas has hit in all 22 of his games this season and 25 straight dating back to last year. Arizona plays the final of the three-game series in Milwaukee today, a game that starts later this morning Arizona time.
And that will do it for this edition of KJZZ's Sun Up, Arizona's morning news podcast on this Thursday, April 30th. Hope you enjoyed the month. We're back at you tomorrow. I'm Phil Latzman, we'll start May off the right way with another edition. Have a wonderful day.
