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.
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PHIL LATZMAN: Hey there, this is KJZZ’s Sun Up, 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 reported by our KJZZ news team. It is Cinco de Mayo 2026. Thanks for being here today. Hope the week’s off to a good start on this Tuesday, May 5. Let’s keep you going with news from around our region.
A new plan for managing the Colorado River would mean a big difference for cities and towns in the Valley that depend on its water. As Alex Hager reports, the plan was co-signed by Arizona, California, and Nevada.
ALEX HAGER: Those states would leave water in the Colorado River as part of a collective effort to prop up dangerously low reservoirs. Arizona would still have to take cuts, but they would not be as deep as suggested in a previous plan. Patrick Dent is with the Central Arizona Project, which brings Colorado River water to the Phoenix area.
PATRICK DENT: It's the difference between devastating, impossible-to-manage cuts that would have real impacts on some of those communities’ residents to something that’s manageable.
ALEX HAGER: Dent says he’s hopeful the plan will also bring down the likelihood of a big court battle about sharing water. The plan would still need approval from federal water managers, but they appear likely to pass at least parts of the new proposal. Alex Hager, KJZZ News, Phoenix.
PHIL LATZMAN: Republican lawmakers passed a state budget proposal on Monday, which Democrats expect Governor Katie Hobbs to veto. The plan passed out of the legislature on party lines without Democratic support and centers on sweeping tax cuts paid for with cuts to various government programs and agencies. Republican Sen. John Kavanagh says the tax cuts will provide needed relief for all Arizonans.
JOHN KAVANAGH: If I had to ascribe one word to this budget, it would be affordability. Affordability at a time when people are worried about their household incomes, their economies.
PHIL LATZMAN: Hobbs and GOP leaders are not engaging with each other in budget negotiations, as Hobbs walked away from the talks several weeks ago due to an impasse on education funding. Her staff declined to say when she’ll take action on the GOP’s budget plan.
A third-party gubernatorial candidate, Hugh Lytle, will remain on the ballot after the State Supreme Court tossed out the last of multiple challenges against him yesterday. From the politics desk, here’s Camryn Sanchez with that.
CAMRYN SANCHEZ: Lytle is running for governor as a member of the No Labels Party. But two people tried to keep him off the ballot before the July primary election. One of Lytle’s primary challengers, Teri Ann Hourihan, initially filed a complaint alleging Lytle didn’t gather enough valid petition signatures to be a candidate. And a Democrat named Craig Beckman, represented by a firm tied to Gov. Katie Hobbs, filed a similar complaint hoping to disqualify Lytle. He argued that Lytle used an improper address on his paperwork. However, since Lytle’s residential address and the address he used are both in Arizona and he’s running for a statewide office, a lower court determined the challenge was invalid. Beckman appeal, but the state Supreme Court affirmed the lower court’s decision on Monday. Camryn Sanchez, KJZZ News, Phoenix.
PHIL LATZMAN: Maricopa County Superior Court judge ruled that Secretary of State Adrian Fontes cannot force counties to let voters cast ballots at any polling place. Also from our politics team, here’s Wayne Schutsky with that.
WAYNE SCHUTSKY: Most Arizona counties use a vote center model that lets residents cast ballots at locations throughout the county. But Pinal County still uses a precinct system that requires voters to show up at their assigned polling place. In the latest election procedures manual, Fontes required Pinal County to let voters who show up at the wrong polling place vote using accessible voting machines pre-loaded with every type of ballot, whether or not they have a disability.
ADRIAN FONTES: So where we were trying to help voters with disabilities just go to whatever polling place they can get to the easiest and cast a ballot from anywhere in their county, these folks want everyone to go to only their own assigned precinct.
WAYNE SCHUTSKY: Judge Scott Blaney found the rule forces Pinal County to adopt a vote center model, and state law says county boards of supervisors must sign off on that decision. Pinal County officials praised the ruling as a win for local control. Wayne Schutsky, KJZZ News, Phoenix.
PHIL LATZMAN: DoorDash has partnered with Kroger to provide grocery delivery access for SNAP recipients across the country, including in Arizona. Jill Ryan tells us details.
JILL RYAN: The DoorDash app has icons and other filters to show SNAP users where they can spend their benefits. Now, thousands of Kroger stores are accessible. Charles Shoener is the head of DoorDash’s North American grocery partnership.
CHARLES SHOENER: Users on DoorDash who leverage SNAP are twice as likely to live in food deserts as compared to non-SNAP users. And so, really for DoorDash, this is all about how do we bring all of the great selection from Kroger, Fry's, from Smith's, and bring that to customers.
JILL RYAN: Though delivery can be more expensive due to fees, tips, and possible dynamic pricing, Shoener says Kroger sets its product prices on DoorDash. Kroger could not be reached for comment. Jill Ryan, KJZZ News, Phoenix.
PHIL LATZMAN: As the Hazen Fire continues to burn south of Buckeye, wind conditions are blowing smoke into the Valley. The fire is burning invasive salt cedar bush, which can produce thick clouds of black smoke. Michael Graves with the Department of Environmental Quality says it’s leading to worsening conditions, especially with fine particulate matter in the air.
MICHAEL GRAVES: It's the kind that can lodge deeper into your lungs, so that's going to be a bit worse for health potentially than the larger particles like in dust.
PHIL LATZMAN: Graves says while the wind is bringing smoke in over the Valley, it is also preventing it from settling. That, though, could change by later in the week when winds slow and temperatures are expected to rise.
Phoenix’s police chief is barred from disciplining a sergeant over his behavior at a student protest while a federal judge is weighing whether to order an additional investigation. Matthew Casey has more on that.
MATTHEW CASEY: Phoenix Police Sgt. Dustin Mullen has been on paid leave for weeks while internal affairs investigates his off-duty actions at a student protest in Chandler. Mullen was scheduled to face discipline Monday morning. Instead, there was a show cause hearing in federal court. A lawyer for Mullen wants the city blocked from firing the sergeant until it does more investigating of the incident. Mullen alleges his rights to free speech and due process were trampled. A lawyer for the city says he’s accused of making false statements to Chandler police, unprofessional conduct, and provocation. Matthew Casey, KJZZ News, Phoenix.
PHIL LATZMAN: Some members of Congress say selling public lands is an answer to the affordable housing crisis. But as the Mountain West News Bureau’s Rachel Cohen reports, conservation and affordable housing groups are sharing standards they say these proposals should meet.
RACHEL COHEN: Sixty organizations are sharing the new policy framework. Noelle Porter works for one, the National Housing Law Project. She says proposals for housing on public lands should include legally binding affordability requirements, fit with local land use plans, and involve consultation with tribes and communities.
NOELLE PORTER: The goal is to sort of say, you can't wrap this sale in a premise that isn't actually a part of the promise.
RACHEL COHEN: The groups came together after Republican Senator Mike Lee of Utah proposed a large-scale land sell-off last year, which they say wouldn’t have led to affordable housing. Meanwhile, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum has his own plan to use federal land for housing but hasn’t made any public move since announcing it over a year ago. For the Mountain West News Bureau, I’m Rachel Cohen.
PHIL LATZMAN: Democrat running in Arizona’s Congressional District 1 accused, quote, "Washington elites" of meddling in the party’s primary by endorsing one of his Democratic opponents. Ben Giles has more on that situation.
BEN GILES: Every two years, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee releases a slate of candidates it considers top contenders to flip districts from red to blue. On Monday, the DCCC added Marlene Galán-Woods to the list, ensuring a boost in fundraising and campaign support in a district long represented by Republicans. The endorsement drew a sharp rebuke from Amish Shah, the Democrat who defeated Galán-Woods in the CD1 primary two years ago. Galán-Woods said the DCCC endorsement shows she’s the Democrat best positioned to win in November, while Shah said the primary race will be decided by Arizona voters, not establishment insiders from Washington. Ben Giles, KJZZ News, Phoenix.
PHIL LATZMAN: Arizona’s SNAP participation rates dropped significantly last month. Now, the head of the agency that administers the program says some of those who lost the benefit were likely eligible afterwards. Michael Wisehart says he can’t quantify how many of the estimated 400,000 who were dropped actually qualified. What he did say is there are multiple reasons why Arizonans have had problems getting and keeping their food stamps, including having the right paperwork.
MICHAEL WISEHART: Anytime you require more documentation, it makes it both harder for the individual that's applying and harder for the person that's doing the work to assess the eligibility.
PHIL LATZMAN: Wisehart said prior to Congress’s passage of the so-called Big Beautiful Bill Act last summer, a person could self-attest to things like income. In sports, baseball Diamondbacks back home; they’re trying to snap a four-game losing streak and get back to the .500 mark as they begin a three-game series with the Pittsburgh Pirates this evening at Chase Field. D-backs come off a road trip in which they lost five of six.
Hey, that will do it for this edition of KJZZ’s Sun Up, Arizona’s morning news podcast on this Cinco de Mayo Tuesday, May the 5th. I’m Phil Latzman. Enjoy the day, whatever you’re doing, and we’ll be back at you to do it again tomorrow. Talk to you then.
