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,
KJZZ's Sun Up Transcript for July 27, 2026
ANNOUNCER: KJZZ’s Sun Up is supported by Banner Health, Arizona's largest nonprofit healthcare system. Last year, Banner reinvested more than $1.1 billion in community health and charity care. Banner Health, nonprofit for Arizona. BannerHealth.com/nonprofitforaz.
BRUCE DRUMMOND: This is KJZZ’s Sun Up, your daily news update from Phoenix, the state, and the region. Good morning, I'm Bruce Drummond, Phil is on vacation. This podcast is a daily digest of Arizona news as reported by the KJZZ news team. It's Monday, July 27th. It's a fresh start to the workweek, hope you had a nice weekend. Let's check the latest news to get the day started.
The city of Phoenix is preparing to launch a new subleasing program to help unhoused people get into apartments faster. Katherine Davis-Young has details.
KATHERINE DAVIS-YOUNG: Rachel Milne directs Phoenix's Office of Homeless Solutions. She says when someone is trying to exit homelessness, it can be really hard to break into the city's tight rental market.
RACHEL MILNE: We're working with clients all day long in our shelter programs that are ready to be housed, just need that little bit of support.
KATHERINE DAVIS-YOUNG: So in its newest budget, Phoenix City Council allocated $2.5 million annually for a new master lease program. The Office of Homeless Solutions will use that funding to rent about 50 apartments. Then the city will have those units available to sublet to people coming out of shelters. A start date has yet to be announced, but Milne says the city is in the process of securing units for the program. Katherine Davis-Young, KJZZ News, Phoenix.
BRUCE DRUMMOND: Now that Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne has lost his reelection bid to State Treasurer Kimberly Yee, Horne says he plans to open a charter school for seventh through 12th graders after he leaves office. He says the idea wasn't on his mind before losing the election.
TOM HORNE: I didn't expect to lose, but the idea came after. My wife came up with the idea, and we're working hard on it, recruiting teachers and so on.
BRUCE DRUMMOND: Horn says the school will have a goal of enrolling students from high-poverty families. Looking back on his time in office, a long political career that included serving as Arizona's Attorney General, Horn says he's most proud of a school improvement program called Project Momentum.
Around 250 Banner Health employees can start casting ballots this week on whether to unionize. Matthew Casey reports.
MATTHEW CASEY: Doctors, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants working for Banner allege that clinicians have been excluded from decisions made by Banner executives, which affect patient care conditions. Dr. Justin Watkins practices family medicine at a Gilbert clinic. He says his patients back the effort to unionize.
JUSTIN WATKINS: As soon as I say the point of this is so you can get in to see me sooner, so that I can respond to your messages sooner, so that I can review your labs and your images faster, so that you're not waiting a week on, you know, a medication referral and going without medicine.
MATTHEW CASEY: Ballots are scheduled to be counted in early September. Banner has said it's always prioritized leaders and team members working together without third-party interference. Matthew Casey, KJZZ News, Phoenix.
BRUCE DRUMMOND: ASU was among the first group of applicants to receive funding under the Department of Energy's Genesis Mission. Researchers will use the grant to study how artificial intelligence could improve grid reliability in the state. Taylor Griffith reports.
TAYLOR GRIFFITH: A team of researchers at ASU's College of Global Futures will create an AI that can rapidly assess various stressors on the energy grid, such as changes in demand or extreme weather. An ASU news release says the team will work with state grid operators to develop tools that can maintain grid reliability and lower costs better than traditional models. The Department of Energy launched its Genesis Mission last fall. A statement on DOE's website says it will harness the current AI revolution to double the productivity and impact of American science and engineering within a decade. Five research projects at the University of Arizona were also selected. Taylor Griffith, KJZZ News, Phoenix.
BRUCE DRUMMOND: A new survey of certified teachers highlights the factors that keep them in Arizona's classrooms despite ongoing challenges. Ignacio Ventura has more on the findings from the State Department of Education.
IGNACIO VENTURA: The responses came from nearly 2,000 participants. Data collected reflects issues not only with compensation, but workload, student behavior, and time demands. For example, only 43% of respondents said their workload is reasonable and sustainable. While pay may not be a primary motivator for educators staying on the job, the survey found that about 70 to 85% reported feeling safe, respected, and part of a positive school community. Graham Corp, president of the Mesa Education Association, took issue with the survey methodology.
GRAHAM CORP: I think that poses its own skew, because you're going from people who have already committed to staying versus people who have already committed to leaving.
IGNACIO VENTURA: Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horn has recognized that teacher shortages continue to be severe. Ignacio Ventura, KJZZ News, Phoenix.
BRUCE DRUMMOND: A national test case for President Trump's push to expand data center construction is unfolding just outside of Arizona in Boulder City, Nevada. A project there was facing local resistance, but the company got approval by simply pivoting to the Feds. The Mountain West News Bureau's Yvette Fernandez explains.
YVETTE FERNANDEZ: In a packed public City Council hearing, residents and local officials reacted to the news that a data center moved its plan to Federal Bureau of Land Management land and won approval. Council members Steve Walton and Denise Ashurst:
STEVE WALTON: This is absolutely out of line, just ridiculous.
DENISE ASHURST: I researched that they've never did a data center on BLM land, so this is new for them, too.
YVETTE FERNANDEZ: The city would remain responsible for essential services like fire, police. City Attorney Brittany Walker said the council was not contacted by federal officials in advance.
BRITTANY WALKER: And those are things that would have been explored had the BLM followed the correct process.
YVETTE FERNANDEZ: Walker also pointed to the president's signing of an executive order last year aimed at fast-tracking data center construction. Yvette Fernandez, The Mountain West News Bureau.
BRUCE DRUMMOND: Researchers from Northern Arizona University are developing an AI chatbot that could help provide health coaching sessions to people. Researchers plan to study how humans interact with the technology compared to a human coach. Buck Blankenship is with NAU's College of Education.
BUCK BLANKENSHIP: The chatbot that's being developed is also rooted in the same protocol that the students use peer-to-peer.
BRUCE DRUMMOND: Blankenship says the team plans to gather data from students interacting with the chatbot through the fall and spring semesters.
About one in five Arizona adults are at moderate or high risk of becoming problem gamblers. That's according to a new report from state gaming officials. Here's Matthew Casey again.
MATTHEW CASEY: A problem gambler has behavior patterns that compromise, disrupt, or damage relationships and activities. Extreme problem gambling leads to addiction recognized by the American Psychiatric Association. A survey of about 1,000 Arizona adults found roughly 6% of respondents said most of the time or almost always they try to win back lost money. Another roughly 6% reported betting more than they could afford to lose. The report recommends early screening for problem gambling be increasingly integrated into behavioral health settings. Matthew Casey, KJZZ News, Phoenix.
BRUCE DRUMMOND: 2026 was Arizona's most successful fiscal year in the state's history. That's according to a new report by the Arizona Commerce Authority. Lilly Roseburrough has details.
LILLY ROSEBURROUGH: Arizona saw an additional 26,000 projected jobs in fiscal year 2026 and more than $109 billion invested into the state's economy, according to the Arizona Commerce Authority. The expected average salary for these new opportunities is about $81,000. ACA spokesperson Alyssa Tufts says a major goal of the ACA was to expand industry in rural communities.
ALYSSA TUFTS: We work with companies that choose to invest and expand all across the state. So we had some really exciting rural projects this year, including one in Waddell.
LILLY ROSEBURROUGH: Tufts says the ACA plans to continue developing Arizona's economy through educational opportunities and relationships with big companies. Lilly Roseburrough, KJZZ News, Phoenix.
BRUCE DRUMMOND: ASU's Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication is offering a new degree in social media content creation. Cronkite Dean Battinto Batts Jr. says:
BATTINTO BATTS JR.: Students get to go there, learn even more directly about creating content for and and and building their own personal brand, their website, their social media feed, their their YouTube channels, and then how to do that also for for clients.
BRUCE DRUMMOND: He says students will learn how to build trust and familiarity with online audiences, while also learning the business side of social media, like content monetization and performance. The program was created in response to evolving trends in marketing and communication industries.
In sports, a second straight loss for the Diamondbacks yesterday as they fell to the Nationals 10 to 7 in D.C. Arizona lost two of three over the weekend, dropping their season record to 55 and 51. The Diamondbacks travel to Pittsburgh to start a series against the Pirates today. That first pitch is at 3:40 p.m. Arizona time. And in basketball, after the WNBA All-Star break over the weekend, the Mercury will be back in action this week. Phoenix resumes its season heading to the Bay Area for a game against the Valkyries on Wednesday. In football, the Arizona Cardinals have agreed to a new contract with quarterback Jacoby Brissett, ending a three-month holdout. Brissett is now set to make $15.5 million in guaranteed salary and will likely be the Cards' starter this season. It's only a one-year deal, meaning Brissett could be a free agent next year.
And that's it for this edition of KJZZ’s Sun Up, Arizona's morning news podcast for Monday, July 27th. I'm Bruce Drummond. Enjoy the rest of the day, and stay cool.
