A proposal backed by the Arizona Diamondbacks to fund stadium improvements using sales and income tax revenues passed out of the state House of Representatives, but it’s not clear whether the bill has the support of Gov. Katie Hobbs.
Rep. Jeff Weninger’s bill would allow the Maricopa County stadium district that owns Chase Field to collect most of the state, city and county sales tax generated at the stadium along with state income taxes levied against the team’s player and employee salaries.
According to the team, the stadium is in need of $500 million in upgrades to fix a host of issues, including the air conditioning and plumbing.
Weninger said the public funds will only cover part of that bill, with the team committed to spending around $250 million.
“This makes it a true partnership between the team, state, city and county,” he said.
The House passed the bill despite opposition from Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego, who said it will cost the city $200 million in revenue.
“Two-thirds of Phoenix’s general fund supports public safety,” Gallego wrote on social media. “Phoenix’s tax dollars are best spent supporting our firefighters who respond to emergencies, helping police fight crime and combating homelessness — not used to pay for subsidies for those at the very top.”
Weninger said lawmakers made several changes to the bill in an attempt to get the city and Maricopa County on board. That included exempting a portion of the city’s sales tax that goes toward funding public safety and the part of the county tax that funds jails, he said.
“With the county, we did not touch the 0.2% county jail portion of the tax, and with the city, we did not touch the 0.3% that goes with first responders,” Weninger said.
The county had initially opposed the bill, though it later registered as “neutral.” Assistant County Manager Zach Schira previously told lawmakers the county wanted to exempt voter-approved sales taxes that fund transportation projects and jails.
Weninger also amended the bill to add a sunset clause that would end the arrangement in 30 years. The state would also stop all payments and require the team to pay a penalty of between $1 million and $10 million if the Diamondbacks leave the state before 2050.
The bill passed the House on a 35-25 vote with some bipartisan support — and opposition.
“I am old enough to remember when Democrats opposed taking money from regular taxpayers and giving it to rich corporations,” Rep. Alexander Kolodin (R-Scottsdale) said.
Democratic critics, meanwhile, said the bill wasn’t ready for a vote.
“Of course everyone loves the Dbacks,” said Assistant Minority Leader Oscar de los Santos (D-Phoenix). “I think there is a negotiated compromise that we could come to, but we should not be rushing through this legislative process.”
And Rep. Betty Villegas (D-Tucson) said she opposed siphoning away the income tax on players’ multimillion-dollar salaries as the state faces the prospect of significant federal funding cuts from the Trump administration.
“The fact that we have a lot of federal cuts coming our way, we need to be aware that those cuts are going to hurt many people here in Arizona,” she said.
Weninger’s proposal must still pass the Arizona Senate and win Hobbs’ approval before the stadium district can begin using any of that money to fix Chase Field.
“I support a solution that keeps Major League Baseball and the Diamondbacks here in Arizona, and I am really hopeful that the points of disagreement between the city, the county and the state can get worked out so that we can get a deal done,” Hobbs said.
But the governor refused to clarify her stance on the current proposal working its way through the Legislature.
“I didn’t say that,” Hobbs said when asked if she would refuse to sign the bill in its current form.
