Arizona's $15 million appropriation to the Prescott Rodeo is illegal, court rules

A judge ruled that a gift of millions of dollars to the Prescott Rodeo by state lawmakers violated Arizona’s Constitution.

In 2023, at the urging of two Republican lawmakers who represent the Prescott area, legislators appropriated $15.3 million to Prescott Frontier Days, Inc., the nonprofit that runs the “World’s Oldest Rodeo.”

The funding was challenged by Prescott residents, backed by the Arizona Center for the Law in the Public Interest, who argued the gift violated the state constitution.

In a ruling issued Thursday, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Scott Blaney agreed, noting the appropriation didn’t come with instructions or limitations on how the rodeo can spend the funding as required by the Constitution.

“It is not supported by any consideration, let alone a promise of sufficient direct benefits that serve a public purpose,” he wrote.

The gift clause in the Arizona Constitution says the state cannot give money to any group "except as to save ownerships as may accrue to the state by operation or provision of law as authorized by law solely for investment of the monies in the various funds of the state.”

Plaintiffs also argued that the appropriation for the rodeo violated the appropriations clause of the state constitution, which stipulates that the legislature's budget bills should only include funding for state departments and institutions, not nonprofits like Prescott Frontier Days.

The ruling blocks the rodeo from receiving the appropriation.

Prescott Rep. Selina Bliss is one of the lawmakers who secured the funding. She called the decision disappointing.

“[I] find it incredible that improvements to the grounds that host the world’s oldest rodeo, in addition to other community events, are not given credit for serving a ‘public purpose’ that promotes public welfare or enjoyment. One only has to physically attend an event on these grounds to see and experience the value to the public that this appropriation would have served. Disappointing indeed!” she said in a text.

The state, and Arizona Republican Treasurer Kimberly Yee, argued that the appropriation is within the bounds of the law because it isn’t sent directly to Prescott Frontier Days, but to the treasurer, who would then give it to the nonprofit.

Yee tried to tell the court she could create a grant program to distribute the funds, but Blaney ruled that she isn’t permitted to do that