Democratic Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs has set veto records in recent years.
Here are all the bills she has vetoed in 2026.
House bills
House Bill 2206, SNAP; error rate; forensic audit
House Bill 2206 would have required the state department of economic security to reduce the error rate in the SNAP program. Last summer, Congress passed H.R.1 - which requires states to lower their error rates in SNAP programs to 6% or less. Arizona’s SNAP rate as of the beginning of 2026 was 8.8%, meaning the state stands to lose more than $130 million of federal funding. State GOP lawmakers would have required an even lower error rate with HB2206 and cut state funding to DES by 10% as a penalty if that goal goes unmet. The bill passed out of the legislature on party lines. Hobbs said in her veto letter that DES is already careful about making sure SNAP recipients are eligible, making the bill unnecessary.
House Bill 2396, SNAP; allowed purchases; waiver
House Bill 2396 would have limited what kind of foods SNAP recipients can purchase to eliminate things like soda, prepared foods, and candy. It passed out of the legislature on party lines. Hobbs vetoed a similar bill last year. She wrote in her veto letter that the bill would deprive SNAP recipients “of the dignity and economic freedom enjoyed by other grocery shoppers.”
House Bill 2796, AHCCCS; enrollment verification; presumptive eligibility
House Bill 2796 would have created new eligibility requirements for Arizonans to enroll in the state Medicaid program — called the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System. The bill would have required AHCCCS to work with the state department of revenue to find enrollees with new lottery winnings of $3,000 or more and deem them ineligible. The legislation would also require AHCCCS to review death records and reassess the eligibility of any able-bodied adults. The agency would not be allowed to accept self-attestations of enrollee information like income or age. The bill passed on party lines. Hobbs noted in her veto letter that she’d already vetoed similar legislation. She said AHCCCS already follows strict eligibility verification requirements. “This measure would unnecessarily grow government, and it is a bureaucratic distraction from the state’s obligation to implement federal Medicaid requirements in a timely way,” Hobbs wrote.
Senate bills
Senate Bill 1106 — internal revenue code; conformity; deductions
Senate Bill 1106 would have conformed Arizona’s tax code to federal tax code to adjust for changes made by Congress at the end of 2025. The conformity plan would have cost an estimated $441 million in tax cuts in the next fiscal year. It passed out of the legislature on party lines. In her veto letter, Hobbs told GOP lawmakers to pass her own alternative “middle class tax cuts package” before pushing any other tax conformity proposals, which Hobbs said should be handled later in budget negotiations. “You have sent me partisan legislation that gives tax breaks to special interests while hiking taxes on working seniors struggling to get by. I urge you to rethink your partisan political theater and send the Middle Class Tax Cuts Package to my desk. We should not hold cuts for 88% of Arizonans hostage in order to force through tax breaks for special interests,” she wrote.
Senate Bill 1002, SNAP; TANF; public welfare; verification
Senate Bill 1002 would have established new requirements to ensure only eligible users can use SNAP. The bill would’ve ensured that anyone on SNAP with new lottery winnings of $3,000 or more would be removed from the program. The bill would’ve also required the department of economic security to publicly post information on SNAP, including the number of cases investigated for program violations. It passed out of the legislature on party lines. Hobbs wrote in her veto letter that DES is already careful about making sure SNAP recipients are eligible, making the bill unnecessary.
Senate Bill 1036, unemployment benefits; requirements; disqualifications; determinations
Senate Bill 1036 would have altered eligibility requirements for someone to receive unemployment insurance benefits. It would also have required the department of economic security to verify the unemployment benefit claims against certain data. The department of economic security would be prohibited from paying benefits until verifying eligibility. The bill passed out of the legislature on party lines Hobbs noted in her veto message that she’d already vetoed that legislation and that the bill would create unnecessary delays and add costs to the state.
Senate Bill 1051, hospitals; patient immigration status; reporting
Senate Bill 1051 would have required public hospitals to ask patients on admissions forms whether they are United States citizens. The bill passed out of the legislature on party liens without any Democratic support. Hospitals would;ve then been required to report that data regularly to the state department of health services. Even though the bill states the patients’ responses would not prevent them from receiving care or be reported to immigration authorities, Democrats argued it could be used in immigration enforcement efforts and have a chilling effect on patients. Hobbs noted in her veto letter that she’d already vetoed similar legislation the year before.
Senate Bill1056, budget unit; vacant positions; reporting
Senate Bill 1056 would have required the state department of administration to compile a list of vacant full-time positions in state government. Those positions would then be eliminated if they’d been vacant for at least 150 days. The bill passed out of the legislature on party lines. Hobbs noted in her veto letter that she’s already vetoed similar legislation. She added that the bill “does not accurately reflect the state’s merit-based hiring process” and would negatively impact state agencies.
Senate Bill 1331, SNAP; mandatory employment and training.
Senate Bill 1331 would have increased work requirements for anyone enrolled in SNAP to remain eligible for benefits. Specifically, the department of economic security would have required able-bodied recipients under 60 to participate in employment and training programs. The bill also outlined some exceptions, such as recipients who are also full time students ,or actively participating in rehab. The bill passed out of the legislature on party lines. In her veto letter, Hobbs asked lawmakers to focus on making costs lower for Arizonans. She also said that DES is already careful about making sure SNAP recipients are eligible, making the bill unnecessary.
Senate Bill 1334, SNAP; work requirement waivers; exemptions.
Senate Bill 1334 would have prevented the state department of economic security from accepting SNAP work requirement waivers if the applicant is an able-bodied adult without dependents, unless they meet specific exemptions. It passed out of the legislature on party lines. Hobbs said in her veto letter that DES is already careful about making sure SNAP recipients are eligible, making the bill unnecessary.
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The bill would eliminate income tax for people who make less than $46,000 a year.
