Arizona farmers can legally grow industrial hemp, but will they take the risk?
CASA GRANDE – Paco Ollerton, a third-generation cotton farmer, is carefully looking at growing industrial hemp – a crop that has attracted many with its environmentally friendly claims – this summer, as it will be legal to grow in the state May 31.
Same report, different take for state lawmakers eyeing Mueller report
PHOENIX - Arizona lawmakers looked at the same 448-page Mueller report and saw two different things, with two very different reactions, depending on which side of the aisle they are on. If there was a common thread, it was that nobody's mind appeared to be changed by the report.
Phoenix officials pleased with cancer screening program for first-responders
PHOENIX – A cancer screening program for Valley police and firefighters has detected several cases of cancer, but all were caught early enough to successfully treat.
Arizona food banks prepare for possible government shutdown – again
PHOENIX – Food banks that helped furloughed federal employees learned lessons that will help if the government shuts down again.
‘Enough is enough’: State considers cellphone ban for drivers weeks after officer’s death
PHOENIX – Three weeks after Officer Clayton Townsend was hit and killed at a traffic stop, allegedly by a motorist who was driving and texting, state Sen. Kate Brophy McGee introduced a “hands-free” bill to prohibit the use of a cell-phone in a moving vehicle.
Educators hope that ‘Year of the Teacher’ could be first of many
WASHINGTON - Sparked by movements like Arizona's "Red for Ed," a record 1,800 teachers were on ballots across the U.S. this fall and an estimated 1,100 won, not a perfect score but what educators believe is the start of a movement toward more activism and more attention to their issues.
Buckle up? Not in every seat in Arizona, which some experts frown on
WASHINGTON - Buckling up saves lives, particularly during the busy holiday travel season, but safety experts saw Arizona's relatively lax seatbelt laws leave a lot to be desired. One state expert disagrees, saying Arizona actually does better on seatbelt use than many states with stricter laws.
Flake threat to scuttle judicial nominees is scuttled by delayed vote
WASHINGTON - The Senate Judiciary Committee delayed votes on 15 judicial nominees - including one from Arizona - temporarily scuttling a plan by Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Arizona, to force a vote on the Special Counsel Independence and Integrity Act by opposing all judicial nominees until a vote on the act is allowed.
Battles over Props 127, 305 and Senate seat, with last-minute push for voters
PHOENIX – As voters head to the polls on Election Day, Maricopa County elections officials are pledging problem-free voting and election advocates are making a final push among Latinos and other residents. Newcomer candidates clamoring for votes include teachers and Native American women.
Arizona law professors among thousands urging a ‘no’ vote on Kavanaugh
WASHINGTON - More than 2,400 law professors, including at least 22 from Arizona, had signed on to an open letter of opposition to the possible confirmation of Supreme Court Brett Kavanaugh, saying they have concerns about his temperament and partisanship after his combative committee appearance last week.
Protesters for, against Kavanaugh stage spirited, largely civil rallies
WASHINGTON - While senators heard the conflicting stories of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh and accuser Christine Blasey Ford, hundreds of anti-Kavanaugh protesters and a smaller number of supporters rallied outside the hearing for hours of spirited, but mostly civil, debate.
Grijalva, Bishop craft surprise deal to save fund for public lands
WASHINGTON - A House committee unanimously approved a surprise, bipartisan plan to save a popular land conservation fund Thursday, just weeks before the $900 million Land and Water Conservation Fund was set to expire, a victim of partisan feuding.
