Governor Doug Ducey signed a new legislation on Thursday cutting state shared revenue from municipalities and counties that pass regulations like plastic bag bans that conflict with the state law.
According to Yahoo! News, the move took part just hours after the organization representing the entire 91 Arizona cities and towns sought the Republican governor to veto the bill. The letter to Ducey from the League of Arizona cities and towns claimed that the measure is heavy-handed and invasive.
The letter also said that it minimizes the important role of local elected officials. "The elimination of shared revenue from cities and towns is a crippling and unjust penalty since it represents an average of 40 percent of a city's general fund," claimed the letter signed by the mayors of Tempe, Lake Havasu City and Chandler in the roles as league leaders.
However, the Republican Governor was unconvinced. He had promised in his state-of-the-state address to slash state shared revenue to any city that has a minimum wage that is higher than the state's, despite the law allowing that, as reported by ABC NEWS.
"As Governor Ducey has made clear, for Arizona to be competitive, we can't have a patchwork of different laws across the state," spokeswoman Annie Dockendorff mentioned in a statement. She added,"This legislation ensures everyone is playing by the same rules."
The state sent approximately $1.1 billion from income and sales taxes to 91 cities and towns in the budget year that concluded in June 30. Moreover, the Republican-dominated Arizona administration has firmly positioned itself against cities that ratify laws known in liberal enclaves, including the plastic bag bans and rules governing energy efficiency buildings.
Bristol Herald Courier noted that the legislation passed mainly alongside party lines, with all but four Republicans supporting it. Additionally, all Democrats opposed the bill.
Senate President Andy Bigg's bill permits an individual legislator to prompt a probe of a municipal ordinance by complaining to the attorney general. Cities and towns would also be charged if the attorney general determined that there was a conflict with the state law or the Consitution.
They would also lose the state funds if they did not cancel the action within 30 days. "What possible hubris could drive one single legislator to think he or she has more wisdom than the local elected officials who have been chosen by the voters to govern their communities?" the mayors wrote. They went on to question,"What happened to the principle of 'presumption of innocence' in our legal system?"
Meanwhile, Democrats still argue that it is hypocritical for the Republican lawmakers who criticize the federal government for compelling Arizona to follow federal laws to turn around and do the same to cities and towns. Republicans who voted against the bill also expressed their concerns about the penalties that would create harm to ordinary citizens.
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