Please join the Democrats of Oro Valley on Monday, March 8th at 6:30 PM for a video conference meeting with Ruth Bunny Davis , a founding member of AZ Public Square whose mission is to help Arizonans engage with local politics. Visitors to the web site can find current bills and information on important issues. Bunny wears many hats including: attorney, consultant in public policy and social justice, mental health counselor, wife and mother. Bunny will be speaking on the topic “words matter”.
Bills Advancing Many Republican bills are advancing in the AZ legislature. Below is a list of some bills up for the Committee of a Whole (COW) or a Third Reading. These are the last stages of a full vote of that house. If you click on the bill number, a pdf summary of the bill will appear.
What can we do? * Use Request to Speak Evelyn’s trick – go to My Bill Positions and fill in the bill number at the top. The bill number with a description will appear. Click on it. You can vote up or down without comment. * Contact Representatives: State Senator Vince Leach — President Pro Tempore Email: VLEACH (602) 926-3106 Karen Fann — President Senate Email: KFANN (602) 926-5874 Russell “Rusty” Bowers — Speaker of the House Email: RBOWERS (602) 926-3128 * Write letters to the editor: AZ Daily Star Tucson Local Media AZ Daily Sun SB1020 Removes the ability of a county recorder or other officer in charge of elections to designate emergency non-electioneering polling places. COW 2 February 22nd SB1105 Increases, from 100 to 200 words, the length of an initiative or referendum description included on initiative and referendum petitions. Senate – COW #3 – February 22, 2021 SB1268 Outlines requirements for a labor organization that collects benefit monies or union dues (labor organization) relating to financial disclosures, benefit choice and benefit contributions. Senate – COW – February 22, 2021 SB1377 Establishes, retroactive to March 11, 2020, reduces civil liability standards for specified acts or omissions during a state of emergency for a public health pandemic. Senate – COW #3 – February 22, 2021 SB1494 Requires, retroactive to taxable years beginning January 1, 2020, the amount of any Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) premiums paid or incurred by a taxpayer that is disallowed as a deduction for federal income tax purposes to be subtracted when computing a corporation’s Arizona gross income. Senate – Third Reading – February 22, 2021 SCR1009 Supports the enactment of the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act and the Ensuring Accurate and Complete Abortion Data Reporting Act of 2019. Senate – COW – February 22, 2021
It appears that the effort to recall Mark Finchem has stalled. Creosote Partners recommended that Rural AZ Action take over the recall campaign and they in turn have decided to take another tact. Please read past the headline of the article below to the end section about the Finchem recall for more details. Tucsoncom article You may want to let them know how you feel about the recall Mark Finchem effort: https://recallfinchem.com/contact/ Creosote Partners Rural AZ ActionYou can also call House Speaker Rusty Bowers (602-926-3128) and ask him to expel insurrectionist Mark Finchem (R-LD11). Below is the contact information for AZ House of Representative members. AZ House Roster List of AZ House Leadership And don’t forget the power of the pen. You can also write letters to the editor that Mark Finchem must be expelled for his actions before, during and after the January 6th insurrection.
Vivian Harte, Member of the League of Women Voters A past President of the League of Women Voters of Greater Tucson, Vivian is currently their Program Chair, Speakers Bureau Chair, and the editor of their newsletter. She is also the Chair of the Communications Committee of the League of Women Voters of Arizona. Formerly, she served as the Chair of the Arizona Solar Energy Association, the Chair of Concerned Arizonans for Renewable Energy, and the Arizona Manager of the Southwest Public Recycling Association. The co-author of Self-Esteem for Dummies, Vivian teaches online classes on assertiveness, self-confidence, and teamwork. She will share her knowledge about Request to Speak with us.
David Fitzsimmons
David Fitzsimmons, Editorial Cartoonist & Columnist A cartoonist, columnist and editorial writer for The Arizona Daily Star, Fitz is syndicated to over 700 news publications. A one-time Pulitzer Finalist, his award-winning cartoons have drawn fire and praise “since Geronimo was a paperboy way back in ’86”. When he is not at his drawing board slinging ink or writing editorials, Fitz is entertaining audiences with his “Fastest draw west of the Potomac” chalk talks. He states that he has appeared in every casino, conference hall, resort meeting room, theatre, school, and clubhouse west of the San Pedro. He promises to delight us with “The Usual Cartoonist’s Piffle.”
In Memoriam: DOV Members Grant Winston & Kathy Pastryk
Grant Winston passed away on December 13, 2020. A member of DOV since 2008, Grant was involved in our letter writing committee. His letters to the editor often appeared in the Star and the Citizen newspapers. Most recently Grant sponsored a fundraiser for Mark Kelly at the home of Dr. Felipe Perez. Grant was an administrative law judge in both Kentucky and in Tucson. After practicing law for 33 years, Grant retired and began writing science fiction. He will be missed. Kathy Pastryk passed away on January 1, 2021. Kathy was an original DOV member from 2004. Kathy worked on many different Democratic committees, wrote Letters to the Editor on behalf of DOV and hosted candidates at her home. Kathy was a passionate advocate for women’s rights and a community watchdog for Oro Valley. Our hearts go out to her family.
ALEC is on a Roll and We Need Your Help!
by Dee Maitland Our guest speaker Vivian Harte will be taking us through the process of becoming a Request to Speak participant. Now is the time for all of us to learn how to register for RTS, learn how to use the program, and become active in making our voices heard. Republican legislators, particularly those with affiliation to the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) have been extremely busy. Since ALEC is for limited government and unregulated markets and against public education and universal suffrage, this should be of concern to us all. Since the beginning of the new legislative session, 39 bills have already been proposed to restrict voter participation and obstruct our elections. All but 3 of those bills are sponsored by ALEC legislators, including our own Finchem, Roberts and Leach. These bills include moving election oversite from the Secretary of State and AG to the legislature itself; altering ballot counting; requiring notarization and hand delivery of “mail-in” ballots; changing ID requirements; requiring mandatory voter purging; allowing registration only in government buildings; limiting the curing time of ballots; permitting unlimited recounts of ballots, if you can pay for them; allowing legislators access to private voter information; redefining who approves election and proposition pamphlets; and crippling the ballot initiative process in other ways, including requiring a super-majority vote to get them passed . Two bills would essentially eliminate Permanent Early Voting (PEVL) altogether. If your interest is education there are 4 bills that would expand school voucher spending, give eligibility to 75% of school children, and take funds directly from public schools to fund the vouchers. On the plus side there are a lot of beneficial education bills you will want to support. Follow those with Save our Schools. If you were pleased that we now have Democrats on the Arizona Corporate Commission (ACC) giving us a voice in energy policy, ALEC has proposed 3 bills to remove energy policy from the ACC, particularly concerning air pollution. If maintaining a woman’s right to choose is important to you, there are 4 bills that would limit choice, fund religious faux “health” clinics, and require the resuscitation of fetuses.
There are also a number of new tax cut bills that would continue to diminish our General Fund and adversely affect all governmental programs. On RTS we should all be writing “No new tax cuts!” in response to their oft repeated chant: “No new taxes”. Then there are the absurd ALEC bills. One such bill would limit the emergency powers of the governor and give that power to the legislature. Another would designate gun shop owners and their employees as essential workers at the time when domestic violence and suicides have been on the rise throughout the pandemic. Please join our meeting and learn how to make your voice heard through Request to Speak so we can stop these assaults on our elections and our democratic values. I look forward to protesting with you!
UPDATE ON FINCHEM RECALL
by Dee Maitland The recall effort to remove Mark Finchem that was originally headed by Ralph Atchue has been taken over by a group of experienced partners. The official LD11 statement is as follows: “As most of you know, the LD11 board sent an email on January 10, 2021 to the Arizona State Legislative leadership requesting Finchem be removed from committee and House leadership positions and expelled from his elected position in the House. It also advised them that a Finchem recall was underway. Initially, we thought that this effort would be handled by LD11 and any support from other LDs. Since that time, the recall effort has evolved, and is now being spearheaded by a coalition of state and national partners with experience in other successful recalls and political campaigns, so LD11 is not directly managing this effort. If you have questions about the Finchem Recall or are interested in volunteering, you should go to FinchemRecall.com. On the website is a “contact” form you can fill out with any questions, as well as a ‘volunteer’ form you can fill out to volunteer.”
Our Call to Action
by Jacolyn Marshall The assault on our Capitol by a mob of insurrectionists who desecrated our halls of Congress, terrorized our representatives, and imperiled our democracy will not be soon forgotten, nor can it be. Although our new administration can do much to address and redress the ills that plague us, they cannot do it alone. We too must act. We need to speak out against injustice by demanding that those who betray their sworn duty to uphold the Constitution are held accountable. We need to speak up in defense of our democratic ideals in order to preserve them. We need to be a part of the reforms we seek. January 6, 2021 will long be remembered as a day of homegrown terrorism against all that we as a nation stand for. We cannot let it happen again.
2021 DOV Dues are Due! DONATIONS are always welcomed!
Please consider joining or renewing your membership, and/or making a donation to our club. Dues are still only $20. Your donations and dues will keep our club running for another year. Thank you for your help. Click here to pay DOV dues Click here to donate Click here to order DOV T-shirtsIf you don’t wish to use ActBlue, please send a check made out to: The Democrats of Oro Valley, PO Box 68186, Oro Valley, AZ 85737.
UPCOMING REDISTRICTING COMMISSION MEETING The Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission’s next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, February 2nd, at 9:00 am. Although this meeting is an organizational one, you may be interested in: AIRC agenda 2/2/21 Youtube IRC Live 2/2/21 9:00 am One of the problems with the public comment opportunity is that it is very limited. Fill in Comment Form
Let Your Voice Be Heard Sign up for the training on the AIRC provided by the AZDems. The training is quick, informative and easy to follow. Sign up for training At the end of the training, you will be able to sign up for redistricting updates.
