The House and Senate reconvened after a month-long break on June 12th to finish their work on outstanding issues that have been highly focused on this session: water, housing, and Prop 400e. The House and Senate had marathon floor sessions and final committee hearings to push through legislation that included granting water access to Rio Verde Foothills after the Governor vetoed a previous proposal. Two housing bills were going to be voted on that would have changed city zoning for properties and helped ease the housing crisis, but both were retained from action after the votes from a majority of Republicans were no longer available. Prop 400e, the extension of the half-cent sales tax for Maricopa County transportation and infrastructure is set to expire in January of 2026. The legislature has been meeting with stakeholders for months to find a solution to the new extension and things were moving in a positive direction until negations were stalled by lack of agreement amongst the big three (the Speaker, President, and Governor). Ultimately, the legislative Republicans pushed through a plan they thought was more fiscally responsible to bring to the voters. This included splitting the tax into two ballot questions to separate transit from other infrastructure funding. This plan was met with strong disagreement from Democratic members, MAG (Maricopa Association of Governments), and many cities who have worked to negotiate the extension. The bill was vetoed by Governor Hobbs on June 20th. Even though it is likely that no further legislation will be acted on, both legislative chambers made a motion to adjourn until July 31st, at which point they will likely Sine Die officially.
The labors have been completed, but Sine Die will have to wait
