PHOENIX — Lawmakers approved a few last-minute tweaks to state laws before they wrapped up the legislative session they began in January.
One of the more controversial spells out who cannot own land in Arizona.
Senate Bill 1082 says any “foreign adversary’’ or an agent of an adversary “may not, directly, purchase, own or acquire ... a substantial interest in real property in the state.” That is defined as any country designated by the director of national intelligence as one that poses a risk to U.S. security in at least three of the most recent threat assessments.
That currently includes the People’s Republic of China, Cuba, North Korea, Russia, Iran and, in an unusual individual designation, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
The issue is national security, according to Republican Sen. Janae Shamp. She wants to keep those foreign interests from acquiring land near the state’s military bases — particularly Luke Air Force Base within her legislative district, which she said trains more than 75% of all F-35 pilots.
“As global threats evolve, so must our approach to securing our vital defense of infrastructure,’’ said Shamp of Surprise. “This bill draws a protective boundary around our installations.’’
But Senate Minority Leader Priya Sundareshan said there are “serious constitutional concerns when you target entities based on their national origin.’’
The legislation restricts land sales to not just the specific countries but also to what it describes as “agents.’’ Those range from state-owned enterprises of one of the adversary nations, to any business that is headquartered in an adversary nation and is directly or indirectly controlled by that nation.
“Some of those constitutionality concerns relate to equal protection,’’ said Sundareshan, a Tucson Democrat. But she said her concerns go beyond the legal issues.
“These types of laws stem from and continue a history of discriminatory land ownership practices that stem from the alien land laws of the prior decades where people were prevented from owning land based on their national origin,’’ she said.
Phoenix Democratic Sen. Analise Ortiz agreed. “These were used to target Chinese and Japanese immigrants, stripping them of economic power and reinforcing xenophobic violence,’’ she said.
This is Shamp’s second version of her plan. An earlier one, which had been sharply altered by Rep. Alexander Kolodin, R-Scottsdale, was vetoed by Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs. Hobbs said it was “ineffective at counter-espionage and does not directly protect our military assets.’’
But Shamp said she reworked the law in consultation with others — including Hobbs, a fact confirmed by the governor’s press aide.
Compensation for wrongly convicted
Arizona lawmakers are ready to provide some compensation to people who were wrongfully convicted and incarcerated.
Both the House and Senate gave final approval to SB 1500. The proposal by Rep. Khyl Powell, a Gilbert Republican, would entitle those who were wronged to seek financial relief equal to twice the mean income for each year they were locked up.
Powell said this is about more than money.
His legislation also would provide mental health counseling and 120 credit hours at any college, vocational school or trade school. He said someone locked away for decades may not have the skills upon their release to be able to provide for themselves.
Mesa Democratic Sen. Kiana Sears agreed that is justified. “This type of legislation not only rights the wrong we can never give back,’’ it also addresses the issue “in a holistic way’’ by dealing with not just the financial issues but the psychological and other ones, she said.
There is a cost. Legislative analysts said there have been 24 exonerations in Arizona since 1989, with an average time behind bars of 5.6 years. Assuming just 20% of those exonerated in that time period submit claims, that’s a one-time cost of $4.5 million.
That report also figures, based on historical averages, the annual cost going forward would be about $641,000.
The Arizona Capitol in Phoenix.
State prison system
Lawmakers gave final approval to SB 1507 to have someone within the Auditor General’s Office monitor the safety and health of inmates at the Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry.
That has been a priority of Snowflake Republican Rep. Walt Blackman for years.
He said there has been insufficient oversight of the agency that houses about 35,000 inmates and has a budget of $1.8 billion. He wants some oversight by an independent watchdog who would have what he called “teeth’’ to access records and demand answers.
Prior efforts faltered. Sen. Shawnna Bolick, R-Phoenix, who has been working with Blackman on the bill this year, said part of the problem has been that Hobbs, who appointed Ryan Thornell as the state prisons chief, did not want such a review.
So they came up with what could be considered a scaled-back approach: a single person who would be appointed by the governor to serve as director of the Independent Correctional Oversight Office.
Still, there would be a certain amount of independence from the governor, and not just because of a requirement for Senate confirmation
The person would serve a five-year term — longer than the term of any governor — and could be removed only by a two-thirds vote of both the House and Senate. The governor could fire someone, but only for neglect of duty, misconduct, or the inability to perform duties.
Bolick said there is a history of problems in the prison system, with 11 inmate deaths already this year.
“With the passing of SB 1507, Arizona legislators will finally have unbiased information through an independent correctional oversight office to bring transparency to our prisons,’’ she said. Bolick said when things go wrong within the prison system it affects not just the inmates but staffers, the state budget and public safety.
Blackman also noted that there is ongoing litigation in federal court over what a judge found to be health care that was “plainly grossly inadequate.”
Going to voters
Arizona voters will be asked to decide whether drug cartels are “terrorist organizations.’’
House Concurrent Resolution 2055, given final approval Friday, would require the state Department of Homeland Security to “do everything within its authority’’ to address the threat posed by cartels. By “threat,” the measure means “anything designed to disturb, violate or cause harm to individual rights’’ or anything that harms “the public safety, health or general welfare of the people.’’
Hobbs vetoed a similar measure two years ago, saying that declaring any group of terrorists is not a function of state government but of the U.S. State Department. Beyond that, she pointed out that the state’s Department of Homeland Security is largely an administrative agency responsible for administering federal grants related to terrorism prevention.
Now the measure will go on the 2026 ballot.
Sen. Catherine Miranda, D-Laveen, said such a measure would result in militarization of the border and push the idea “that all immigrants are terrorists.’’
