PHOENIX β Gov. Katie Hobbs notched another four vetoes Monday.
The Democratic governor rejected HB2427, a proposal by Rep. Matt Gress, R-Phoenix, that would have increased the maximum possible penalty for aggravated assault in a domestic violence situation if the assailant knew or had reason to know the victim was pregnant.
Hobbs, in her veto message, cited the Arizona Coalition to End Domestic Violence groupβs stance that the bill βwill do nothing to deter domestic violence offenses or support pregnant victims.ββ
βAs a social worker who spent years serving in Arizonaβs largest domestic violence shelter, Iβve seen first-hand the needs of victims seeking safety and stability,ββ Hobbs wrote. βI encourage the Legislature to focus on those needs, including increased funding for services and economic support for victims.ββ
Gress said domestic violence, ranging from stalking to physical violence, affects one out of every four women and one in nine men in the country. βWith pregnancy comes risk,ββ Gress said. βAnd many women report itβs actually when they become pregnant that abuse starts or becomes intensified.ββ
HB2427 would have allowed five years to be added to any penalty, he said, to ensure βwe will not allow two lives to be further threatened by unstable aggression of a partner.ββ
Gress acknowledged he had not spoken with domestic violence advocacy organizations β other than the anti-abortion Center for Arizona Policy. Marilyn Rodriguez, representing the Arizona Coalition to End Domestic Violence, testified against the bill.
The legislation also drew opposition from Planned Parenthood. There was concern the bill could be seen as a way to try to grant separate legal status to an unborn child, which could undermine abortion rights. Heightening the groupβs concern is that this isnβt Gressβ only such effort. He is sponsoring several measures that could have the same impact.
Electric service
Hobbs separately vetoed HB2440.
It would have required utilities to give top priority to providing βreliable and affordable electric serviceββ when planning new generation facilities.
Sandy Bahr, who lobbies for the Sierra Club, said the measure looked at things too narrowly. She said there are other factors ranging from air pollution to the amount of water a particular type of power plant would use. βItβs unwise to exclude those,ββ Bahr said.
Hobbs called HB2440 unnecessary and said it βcreates regulatory uncertainty in instances where affordability and reliability may be at odds.ββ
She also said she wants to focus on βsolutions that deliver direct assistance to Arizona families struggling with energy costs.ββ
βSocial credit scoresβ
Also gaining a veto stamp was HB2472. It would have barred the state from requiring a bank or financial institution to use a βsocial credit scoreββ when evaluating whether to lend money to a customer.
Rep. Steve Montenegro, R-Goodyear, said itβs about protecting the βfree marketββ and protecting Arizona banks from having to use factors they do not want. His legislation, however, did not define a βsocial credit scoreββ but suggested it is a practice used in communist countries like China to determine if people are βliked in societyββ and links their ability to get certain benefits to that score.
Hobbs said the uncertainty about what would be barred affected her decision to veto the bill.
βIt does not define βsocial credit scores,β nor do these systems exist anywhere in the United States,ββ the governor wrote. She said if the goal is to protect against unfair lending practices, they already are covered by federal law and, specifically, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act of 1974.
Arroyos and pollutants
Hobbs also vetoed HB2056, which would have exempted dry washes and similar arroyos that donβt flow steadily from certain requirements dealing with the discharge of pollutants.
She said it would create βregulatory confusion and uncertaintyββ because it would conflict with provisions of what the federal government determines are βWaters of the United Statesββ subject to protections.
She said if the federal government disagreed with a state action, Arizona would lose the ability to enforce its own regulatory programs and decisions would go back to the federal government.
The vetoes bring to 24 her tally so far this session of the Republican-controlled Legislature.