Arizona
Arizona prepares for legal clash over Colorado River with $1 million bill
Arizona is ramping up its efforts to protect its share of the Colorado River’s dwindling water supply, as the state faces an uncertain future over the fate of one of the West’s most crucial resources.
A bill advanced Tuesday by the Arizona House Committee on Natural Resources, Energy and Water aims to allocate $1 million to defend the Grand Canyon State’s water rights as part of the ongoing battle over the Colorado River.
The bill, known as House Bill 2103, seeks to set aside the funds to support litigation in the event that negotiations among the seven states dependent on the river break down.
Arizona is preparing for the possibility of legal action if the ongoing discussions fail to resolve water allocation disputes.
kojihirano/Getty
The bill passed with unanimous support from the committee, though Democrats indicated they will propose an amendment to increase the allocation to $3 million, in line with Governor Katie Hobbs’ proposed budget.
State Representative Gail Griffin, a Republican from Tucson and the bill’s sponsor, told the committee, “It just shows we are ready to take action,” the Courthouse News Service reported.
The Colorado River, which feeds both Lake Mead and Lake Powell—critical water reservoirs for the Southwest—has been a vital source of water for more than 40 million people across the U.S. and Mexico.
But after years of drought and climate change, the river’s once-mighty flow is at its lowest levels in recorded history, prompting urgent discussions about how to share its shrinking resources before current agreements expire in 2026.
At the center of the debate are two factions: the Upper Basin states—Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming—and the Lower Basin states, which include Arizona, California and Nevada.
The Upper Basin states argue that their smaller reservoirs and more severe drought conditions justify keeping their water consumption levels higher, while the Lower Basin states, already committed to significant cuts, push for more aggressive reductions.
But as the clock ticks down toward 2026, when potential cuts could be enforced by the federal government, tensions are mounting over the distribution of the river’s limited water supply.
Arizona’s position is clear: it wants to be able to fight its corner if necessary and needs funds to do it.
The request for funds to potentially fight a legal battle was first proposed in September 2024 by Tom Buschatzke, the director of the Arizona Department of Water Resources.
Buschatzke has warned of a growing divide between the Upper and Lower Basin states, referring to the rift as a “Grand Canyon-sized chasm” that could lead to a standoff if compromise proves elusive.
“It doesn’t seem like the Upper Basin feels like they have any risk that any additional cuts to their use can be imposed upon them,” Buschatzke said in a previous interview with Newsweek.
“We think we have a strong case if we have to go to court.”
Despite the potential for litigation, Buschatzke stressed that legal action would be a last resort.
He said: “If we end up in court, which we don’t want, it would be begrudgingly because it’s kind of a last-gasp effort.”
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Arizona
NAU launches first-of-its-kind engineering degree to fast-track Arizona’s future workforce – The NAU Review
As Arizona’s semiconductor and advanced manufacturing industries continue to grow at a rapid pace, Northern Arizona University’s Steve Sanghi College of Engineering is launching a new degree program designed to help meet the state’s workforce needs.
Beginning this fall, NAU will offer a Bachelor of Professional Studies in Engineering Technology, a flexible, workforce-focused degree pathway that prepares students for careers in microelectronics, semiconductors and advanced manufacturing in as little as three years. The 90-credit bachelor’s degree creates a more accessible pathway into engineering careers through a hands-on, applied curriculum and a streamlined transfer model with Arizona community colleges.
The program follows a 45-45 completion structure, allowing students to complete 45 credits at a community college and 45 credits through NAU. Courses will be delivered through synchronous remote instruction at NAU’s North Valley campus in Phoenix and at Pima Community College in Tucson, increasing access for statewide students.
Addressing Arizona’s growing semiconductor workforce
Designed with workforce readiness in mind, the program emphasizes practical engineering application, systems implementation, testing, quality control, systems analysis, manufacturing, fabrication, process control and project management. Students will gain technical and problem-solving skills aligned with the needs of Arizona’s rapidly evolving manufacturing economy.
“This new bachelor’s degree empowers students to identify real-world engineering challenges and develop practical solutions,” said James Palmer, associate dean for academic affairs at the Steve Sanghi College of Engineering. “We are creating a more accessible pathway into engineering careers while preparing graduates to support Arizona’s growing microelectronics and semiconductor industry.”
Arizona has emerged as one of the nation’s fastest-growing semiconductor hubs, with more than $200 billion in semiconductor-related investments announced in the Greater Phoenix region since 2020, including expansions from Intel, TSMC and Amkor Technology. TSMC alone has committed up to $165 billion toward Arizona operations, including multiple fabrication plants and advanced packaging facilities expected to create thousands of technical and manufacturing jobs.
Industry demand continues to grow for professionals with applied engineering and advanced manufacturing skills in areas such as process engineering, manufacturing systems, equipment operations and yield enhancement. NAU’s new degree program was developed to help students quickly enter these high-demand career fields while supporting Arizona’s long-term economic growth and domestic semiconductor manufacturing capacity.
The program also aligns with NAU’s strategic commitment to expanding access to affordable, student-centered educational opportunities that prepare graduates for meaningful careers and long-term success.
Students interested in learning more about the Bachelor of Professional Studies in Engineering Technology program should contact SCE@nau.edu.
PHOENIX (AP) — The two Republican congressmen running for Arizona governor pitched themselves at a debate Wednesday as the only candidate with broad enough voter appeal to unseat Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs amid the state’s affordability struggles.
U.S. Rep. Andy Biggs, who is the GOP primary’s frontrunner and has the endorsement of President Donald Trump, portrayed himself as being able to cross party lines and having the right experience to be the state’s chief executive.
“There’s not a doubt in my mind, if you look at the polling data that you’re going to find, I am the most competitive with Katie Hobbs of anybody on this stage in any Republican in the state,” Biggs said.
U.S. Rep. David Schweikert, who has survived three tough Democratic challenges in recent years, believes his focus on government finances and his drive to bring new business to the state make him the singular Republican candidate.
“These are wonderful people, but they’ve never actually been in the great battle,” Schweikert said of Biggs and two other Republican opponents.
Businessman Scott Neely, who ran an unsuccessful gubernatorial campaign in 2022, said after the debate that if Biggs wins the primary, Republicans will lose the election.
The winner of the July 21 primary will face Hobbs, who’s running unopposed in the primary.
Biggs has served five terms in the U.S. House, representing a heavily GOP district in the eastern Phoenix suburbs and serving at one time as chairman of the ultra-right U.S. House Freedom Caucus.
Before that, Biggs served in the Arizona Legislature from 2003 through 2016, including four years as president of the state Senate. He battled with then-Republican Gov. Jan Brewer on a Medicaid expansion in 2013 and pushed school choice measures and bills targeting abortion providers.
Biggs is one of Trump’s top defenders in Congress and supported Trump’s false claims the 2020 presidential election was stolen from him.
Schweikert, a budget hawk known for railing against government debt, has represented an affluent district that includes parts of northeast Phoenix and Scottsdale for eight terms. He served in the Arizona House in the 1990s and as Maricopa County’s treasurer in the 2000s.
Schweikert has focused his congressional career on sounding the alarm about the federal budget deficit and the ballooning U.S. debt, often in late-night speeches to a nearly empty House chamber and bleary-eyed C-SPAN viewers. Schweikert has praised Trump’s 2017 tax cuts but has called for more spending cuts to reduce federal borrowing.
His reputation was tarnished by ethics scandals. In 2022, he received a $125,000 fine by the Federal Election Commission for misappropriating campaign funds. Two years prior, he agreed to pay a $50,000 fine and accept 11 campaign finance violations after an investigation by the U.S. House Committee on Ethics. In his last three general campaigns for Congress, Schweikert staved off challenges from Democrats. Biggs voiced support for Arizona’s recent passage of a three-year moratorium on tax incentives for new data centers – a move Hobbs also has touted. “They shouldn’t be given a break,” Biggs said, noting the large amounts of power and water that data centers use.
Schweikert bemoaned Arizona’s unfavorable affordability rankings as “pretty miserable,” but said consumer prices don’t come down magically. He vowed to aggressively recruit businesses to Arizona and push for wage growth.
Both congressmen were asked about the expired healthcare subsidies for those getting coverage under the Affordable Care Act.
“We’re going to have to deal with the reality of subsidization of everything in the economy is not going to work,” Schweikert said.
Biggs said he introduced legislation in Congress to bring down healthcare costs and also voiced support for Trump’s proposal to send money directly to Americans for health savings accounts so they can handle insurance and health costs as they see fit.
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