Arizona
Blacklisting companies for their gun policies will backfire on Arizona
Opinion: Arizona will pay more – in cash and reputation – if it begins cutting off businesses to make a political point about firearms.
The Arizona Legislature is considering a bill that could make our regulatory environment more cumbersome, complicated and expensive, tying up private businesses in red tape and sticking taxpayers with the bill.
If it passes, Arizona’s reputation as a business-friendly state will be at risk.
The proponents of Senate Concurrent Resolution 1007 argue that private companies are discriminating against potential customers based on gun politics and thus shouldn’t be allowed to do business with the state and local governments.
They also believe that the best way to prevent such discrimination is to prohibit private entities from entering into certain contractual agreements, unless the entity’s contract includes written assurances that there will be no discrimination against any firearm entity or firearm trade association.
Blacklist policies have hurt other states
Private businesses of all sizes make tough decisions every day to manage risk, meet client needs and deliver returns for shareholders. All that’s hard enough to do without inserting a political agenda into the mix.
However, the proposed remedy is far worse than the perceived problem.
This bill is a bad deal for Arizona, replacing a market defined by supply and demand with one where politicians decide who can do business with whom.
Other states have adopted similar blacklist policies and paid a stiff price.
In Texas, taxpayers have been forced to shoulder hundreds of millions of dollars in additional municipal borrowing costs after lawmakers there pushed out a handful of bond underwriters.
Local officials in Stillwater, Okla., had to put a series of infrastructure projects on hold after borrowing costs spiked because the lender found itself on that state’s blacklist.
Fewer choices mean higher costs
It’s a predictable consequence.
After all, fewer businesses eligible to contract with state and local governments leads to fewer choices from which the government can select for projects, which leads to higher costs for taxpayers.
State and local governments can’t print money. When costs go up in one area, it means there are fewer resources to invest in things like public safety, sanitation and other core government responsibilities.
GOP bill lets you sue: Over imagined Marxist policies
It’s no wonder the Arizona Association of Counties has expressed concern that bringing a blacklist law to our state would cause small, rural communities to suffer due to reduced banking services and higher costs, which will ultimately affect local taxpayers.
Arizona’s pro-business reputation has been cultivated in part by assuring job creators that our policymaking environment is predictable and stable, and that our laws and regulations are intended to encourage job growth, not stifle it.
Don’t put Arizona’s reputation at risk
But SCR 1007 signals that Arizona’s business environment can shift at any moment.
What was once an acceptable business practice could suddenly fall out of favor with whoever’s in power, jeopardizing a company’s ability to operate here.
Arizona has worked hard to cultivate a business environment where businesses can succeed or fail in a free market.
The policies proposed in SCR 1007 would make government the arbiter of who wins and who loses. Lawmakers should reject it.
Danny Seiden is president and CEO of the Arizona Chamber of Commerce & Industry. On X, formerly Twitter: @dbseiden.
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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