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FRIDAY, MARCH 27, 2015
AACo Bulletin Advancing Arizona's Counties since 1968
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Legislature In the Home Stretch |
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|  By all accounts we are in the last week or so of the First Regular Session of the 52nd Legislature. At an event this morning Senate President Andy Biggs said that his goal of an April 2nd since die is "possible but not probable" and indicated that April 7th seems more likely. In any event it seems that the Session is still on track to finish the earliest since the 1960's.
Floor action will dominate right up until sine die as will attempts to revive previously dead legislation. One of those items that AACo is keeping an eye out for is SB1071 Tax Lien Deeds; Aggregate Fees. This bill is special legislation to dramatically reduce the fees associated with treasurer's deeds in a foreclosure action when large numbers of parcels are involved. AACo has successfully killed the bill twice on the House floor in Third Read. Last week it died 28-30 and this week on reconsideration it failed again 28-31. There was a flurry of activity after the bill died a second time and it may be revived via a floor amendment, likely in the Senate.
Meanwhile, 2015 County Government Platform bills continued their progress.
- HB2424 Regional Service Centers is awaiting placement on a Rules agenda and staff is meeting with Senate leadership early next week to help move this bill along.
- HB2236 ATV Safety failed in the Senate on Monday (13-15) due to a misunderstanding about what the bill does. It was reconsidered on Wednesday and passed 28-1 and it now on the Governor's desk.
Get Involved!
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Yavapai County School Superintendent Appointed to State Board of Education |
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 Last week Governor Ducey announced five appointments to the Arizona State Board of Education.
Among the five appointments made by the Governor was the county school superintendent seat which has been filled by Tim Carter.
Superintendent Carter is the current Yavapai County School Superintendent, a position which he has held since 2005. He previously worked at Prescott High School as the assistant principal for student learning, and later as principal until his retirement in 2003.
In 2011 Carter was elected as president of the Arizona Association of Counties and he continues to serve on the Board of Directors. He was named an Educational Leader of the Year for Public Policy in 2010 by the Arizona Capitol Times and as the outstanding JTED/CTE Policy Maker of the Year in 2013 and 2014.
Superintendent Carter is a strong believer in local control, meeting high academic standards and fiscal accountability and he is an excellent choice to serve on the State Board of Education. Congratulations Superintendent Carter!
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Register Now for AACo's June Conference |
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Next Level Leadership
 AACo's 2015 County Leadership Summit & Marketplace provides an opportunity for all county leaders and staff to learn, network and chart the direction of the Association.
This year's event will provide training for Arizona's county leaders as well as offer nearly 14 hours worth of continuing education opportunities via Learning Labs and workshops.
More Information
This year we are offering a special rate for 1st Time Attendees.
**Please note** The room block is NOT full. There was an error on the hotel's side that was showing it was full. That error has been fixed so please feel free to make your reservations.
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Secure Rural Schools Funding: Short Term Solution Found |
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The United States House leaders announced earlier this week a bipartisan agreement to rework a formula that provides payments to doctors that treat Medicare patients. This "Doc Fix" bill now also includes hundreds of millions of dollars in Secure Rural Schools (SRS) funding for rural counties that have seen revenue from timber sales
plummet
in recent years.
Though a long-term solution is the ultimate goal, HR 2 will provide back payments for fiscal year 2014 as well as payments for fiscal year 2015. These payments to counties are used for schools, roads and other infrastructure needs and are designed to make up for declines in timber revenues in federal lands within counties.
Some items to note:
- Appropriated amount is 5% less than the 2014 payment amounts
- Payments will be made no later than 45 days after enactment of the bill
- Any payments made this year under the "25% Formula" will be deducted from the SRS payment amount
This development is very good news for Arizona's counties. As a state with a lot of federal forest land, Arizona's counties receive $14,920,201 in SRS funds. Under the 25% Formula only $1,341,927 was distributed to counties. If HR 2 is successful, even factoring in the 5% reduction and funds already distributed, counties will still receive $12,832,263.95 in funds for crucial county services.
On Thursday the House overwhelmingly passed HR2 392-37 and eight of Arizona's nine Representatives voted yes. Click here to see how each member voted. The bill must now be taken up by the U.S. Senate. Given procedural and time constraints, if the Senate is unable to pass the bill by unanimous consent before the two-week spring recess begins, they will have to take it up after the session resumes on April 14, 2015.
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Financial Snapshot: HURF |
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The Highway User Revenue Fund (HURF) consists of monies collected from taxes on motor fuels, as well as fees and charges related to registering and operating motor vehicles. Revenues are collected by the state and distributed to cities, towns, the State Highway fund and to counties. Generally, 19% of HURF money collected goes to counties. Pursuant to A.R.S. ยง 28-6540, the amount distributed to each county is "based on the proportion that all reported sales of motor vehicle fuel... and the estimated consumption of use fuel in the county", as well as "the proportion that the population of the unincorporated area of each county bears to the population of the unincorporated areas of all counties in this state".
In February 2015, Arizona counties received a total of approximately $19.0 million in shared revenue from HURF monies. This amount is $2.1 million more than distributed in February 2014. Total FY 2015 distributions to date are approximately $147.5 million, up $11.2 million (or 8.2%) over FY 2014.
For more information about trends in the in county excise sales tax or TPT, or to suggest a future featured fund, please contact Andrew Hartsig.
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Transforming Local Government Conference: Register Now |
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The Transforming Local Government Conference (TLG) attracts attendees from local governments who are seeking new and innovative ways to meet challenges and provide high quality service to their communities.
The 2015 conference will be held in Phoenix, AZ, April 13-15, 2015. TLG 2015 is presented by the Alliance for Innovation and hosted by the City of Phoenix and the Arizona City/County Management Association, in conjunction with Avondale, Mesa, Gilbert, Goodyear, Peoria, Scottsdale, Sierra Vista, Coconino County, Maricopa County, Navajo County and the Arizona State University School of Public Affairs.
Click here to learn more about the conference including programming, registration options and lodging information.
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Weekly Legislative Update Webinars - Last One April 10th
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 Each week AACo will present members with the opportunity to attend a virtual legislative review webinar. For members only, the webinars will take place every Friday at 2:00 p.m. and last between 15-30 minutes. Attendees will receive updates on the policy discussion occurring at the State Capitol as well as information on specific bills impacting counties.
All webinars will be archived for later viewing in case you cannot attend live on Fridays. To access the archive you must be a member of AACo with a profile on our website. To create your profile click the "Sign In" button in the upper right corner of the AACo homepage.
Due the the Good Friday holiday on April 3rd, the next and last AACo Legislative Webinar will be Friday April 10th, click HERE to register for the April 10th webinar.
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2015 County Health Rankings |
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 This week, NACo released the
2015 County Health Rankings
. According to NACo, the rankings "show that the conditions that impact how well and how long residents lives are connected to a multitude of factors beyond medical care". The study measures a number of variables, including smoking, high school graduation rates, income inequality, employment, access to healthy foods, etc. In total, 30 factors were considered.
As a nation, the study, conducted by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute, found that premature death rates are dropping and that one in four children in the country live in poverty. Further, violent crime rates are highest in the Southwest, Southeast and Mississippi Delta Regions. Those counties with higher unemployment rates are overall less healthy.
Highlights from Arizona counties include:
- Santa Cruz County is ranked highest on the list within the state for health outcomes. Gila County is ranked lowest. Health outcomes include life expectancy and quality of life.
- Pima County is ranked highest on the list within the state for health factors. Apache County is ranked lowest. Health factors include behaviors (smoking, obesity, teen births, etc), level of clinical care, social and economic factors, and the physical environment.
- 77% of Arizona residents have a high school diploma. 62.1% have at least some college education.
- 20% of the state is uninsured. There is one primary care physician for every 1,533 Arizonans and one dentist for every 1,745 residents.
To learn more about your county's health, check out the County Health Rankings website by clicking here.
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Featured Program: Nationwide Retirement |
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