David covers councils, county boards, schools, and the small agenda items that can carry large public costs.
Opinion
A Cronkite News report on bullpen catchers doubles as a civics lesson for Arizona cities: reward the quiet, consistent work at the edges and cut the PR fog at the podium.
Local
HHS signaled it will slash Head Start regulations by 2027. Arizona’s 16,500 enrolled children, and the programs that serve them, need public commitments now on class sizes, teacher qualifications, and disability screening if federal floors fall.
Local
HB 2873 started as a bidding-procedures bill, was gutted in a Senate committee, and came back as a retroactive tool to void municipal referendum petitions. The House defeated it 27 to 24 on June 11. Hours later four members reversed their votes, Junelle Cavero among them, and it passed 31 to 27.
Local
A Mirror column says Andy Biggs’ nod to Sine Kerr’s family heritage will not win Latino voters. In Arizona neighborhoods, practical, documentable fixes beat biography every time.
Local
Judge Greg Como ruled Prop. 143 violates Arizona’s Separate Amendment Rule and, as written, would have barred cities and counties from negotiating with any labor organization. Supporters can appeal; otherwise it’s off the November ballot.
Arizona
USHL teams are headed to Prescott Valley and Phoenix by 2027-28, while the NA3HL’s Phoenix Inferno debuts this fall. The big local questions now: venues, billets and how city halls handle the details in the open.
Culture
Extended through mid-October, the Stephenson Theatre revival is selling more than nostalgia. It is selling a downtown night out that still works in August heat.
Local
Arizona’s post-primary agenda on elections, ESAs, housing and water would fall hard on city halls, school boards and counties. Here is what’s on the table, per statehouse reporting, and why local officials should demand sunlight before November.
Local
Arizona districts are paying premium rates for contracted teachers, with opaque pricing and big-market vendors raising fresh transparency questions for local boards.
Arizona
Cardinals training camp opens in Glendale with free admission and parking, autograph sessions, and two special dates. Watch the gate times, which Cronkite News listed inconsistently, and keep an eye on WR Michael Wilson as he tries to prove 2025 was no fluke.
Local
Light morning turnout in Paradise Valley and Gilbert puts small-town races on a knife’s edge, even as Maricopa County rolls out an in-person signature check to speed mail-ballot tabulation. Polls close at 7 p.m., with first results at 8.
Local
Liberty caucus grades put Keshel and Farnsworth at the top, flag hotel guest taxes, and weight committee votes as GOP voters head to Tuesday’s primary.
Elections
Progressive group LUCHA is training hundreds of volunteer poll observers to watch Arizona vote centers, as DOJ plans federal monitors and counties emphasize the 75-foot rule and de-escalation.
Elections
Arizona’s high court said the Secretary of State isn’t required to take public comment before updating the state’s elections rulebook. The mandate is gone, but nothing stops the office from choosing a transparent, public process anyway.
Local
In four Arizona districts that record but do not post audio, reporters found minutes that stripped out key talks on fines, audits and pay. Legal, maybe. Transparent, no.
Capitol
Kelly challenged DNI nominee Jay Clayton over 2020 hedging, warning of politicized intelligence that could cloud local election confidence.
Local
Michigan investigators told the Arizona Mirror that early interviews point to lettuce or salad greens as a potential lead in a nationwide cyclosporiasis outbreak.
Border
A 5th Circuit reversal leaves a no-bond policy for many immigration detainees in place nationwide. That puts a premium on Arizona’s local transparency: contracts posted, numbers reported, and decisions made in the open.
