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2006 Legislative Session Summary
Daily Presence
The citizen lobbyists of the Arizona Interfaith Network (AIN) were present every day of this Legislative Session. Delegations from over 75 congregations and community-based organizations participated. Leaders gathered at 9 a.m. in the Lobby of the Executive Tower to plan the work of the day which usually included committee testimony, individual and group meetings with legislators, research with staff members, and monitoring floor sessions. The team re-gathered for an evaluation, usually in mid- afternoon, to digest events and plan for communication with congregations and organizations back home.
Bishop Minerva Carcano
Desert Southwest Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church
Together in Prayer and Action
On April 4, AIN helped to organize an Interfaith Prayer Service on the Senate Lawn attended by 1,000 clergy and lay leaders from around Arizona. Catholic Bishop Gerald Kicanas, Methodist Bishop Minerva Carcano, Episcopal Bishop Kirk Smith, Rabbi Peter Levi and Imam Didma Faja led the moving service. At the end of the event, those present signed letters asking Legislators and the Governor to conduct public business with respect for one another and all the residents of the State, particularly when divisive issues such as immigration are considered. A delegation delivered the letters to Senate President Ken Bennett, House Speaker Jim Weiers and Governor Janet Napolitano.
Imam Didmar Faja
Albanian American Islamic Center of Arizona
Immigration Reform
AIN worked with diverse allies to oppose nearly 50 bills that targeted immigrants and their families. In the judgment of AIN leaders individually and collectively, these bills failed to rise to the standard of real solutions to real problems. At times, AIN was the only organized body tracking all of the anti-immigrant bills and pressing for a comprehensive approach to real immigration reform. Responding to the pressure, Representative Russell Pearce and his allies were forced to change directions several times. In the end only one bill, HB2577, was actually passed by both the House and the Senate. This omnibus bill was a mish-mash of individual bills introduced at the beginning of the session. AIN organizations were a strong voice encouraging Governor Janet Napolitano to veto this bill which she did. In the final hours of the session the Legislature referred to the voters SCR1031, a measure that will deny childcare to some immigrant families, college to some students and English learning opportunities to some adults.
Bishop Gerald Kicanas
Diocese of Tucson
Capitol Institutes
The Arizona Institute for Public Life (AIPL), in collaboration with the Arizona Interfaith Network, conducted seminars called Capitol Institutes many days of the Session during the lunch hour. Over thirty Capitol Institutes explored subjects such as how the state budget is put together, key issues of interest to community leaders, and religious and democratic values under-girding the common good. Faculty included elected officials, agency heads, lobbyists, and issue specialists.
Let the People Speak
A decisive moment in the legislative session occurred when Representative Chuck Gray, Chairman of the House Federal Mandates & Property Rights Committee, denied Tom Donovan, the registered lobbyist of Valley Interfaith Project (VIP), the opportunity to testify on numerous anti-immigrant bills. At the next meeting of Representative Gray’s Committee, 100 AIN leaders addressed the issue by filling all the seats in the Hearing Room. When Chairman Gray again denied Mr. Donovan his rightful voice, AIN leaders stood and chanted in unison, “Let the People Speak.” As House Security entered the room, AIN leaders respectfully filed out to address their concerns with the media assembled on the House Lawn. After taking this action, no AIN leader was denied the opportunity to testify for the remainder of the Session.
Challenging Inflamed Rhetoric
On April 3, AIN leaders convened a Press Conference on the House Lawn for purposes of playing a tape of Radio Station KFYI talk show host, Brian James, who called for “border roulette” in which he suggested shooting any person coming across the border from Mexico illegally. The Press Conference received wide attention across the country drawing attention to the dangers of extremist rhetoric in an environment where political passions run high. Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard and United States Attorney Paul Charlton jointly requested an investigation by the Federal Communication Commission. After meeting with AIN leaders, KFYI issued letters of apology.
Getting the Facts Straight
Many of the bills targeting immigrants and their families were supported by false or wildly exaggerated claims. Throughout the Legislative Session, Representative Russell Pearce attributed high percentages of serious criminal activity to immigrants. AIN leaders conducted an in depth investigation of Representative Pearce’s claims and found that they could not be substantiated. AIN queried the sources of Pearce’s claims, including the Mesa Police Department, the Phoenix Police Department and the Los Angeles County Sheriff, and discovered that statements attributed to them were false and misleading.
Human/Family Development Agenda
Throughout the Legislative Session, AIN leaders assumed responsibility for monitoring and working on a number of legislative issues that addressed the Arizona Interfaith Network Human/Family Development Agenda. These included working against the “Taxpayer Bill of Rights” (TABOR) and other potentially crippling approaches to state fiscal policy, supporting increases in funding for education, opposing efforts to gut the clean elections statute, seeking tighter control of ingredients for methamphetamine, and funding for the training of home health care workers.
Understanding of the Legislative Process
Throughout the Session, AIN leaders continuously sought ways to increase their knowledge of how the legislative process works and how to intervene at critical points in support of, or opposition to, bills that affected our families, especially children and the most vulnerable. Leaders regularly shared the information they learned with members in their congregations and with the wider community. AIN leaders held several media events on the House and Senate Lawns to inform the wider public. The result was public recognition of our efforts on these issues thorough news stories and editorials.
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