Lawmakers Respond to Arizona League of Cities and Towns Executive Director's Refusal to Negotiate on Housing Solutions

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                             

Wednesday, March 13, 2024 

Lawmakers Respond to Arizona League of Cities and Towns Executive Director's Refusal to Negotiate on Housing Solutions,

Including Arizona Starter Homes Act

PHOENIX, ARIZONA— After passing historic bipartisan legislation to bring homeownership opportunities to working Arizonans, the Executive Director of the Arizona League of Cities and Towns issued the following statement, which was published in multiple media sources:

[League Executive Director] Belshe acknowledged that his organization has refused to even negotiate any state-mandated changes in how many homes can be built on a property and associated issues like setbacks.

"Zoning is something that we cannot support," he said. "And we told them from the beginning."

In response to Director Tom Belshe, five lawmakers issued the following statements:

"The Governor is out of excuses to not sign this bill," said Senate President Warren Petersen. "The League just made their intentions clear. The Governor needs to do the right thing here to make housing more affordable and stand up to the League lobbyists whose only objective is to ensure nothing gets done at the legislature."

"The League wants status quo, and this admission is proof. Clearly status quo isn’t working when the Governor’s own administration says we are 270,000 housing units short," said Senate Majority Leader Sonny Borrelli. "Let’s see who the Governor picks: the League who created this mess, or the thousands of Arizonans who are locked out of housing and the American dream."

"Your home is your sacred place. It’s where you raise your family and care for your elders," said Senator Theresa Hatathlie. "I’m tired of the League and their lobbyists who come here, year after year, to deny these opportunities for the people that I represent. Enough is enough. Please sign the Arizona Starter Homes Act, Governor."

"We have been working with stakeholders on housing for over three years, trying to bring solutions to help Arizonans live out their American dream," said House Majority Leader Leo Biasiucci. "We have reached out to the League multiple times throughout negotiations and were told repeatedly that they would not negotiate this bill."

"The Arizona Starter Homes Act is the only bill that provides homeownership opportunities to my community," said Representative Analise Ortiz. "The League’s unwillingness to negotiate on this bill from day one has been a slap in the face to all of our working-class families, including teachers, firefighters, and service industry workers. I’m tired of the League's inaction that's hurting my community and just kicking the can down the road."

HB 2570, known as the Arizona Starter Homes Act, passed the Legislature with broad bipartisan support and was transmitted to Governor Hobbs for signature earlier this week.

###

For more information, contact:

Kim Quintero

Director of Communications | Arizona State Senate Republican Caucus

kquintero@azleg.gov