PHOENIX – The Republican-controlled Arizona Senate has rejected an effort by Republicans in Queen Creek to divide Maricopa County into four regions.
Senator Jake Hoffman’s proposal passed 18-12, a setback for lawmakers like Hoffman who argued Maricopa County, which accounts for 65% of the state’s population, was too big.
The proposal would split Hohokam, Mogollon, and Oodum counties, leaving a small Maricopa county with about 1.7 million people compared to its current population of 4 million.
But most legislators decided that the last thing Arizona needed was three more governments, each with its own elected officials and employees.
“I will not vote for anything that quadruples the government,” said R-Phoenix Senator Steve Kaiser.
And Kaiser said there are alternatives to more government.
At the heart of the matter is that county governments cannot be managed by five supervisors and one other elected official, including the sheriff, assessor, treasurer, registrar, and senior court clerk. , is too big.
“We are now in over 26 states,” Hoffman told colleagues in Maricopa County.
“We want a county that accurately reflects the area it represents, can advocate for solutions on water policy, is closer and more representative to the people it represents, and better represents its unique strategic needs. They have to be able to have their local challenges and priorities,” he said.
But Kaiser said dividing the county into four separate parts isn’t the only way.
One, he said, would be to increase the number of supervisors. Kaiser said it would create smaller districts, both geographically and in terms of population.
Also, smaller districts will require fewer signatures on petitions if residents want to bring back unresponsive supervisors, he said.
“It doesn’t create a new government,” Kaiser said.
The other, he said, is to “eat and shrink” the surrounding counties, including Pinal, Pima, Yuma, La Paz, Yavapai and Gila, into Maricopa county.
Kaiser said both ideas were proposed as amendments to SB 1137.
“And both of those ideas were rejected,” he said.
However, Hoffman was unsure of which was a better alternative than dividing Maricopa County into four parts. And he insists existing county officials have no problem, even though he told his colleagues that in many cases he would not admit that the county was too big to work effectively. He said there are political reasons for doing so.
“When there are some elected officials who are trying to keep their secrets and save a small kingdom, they will never say it,” he said.
“But when they are put on the spot at a press conference, they repeat it…in a quick and timely manner.”
The idea of dividing counties is not new.
Arizona, then a territory, formed its first county in 1864 with just four counties: Mojave, Pima, Yavapai, and Yuma. When the state was created in 1912, it increased to 14, and after its separation from Yuma County in 1983, La Paz was ranked 15th.
There have been multiple efforts to divide Maricopa dating back at least 30 years, and there has been a major push to create what is now Red Mountain County from Mesa, Chandler, Gilbert, Queen Creek and the surrounding areas. But none of them have taken root.
Readers are encouraged to share their views of the public, whether for or against this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org.
Howard Fisher
Mr. Fisher is an award-winning Arizona journalist and founder and operator of Capitol Media Services.
