I know the old adage is that government officials, when funding issues arise, always decry what will happen to education, public safety and transportation. While I don’t generally disagree that many times it is more bark than bite I do know that if Prop 100 fails next week many agencies will indeed have severe cuts to these services.
The most recent example is from the Republic today, where the head of DPS states, “ability to quickly respond to accidents and disabled motorist calls would be significantly affected.” Now as an AZ voter you can pick your side on Prop 100 but I’m inclined to think that much of the “bark” from local and state agencies may well be “bite” as well.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
A Room Full of Lawyers
Yesterday I attended a meeting with most of the city and town attorneys from throughout the state (Phoenix, Tucson, Chandler, Flagstaff, et. al.) regarding the recently passed SB 1070 immigration bill.
While I can’t go into the specifics of that meeting it was absolutely fascinating to hear that many municipal lawyers (I’d guess 20-25 attended in person or by phone) discuss the implications of the bill, the legal strategies forthcoming and the unintended consequences they envisioned.
Obviously time will tell if the concerns they raised will come to fruition but regardless this bill and its implementation will be interesting to watch.
While I can’t go into the specifics of that meeting it was absolutely fascinating to hear that many municipal lawyers (I’d guess 20-25 attended in person or by phone) discuss the implications of the bill, the legal strategies forthcoming and the unintended consequences they envisioned.
Obviously time will tell if the concerns they raised will come to fruition but regardless this bill and its implementation will be interesting to watch.
You're Gonna Be a Star Baby!
Luige del Puerto of the AZ Capitol Times has written a pithy but well great summary of some of the bills did not get passed during the regular session. And while you can read his article on those bills one that he did not mention that nonetheless I thought was interesting was SB 1409, “motion picture production tax credits.”
This bill would have given filmmakers tax credits if they met certain employment and capital expenditure provisions (number of Arizonans hired, money spent in Arizona, etc.). While I have no opinion on the bill itself what I found interesting is that, by the end of the session, 4 of the most powerful lobbyists were in concert trying to get this passed.
In the end they failed, yet there is talk that if a special session is convened that this bill, or some form of it, could end up in the Speaker’s jobs bill. Again, I don’t particularly care if the bill passes or not but it will be interesting to see if it can get attached to another bill and passed in that manner.
This bill would have given filmmakers tax credits if they met certain employment and capital expenditure provisions (number of Arizonans hired, money spent in Arizona, etc.). While I have no opinion on the bill itself what I found interesting is that, by the end of the session, 4 of the most powerful lobbyists were in concert trying to get this passed.
In the end they failed, yet there is talk that if a special session is convened that this bill, or some form of it, could end up in the Speaker’s jobs bill. Again, I don’t particularly care if the bill passes or not but it will be interesting to see if it can get attached to another bill and passed in that manner.
Shakira
In my tenure as an intern with the City of Phoenix’s Government Relations department I have been able to see a lot of very interesting behind-the-scenes action as well as meet multiple U.S. Congressmen, State Senators and Congressmen, Phoenix City Council members as well as various high-level State officials.
Yet it is with great and profound sadness that I did not get to meet Shakira last Thursday during her visit with Mayor Gordon. Even though my office is only one floor above the Mayor I was not in the office on Thu. I’m sure it would have been a great experience but alas I just couldn’t be in the right place at the right time!
Anyone else get to meet or see her?
Yet it is with great and profound sadness that I did not get to meet Shakira last Thursday during her visit with Mayor Gordon. Even though my office is only one floor above the Mayor I was not in the office on Thu. I’m sure it would have been a great experience but alas I just couldn’t be in the right place at the right time!
Anyone else get to meet or see her?
SB 1070 Keeps Going, and Going, and Going...
The much publicized immigration bill here in Arizona is seemingly taking on a life of its own now. Arizona is now in the media crosshairs nationwide and the range of opinion has been fascinating.
Perhaps an interesting manifestation of these wade ranging views are reflected in this recent Gallup poll. From the Arizona Republic:
“Eight in 10 Americans are concerned that illegal immigrants burden schools, hospitals and other government services, and 77 percent worry that they drive down wages, the poll finds.
Yet 77 percent are concerned that stricter laws would mean illegal immigrants and their families who have lived productively in the USA for years would be forced to leave.”
Cities from Boston to San Francisco want to boycott Arizona, and the Mayor of Phoenix has said publicly that he will do what he can, either as mayor or as a citizen, to stop the bill from being enacted.
If the temporary tax increase is approved in a few weeks it’s nearly certain the Legislature will convene for a special session to address the Speaker’s jobs bill. Perhaps further clarifications and tweaks will be added to SB 1070.
Perhaps an interesting manifestation of these wade ranging views are reflected in this recent Gallup poll. From the Arizona Republic:
“Eight in 10 Americans are concerned that illegal immigrants burden schools, hospitals and other government services, and 77 percent worry that they drive down wages, the poll finds.
Yet 77 percent are concerned that stricter laws would mean illegal immigrants and their families who have lived productively in the USA for years would be forced to leave.”
Cities from Boston to San Francisco want to boycott Arizona, and the Mayor of Phoenix has said publicly that he will do what he can, either as mayor or as a citizen, to stop the bill from being enacted.
If the temporary tax increase is approved in a few weeks it’s nearly certain the Legislature will convene for a special session to address the Speaker’s jobs bill. Perhaps further clarifications and tweaks will be added to SB 1070.
Benefits of Attending a Career Fair
Last month I attended the Downtown campus Career Fair and it was a great opportunity for students to interact with potential employers and to ask candid questions. I am specifically interested in federal employment so I talked with the representative from the FBI. She was very helpful in answering general topics with regard to federal employment as well as the best ways to get noticed when applying for a job through the federal employment clearinghouse, usajobs.gov.
The best piece of advice she gave me is that the HR system actually looks for keywords within an applicants answers to the questions during the application process. Specifically she mentioned that keywords in the “Qualifications” section of the vacancy announcement are what they aim for. Her advice was to incorporate those keywords from the qualifications section into my answers, that way I could get the HR system to flag my application for review by an actual human.
Even if I don’t get a job with the FBI this one piece of information could be the difference between my application being looked at versus being thrown in the trash heap with everyone else’s.
The best piece of advice she gave me is that the HR system actually looks for keywords within an applicants answers to the questions during the application process. Specifically she mentioned that keywords in the “Qualifications” section of the vacancy announcement are what they aim for. Her advice was to incorporate those keywords from the qualifications section into my answers, that way I could get the HR system to flag my application for review by an actual human.
Even if I don’t get a job with the FBI this one piece of information could be the difference between my application being looked at versus being thrown in the trash heap with everyone else’s.
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