Governor Ducey State of the State Address

Governor Doug Ducey gave his second State-of-the-State Address to a House Chamber full of lawmakers and dignitaries on Monday. Ducey took the opportunity to highlight accomplishments of the past year noting legislation allowing insurance for Uber, beer for Four Peaks and creating Prop 123. 

The Governor gave a few policy highlights and shared that further details will be in his budget when it is released on Friday. Notable issues in the speech include:

• Allowing state agencies the option to remove burdensome rules or laws from statute
• Calling on Phoenix to allow Uber at Sky Harbor
• Warning municipalities not to enact a patchwork of labor ordinances
• Calling on the Arizona Commerce Authority to “market” the state
• Telling lawmakers there will be multi-year tax cuts in Arizona
• Targeting high-need employment sectors with CTE training

Noticeably absent in the speech were any clear policy changes for universities or mention of the words “transportation” or “infrastructure”. 

Governor Ducey also took the opportunity to “sell” Arizona. He noted the award-winning schools and the work of the universities. He said the so-called southwest drought hasn’t impacted Arizona due to our planning and water conservation efforts. He also took the opportunity to thank his partner in attracting businesses to Arizona – California Governor Jerry Brown.