Recap from May Pinal Partnership Government Relations Committee

The May Pinal Partnership Government Relations Committee Meeting was hosted virtually by Co-Chairs Rebecca Timmer with Wilson & Company and Ben Bitter with the Town of Florence.

Ben kicked off the meeting with an update on the 2020 Census. He provided the most recent completion statistics for Pinal County and compared them to the State and the U.S. Both Arizona and Pinal County are on-par of where we should be when looking at completion rates. In 2010, the response rate before door-to-door efforts began was 50% and we are already above that. Data release from 2020 Census findings will be pushed back until about July 2021.

There is a need for an extra congressional seat in Arizona, which the 2020 Census can help provide. The money each community receives from 2020 Census participants will also play a critical role on growth and quality of life efforts. We encourage everyone to share messages on social media outlets urging others to participate in the Census if they have not already. SHARE ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Senator Frank Pratt gave a legislative update noting general activity at the Capitol is quiet. The House is getting back in session with a minor number of bills being reviewed. There are a lot of conference calls with exchanges of information mostly regarding the economy and COVID-19.

Senator Pratt discussed transportation and gave an update from the latest ADOT State Transportation Board Meeting that was held last week.  Key takeaways from the meeting include ADOT’s budget anticipates a $711M loss in revenue in the next three years. Matching federal grant dollars are going to be A critical component state, cities and towns will look at. A useful transportation summary from the Rural Transportation Advocacy Council can be found here.

Also discussed were bills about creating protections for businesses from lawsuits and liability in regard to COVID-19.

Government Relations Committee members would like to thank Senator Pratt for his ongoing involvement in the committee and speaking on behalf of Pinal County cities and towns at the Capitol.

Rebecca facilitated a roundtable discussion regarding how COVID-19 has affected businesses of committee participants.

Returning to work plans varied from people beginning to go back to the office now, to returning in June, to returning in the Fall. How businesses intend to operate over the next several months, while following CDC guidelines, also varied.

It was exciting to hear Warde Nichols with ASU share expectations of returning to in-person classes in the fall semester. They are working on ways to adapt the classrooms to CDC guidelines and noted that some students were eager to get back.

Mitch Basefsky from CAP shared that the Bureau of Reclamation’s recently released 5-year prediction of Colorado River shortages shows the river will likely remain in its current Tier 0 shortage state at least through the end of 2022. Remaining in Tier 0 means no further cuts in the CAP supply to agriculture in Pinal County are expected before 2023 at the earliest.

Casa Grande Mayor Craig McFarland gave an update on building permits around Pinal County and the State. Pinal County and Maricopa County are up 3% in building permits from the same 4-month period last year. He also gave a brief update regarding the Pinal Regional Transportation Authority. The PRTA Board has met twice recently to strategize and plan. They remain hopeful for a favorable ruling from the Supreme Court in the next few months.

Mayor Craig McFarland also shared COVID-19 data that is changing daily. He noted comparisons between Arizona, Maricopa and Pinal for testing and infection rates. Casa Grande has a campaign kicking off soon, Come Back SMART.

A slide from a presentation to the Florence Town Council on May 18, 2020 given by McClure Consulting, LLC

Ben mentioned data shared with the Town of Florence recently that paints a picture of how hospitality and tourism spending look different by each community. For example, Maricopa County is seeing more dollars spent on accommodations while Pinal County is seeing more dollars spent on restaurants and retail. Grand Canyon National Park is doing a soft opening, which also adds to exciting news to share as it is one of Arizona’s top tourist attractions.

Pinal Partnership President and owner of Windmill Winery in Florence Harold Christ added to the discussion with his optimism regarding COVID-19 economic recovery efforts. Helping others in the community to get started again is especially important and should be a priority for everyone. We can all play a part in the recovery and staying positive is part of that.

The Pinal Partnership Government Relations Committee meets monthly. It is open to all members of Pinal Partnership. Please email Melissa if you would like more information about the committee or membership.