FREE SUBSCRIPTION
Art Affaire PAGE
18
Serving the communities of Anthem, Desert Hills, Norterra, Sonoran Foothills, Stetson Valley, Tramonto, New River, Desert Ridge and North Phoenix
Anthem Area Edition
TheFoothillsFocus.com
INSIDE
This Week
City faces $70.5M revenue loss from cuts BY HOWARD FISCHER Capitol Media Services
S BUSINESS.......... 14
Celestial Artisan Meadery brews ‘nectar of the gods’
Wednesday, February 8, 2023
tate lawmakers are moving to strip cities and towns of their ability to tax residential rentals and grocery store food — a move that would cost the city of Phoenix about $70.5 million. In addition to a vote Feb. 1 by the Senate Commerce Committee on that measure, Senate Republicans also are considering a cut in the corporate tax that would cost the
city another $33.55 million. The Commerce Committee’s approval of the food and rent tax cuts came despite objections from mayors and lobbyists for the majority of communities that have the levies. They told senators that their budgets are dependent on these revenues. A legislative analysis says the $70.5 million in revenue from Phoenix’s rent tax — it does not impose a food levy — represented 5.5% of the total sales tax revenue that Phoenix received last year.
The corporate tax cut, under a different bill, would cost Phoenix another $3.5 million in revenue, according to legislative estimates. Republican lawmakers last month began moving to cut income tax rates for Arizona corporations by nearly half, a move that legislative budget analysts say eventually could cut state revenues by nearly $670 million a year. The party-line vote in January by the
see CUTS page 4
Phoenix council to discuss another water rate increase FEATURES......... 22
Harold’s, Mel Blount hosting cornhole tourney
YOUTH.............. 24
Jujitsu for Life kids achieve higher rank
OPINION.......................9 BUSINESS.................. 12 FEATURES................. 16 YOUTH....................... 24 CLASSIFIEDS............. 26 Zone I
BY PAUL MARYNIAK Foothills Focus Staff
P
hoenix City Council this spring likely will be considering an increase in water and sewer rates for the seventh time in eight years. And that hike could include a monthly payment for a pipeline repair insurance program for single-family homeowners that has been voluntary since it was implemented a decade ago and would become part of their monthly water bill unless they opt out of it. Council’s Community and Cultural Investment Committee last week voted to include the conversion of the Service Line Warranties of America by
HomeServe “as part of our discussion about potential changes to the city’s current water and sewer rates.” Water rates rose 3% in October 2021 and 3.5% last March. Since 2016, water rates have increased 18%. Around the time of the last increase, Water Services officials said the increase was needed to ensure reliable delivery to north Phoenix and other areas that normally rely on Colorado River water by investing in infrastructure to improve access to banked water and groundwater. In moving along the discussion of an opt-out pipeline insurance program to the full council for deliberations later this spring, subcommittee Chair Betty Guardado on Feb. 1 said that “with an
increase in the water rate discussions that we’re about to have,” she wanted to “bring it all together as a package and see how is it that people feel about this.” “I think it’s worth exploring,” Councilwoman Debra Stark said of the pipeline program. “I just want to make sure that we’re sensitive to our ratepayers and that a we go into our discussion on increasing water rates that we’re looking at all avenues.” The pipeline insurance program covers repairs of the pipes between the city’s service line and an individual house. Without that insurance, homeowners are on the hook for the entire
The latest breaking news and top local stories!
www.foothillsfocus.com
see WATER page 8