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Steller’s Friday Notebook: Drought plan done, lawmaker wants to spend $20M more

This idea was even written into a “legislative intent” section of the law: “Because the timing for the issuance of grants from federal agencies is uncertain, the legislature may consider other appropriations to be made available to the irrigation districts for these construction and rehabilitation projects after reasonable attempts are made to secure the funding and that federal monies were not provided timely to carry out the purposes of the fund.” I say so because Rep. David Cook, a Globe Republican, has introduced a bill that would give an additional $20 million appropriation to Pinal County irrigation and water conservation districts.
Of course, legislators knew all of this before the drought plan was signed into law Jan. 31.
Indeed it wasn’t.
This is nonsense, of course.
Kelly won’t raise as much every day as he did the first, and he may not even win the Democratic nomination and get to the general election.
But the impressive haul will serve as a warning to all comers that Kelly is likely to be a massively successful fundraiser, combining his wife Gabrielle Giffords’ longstanding network with his own, as well as the new one they’ve developed as founders of the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence.
Critics of Douglas Mayor Roberto Uribe have begun trying to recall him from office.
Douglas resident Tanya Duarte told me she started the effort because Uribe has not been following the city charter in his management of City Council meetings and because of favoritism by him in the way he manages the city.
Vogt took over as director of the Department of Gaming this week after a couple of short-lived gigs in state government.
He was executive director of the Arizona Corporation Commission for a brief period last year, until questions were raised about his wife’s job in a public-affairs firm that did work for Arizona Public Service.

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