Arizona bill aims to end city-funded hotel stays for homeless people
The Brief
HB 2803 aims to stop cities from paying hotels to house homeless people in Arizona.
Homeless advocates say this program, however, helps people get back on their feet before being homeless and the stressors that come with it completely overtake their lives.
PHOENIX - A new Arizona bill would force hotels to warn customers that it's housing homeless people.
Not only that, but the bill would stop cities from paying hotels to temporarily provide shelter.
What we know
HB 2803 was introduced by Rep. Matt Gress. He says these services haven't worked in San Francisco or Los Angeles, and he doesn't want them imported here.
The Independent 47 hotel on Pima Road used to save a couple of rooms for homeless senior citizens and families at the expense of Scottsdale taxpayers.
But, residents complained and Rep. Gress decided the program, statewide, should be ended all together.
"Again, it's warehousing people, and it's this vicious circle of moving people throughout the social services system, and not getting the real healing that they need," he explained.
He's tried a statewide ban before, but this legislative session, the House and Senate are on board with HB 2803.
The bill would stop these city and state-funded programs, and also force hotels that do take in the homeless to post signs and warnings on their websites that homeless people are housed inside, and to lock their doors and safely store their belongings.
The other side
"I think that there is a general notion with this bill, that being homeless somehow makes you more dangerous. But if I am a woman with kids, seniors, veterans, youth who are on their own, these are the sorts of places that create safety, when suitable beds aren't available," Nicole Newhouse, executive director of the Arizona Housing Coalition.
The Arizona Housing Coalition points to rural areas, like Cochise County, that only have one shelter. Or Mesa, which currently pays the Windemere Hotel to provide rooms for the unsheltered, successfully helping people get back on their feet.
Big picture view
"The reason why it doesn't work is because you can't control the facility. You have to have command and control over the entire facility, who comes in and who comes out. Otherwise, you're going to see drugs pass in and out very easily. You're also going to put the general public, patrons who are not part of the homelessness program, at risk," Rep. Gress said.
He says the state should be investing in emergency and transitional shelters where people can be supervised, treated and tracked.
Homeless advocates stress there's an entire segment of the homeless population who will be hurt if Rep. Gress' bill became law.
"It's not necessarily the people that immediately come to mind when you think homeless. Most people do not enter homelessness looking like that archetype. They start at a place, and it's a place that they are seeking help, and they don't get it. So, hotels are places where we can prevent that, at least temporarily, until we can connect people to more suitable shelter and the support they need to build their lives to a place where they can thrive on their own," Newhouse said.
What's next
Rep. Gress attempted to pass this bill last year, but it failed. While he has the backing of both the House and Senate this time, he's expecting Governor Katie Hobbs to veto it.
He says he'll keep trying because this issue of the homeless and how to help them isn't ending anytime soon.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
24 minutes ago
- Yahoo
A Texas Republican new to Congress, Brandon Gill has a knack for getting noticed
WASHINGTON — Rep. Brandon Gill knows how to get attention. Now a 31-year-old Republican freshman in Congress, Gill has been courting President Donald Trump's favor since he founded the DC Enquirer, a conservative outlet in 2022. He calls liberals "deranged," says Biden unleashed "chaos" across the country, and considers Dinesh D'Souza, his father-in-law who was federally convicted of making illegal campaign contributions, a political mentor. Gill, of Flower Mound, appears regularly on conservative platforms including Fox News, OAN and high-profile podcasts — and clips of his House hearing questions have racked up more than a million views on YouTube. After moving back to Texas, and winning in his first campaign for office, his main focus, Gill said in an interview with The Texas Tribune, is to codify Trump's executive orders. 'What we want to do is make sure that all of the great work that the president is doing remains permanent,' Gill said. 'So that a future Democrat doesn't unleash the same kind of chaos on our country that Joe Biden did.' In his first five months in Congress, Gill has introduced bills to impeach a federal judge who attempted to stop some deportation flights, codify Trump's 'Remain in Mexico' immigration policy, and put Trump's face on the $100 bill. His bills have not yet made it to the House floor, and most – except his Remain in Mexico bill – have failed to garner significant support. Gill's intertwined legislative and media strategy, however, has burnished his reputation among MAGA supporters and earned him praise from other Republicans in the Texas delegation. In many ways, Gills' early political career is modeled after the path of other political figures who have made unfettered statements and disruptive moves as they made their way into the spotlight. Each in his own way tests how and if attention can translate into influence, and Gill says he draws lessons from D'Souza, a longtime conservative agitator. Such a group would also include former Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, Trump's first pick to be Attorney General, as well as Representatives Dan Crenshaw, Keith Self and Chip Roy, all Texas Republicans. Gill himself made a political debut as a Dartmouth student leading a conservative student publication – The Dartmouth Review. After a few years working as an investment banker and a hedge fund analyst in New York, he founded and led a conservative publication, the DC Enquirer, known for right-wing framed articles, conspiracy theories and commentary pieces. Trump posted DC Enquirer stories or reposted links to the outlet more than 100 times on his social media accounts. Gill said his role there taught him how to handle the media, which he says 'sets the parameters of debate' in Washington. 'You learn how to communicate in a way that resonates with a broader audience outside of the DC bubble,' Gill said. He stepped down from his editorial role with DC Enquirer when he began his congressional campaign and the outlet has not posted any articles since Gill was sworn into Congress in January. Gill married conservative author Danielle D'Souza in 2017. Dinesh D'Souza is known for his books and films that emphasize false conspiracies about Democrats and the accuracy of the 2020 election. He was pardoned in 2018 by Trump after he pled guilty to making illegal campaign contributions in other people's names. Gill said his father-in-law has taught him how to be precise while speaking about politics and how to 'push the bounds of discussion.' 'I learned a ton from him,' Gill said about his father-in-law. 'He's sort of a political mentor of mine.' He worked with his father-in-law on the film promoting the false idea that 2020 election was stolen, '2000 Mules,' and was a producer on Dinesh D'Souza's 2023 film, 'Police State'. Gill announced his candidacy for Congress in November 2023 and received Trump's endorsement within two weeks. Trump posted on Truth that Gill is an 'America first,' candidate, 'as loyal and tough as they come,' while also highlighting Gill's connection to his father-in-law. The endorsement in the race, left open by Rep. Michael Burgess's retirement, cleared the way for Gill to sweep the Republican primary. Others who supported Gill's campaign included Gaetz, then a Florida Representative; Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan, and Sen. Ted Cruz. Later on, Gaetz would post that Gill once told a SuperPAC that Gaetz was the member of Congress he most wanted to emulate. In the November election, Gill won 62% of the vote against Democratic candidate Ernest Lineberger. Throughout the election, Lineberger said, Gill would be personable at candidate forums – talking about family or saying that it was nice to see him. But, when Gill spoke to the audience, he would – as Lineberger put it – quickly flip into 'demonizing the Democrats.' 'He is a professional disinformation spreader, and that is what he has continued to do,' Lineburger said in an interview. In his second month on Capitol Hill, Gill sent out a fundraising email that included a petition to deport Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minnesota. Omar was born in Somalia and has been a U.S. citizen since 2000, when she was 17 years old. 'We should have never let Ilhan Omar into our country,' the email said. 'And frankly, America would be a much better place if she were to be sent back to Somalia.' Rep. Greg Casar, D-Austin, told the Tribune that he has had conversations with Gill related to this incident, including about how members of Congress should take their jobs seriously and that disagreements will happen, but that there is a line. 'He can stand out based on his opinions, if he wants to, but he shouldn't stand out by saying things that put the life at risk of people that he works with,' Casar said. Gill has continued to set off sparks at House committee hearings – leading to clips that have gone viral in conservative circles – with pointed lines of questions directed at the CEO of NPR, the mayor of Chicago and the head of USA Fencing. Cruz praised Gill on his podcast, 'Verdict with Ted Cruz,' calling the freshman representative a 'rising star in the House,' and Gaetz, in a social media post, called Gill the better version of himself following the NPR hearing. Rep. Wesley Hunt, R-Houston, who serves with Gill on the oversight committee, praised the freshman. 'He's making very big waves,' Hunt said in April. 'He's doing a very good job. He's speaking our language.' In committee hearings Gill says his job is 'to highlight and to call out some of the crazy things that these deranged leftists have been promoting for so long.' Gill wrote on X in March that 'multiculturalism will tear our country apart.' The post has more than 23 million views on the platform. The congressman elaborated to the Tribune adding that immigrants need to 'assimilate to our culture and adopt our customs and adhere to our traditions,' to preserve the American identity. Gill posted on X last month that he was against House Republican social media pages posting in Spanish. He has also supported bills that would bar Chinese nationals from attending U.S. universities and from purchasing farmland in the country. Gill represents the Republican stronghold of District 26, which covers the north Dallas-Fort Worth suburbs and extends to the Texas-Oklahoma border That includes Cooke County, a rural area where the Republican chair is Chris McNamara. He told the Tribune that while Gill's method of rising politically is not how he would do things, the Republican base in his county does get excited about Gill's strategy. 'Within the district, he gets a lot of support from that,' McNamara said. 'He's probably, I would think, trying to get some national attention, some leverage attention.' Trump's endorsement during the primary was 'big,' for Gill's local support, McNamara said, adding that 'it can't hurt to be on the President's good side'. While Gill has introduced a bill to add more zip codes in the district, which has areas that experienced a population boom, and claims to have the 'best case-worker team in the country,' some local political figures told the Tribune they would like Gill to focus more on issues impacting the area – such as rural hospitals and passenger train route cancellations. On Capitol Hill, Gill has more of a position than the average freshman. He was voted by his colleagues to be the Republican freshman class president, acting as a representative for the members. Fellow freshman House Republican Rep. Craig Goldman, R-Fort Worth, said Gill has used this ceremonial role as an 'action position,' bringing the class together. Gill has also positioned himself on key committees, including the committees on the judiciary, budget and oversight – where he also serves on the Delivering on Government Efficiency Subcommittee. Roy and Self are members of the hardline House Freedom Caucus and have recently served as crucial holdouts to win policy promises from House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, and Trump before joining the majority on key votes. Gill was endorsed by the Freedom Caucus's PAC in his House primary and said that he would join the caucus on his first day. He told Politico that the member he most wanted to be like was Jordan, of Ohio, the first chair of the caucus, also known for provocative statements. The freshman representative has not yet been a holdout against key Republican legislation, but he went further than Johnson and party leadership in March regarding the federal judge, James Boasberg, who was attempting to stop deportation flights. Gill advocated for impeachment, while party leadership looked for other options, such as ending national injunctions. He also told the Tribune that the Freedom Caucus holdouts on the budget reconciliation package had 'excellent points,' and that the holdouts were fighting to include Trump's agenda into the final tax and spending bill. Gill had returned to Washington early, a week after his son was born in May, in an attempt to move the Republican megabill out of the House Budget Committee. The legislation was temporarily blocked by Roy and other holdouts in the committee as they pushed for more reforms. Gill has plans to continue focusing on his push to permanently defund NPR and PBS, lower border crossings, codify cuts to the federal workforce, and eliminate some of the Biden administration's climate policies. 'We should be doing … all the things that we told voters we were going to do,' Gill said. 'The things that voters saw us talking about and said, 'We need to give these people a majority in Washington.' ' Disclosure: Politico has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here. First round of TribFest speakers announced! Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Maureen Dowd; U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-San Antonio; Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker; U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff, D-California; and U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas are taking the stage Nov. 13–15 in Austin. Get your tickets today!
Yahoo
35 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Opinion - Only the Senate can stop the largest wealth transfer in US history
Last week, the House Republican majority passed what can only be called their 'Big Billionaire Bill' — a budget reconciliation measure that amounts to one the largest transfers of wealth in American history. This measure literally steals from the poor and the working class to give to the ultra-rich. As a member of the Ways and Means Committee, I know firsthand how this bill would take from working people and give to the ultra-wealthy. The consequences will be staggering if it becomes law. Republicans promised tax cuts for all. But under their bill, families making $30,000 or less will actually pay approximately $20 billion more in taxes cumulatively over the next decade, according to the Joint Committee on Taxation. That's not even counting the impact of losing Medicaid or the higher cost of living caused by Trump's tariffs. Meanwhile, billionaires will pocket an average tax break of $255,000 a year. I grew up working class, working jobs at Target and Subway. Republicans want to make people like me believe that they're helping while raising taxes on them, cutting Medicaid and SNAP, and then telling them to have more babies. That's insulting. My Republican colleagues moved their second attempt at a House Budget Committee hearing to the dead of night — after a failed first try and following late-night markups in several committees the previous week. Alongside my Democratic colleagues, we spent nearly 30 hours grinding their agenda nearly to a halt, from Wednesday at 1 a.m. to to 11 p.m. in the Rules Committee and on the floor. The fact that they had to move their last hearing before it could move to the floor at 1 a.m. tells me they're ashamed of themselves. And they should be. Working families want billionaires to pay their fair share, not to lose their health care and nutrition programs for their kids. I hear it from Americans at town halls, on social media, and even at the grocery store. Millions across the country could lose Medicaid coverage: 3.4 million in California, 400,000 in North Carolina, 250,000 in Minnesota, 380,000 in Texas, 390,000 in Virginia, and 1.2 million in New York — moms, kids, and seniors who could be left without health care. These are real people in every district, many represented by Republicans who voted for this bill. Nearly half of new moms and their babies in California rely on Medicaid and could lose their care. Seniors who can't get enough coverage through Medicare will lose. Sons and daughters who can't afford their parents' nursing home care will lose. People in rural communities, where hospitals are already closing, will lose too. Republicans claim to be the party of families. But their bill makes it harder for working people to get by — harder to welcome a new child, get postpartum care, or afford basic medical needs. Worse, Republicans will make it harder for millions of families to afford groceries every month thanks to cuts to nutrition assistance programs. When billionaires can get richer at the expense of working families, what does that say about us as a nation? I fear America's promise of hope and opportunity will dim if this administration keeps pushing us to the point where no one sees a future here anymore. But I refuse to accept a future where America's greatness is measured by the size of its tax breaks for billionaires instead of the strength of our working families. I call on the Senate to reject this bill and protect the American Dream for everyone. Jimmy Gomez, a Democrat, represents California's 34th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
35 minutes ago
- Yahoo
The Minnesota Legislature convenes today for a 21-hour special session. Here's what they plan to do.
May 15, 2025 at the Minnesota State Capitol. (Photo by Nicole Neri/Minnesota Reformer) Minnesota Lawmakers will gavel in at 10 a.m. Monday to begin a 21-hour-long mad dash to pass bills that fund state government for the next two years, including everything from schools to parks to services for people with disabilities. The Legislature adjourned on May 19 without finishing a budget, which is required to avoid a partial state government shutdown on July 1. Democrats and Republicans share control of the House, while Democrats hold a one-seat majority in the Senate, so every bill has to be bipartisan. This has proven to be difficult. Gov. Tim Walz and legislative leaders have been negotiating a budget agreement behind closed doors for the past few weeks and blew through several self-imposed deadlines. On May 15, Walz and leaders announced a budget deal, but it fell apart within minutes of its announcement. Democratic House and Senate members banged on the doors of the press conference, decrying the leaders' agreement to strip state-subsidized health insurance from undocumented adults. Walz and legislative leaders have agreed to a one-day special session in which they need to pass 14 mostly budget-related bills. The special session agreement suggests that leaders have whipped enough votes for the bills to pass. Lawmakers don't have a limit on how long they can speak on the floor for each bill, making it harder to contain the special session to one day. Here's an overview of the larger — and more contentious — issues included in the bills: A rollback of undocumented adults' eligibility in MinnesotaCare, the state's subsidized health insurance program for the working poor. A Department of Human Services budget bill that will cut $270 million over the next two years, mostly from nursing homes and home care programs. A commerce and consumer protection budget and policy bill, which includes the creation of an ombudsperson to mediate disputes between homeowners and their HOAs. An education budget bill that will hold K-12 funding steady for the next two years. It doesn't touch existing subsidies for private schools, a win for the GOP. A $700 million infrastructure package that mostly focuses on asset preservation. Infrastructure packages are known around the Capitol as a 'bonding bill' because they use borrowed money, requiring a three-fifths supermajority — i.e., robust bipartisan support — to pass. A repeal of aid generated from the tax on legal cannabis sales to local government and counties. This cut is expected to generate around $22 million over the next two years for Minnesota's general fund but is irking local governments. Increasing the sales tax on cannabis from 10% to 15%. Cannabis was legalized in 2023 but the state has yet to create a fully functioning legal marijuana market. Repealing an exemption on electricity used by data centers in Minnesota, which is expected to generate $140 million in revenue in the next four years. Capping the maximum payroll tax for the state's new paid leave program, which is scheduled to launch in January. The Legislature will reduce the payroll tax cap from 1.2% to 1.1%. The cap is moot for now; the state says the program will begin next year with a 0.88% payroll tax, which will be split between workers and their employer. Minor changes to the state's earned sick and safe time law that gives employers and their allies in the Senate a small victory. Lawmakers also plan to pass budget bills on health, children and families, higher education, energy, environment and natural resources.