Hobbs' Irresponsible Veto of Legislation to Make Arizona Safe Again Advances Chaos, Not Sanity

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                         

Monday, May 5, 2025

Hobbs' Irresponsible Veto of Legislation to Make Arizona Safe Again

Advances Chaos, Not Sanity

PHOENIX, ARIZONA— Senator John Kavanagh is denouncing Governor Hobbs for jeopardizing the safety of Arizonans by irresponsibly vetoing legislation that protects communities against criminal illegal aliens by promoting collaboration with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) efforts.

The mass number of criminal illegal aliens flying under the radar and threatening the security of Arizona communities is not only a statewide matter - it's a nationwide concern. Unlike other state legislatures and governors that are working together to craft new laws to support the Trump Administration's federal immigration efforts, Arizona's governor, with the support of state Democrat lawmakers, continues to virtue signal and recklessly veto any measure that mentions immigration enforcement.  

SB 1610, sponsored by Senator Kavanagh, would have required county detention facilities to, on request of ICE, provide the personal identifying information of and access to persons arrested for burglary, theft, larceny, shoplifting, aggravated assault on a law enforcement office, or any other offense that results in death or serious bodily injury to another person. These are the same crimes that were the focus of Congress' Laken Riley Act, which garnered bipartisan support.

"Hobbs continues to give her veto stamp more attention than the citizens she's required to protect," said Senator Kavanagh. "People are FED UP with the massive tsunami of dangerous criminals who have entered this country illegally. With this bill, we were supporting the federal government's deportation efforts by requiring detention facilities to supply inmate information to ICE. I am dismayed by the governor's veto actions, which demonstrate she's choosing chaos over sanity."

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For more information, contact:

Kim Quintero

Director of Communications | Arizona State Senate Republican Caucus

kquintero@azleg.gov