Arizona Republican Leaders Advise Taxpayers to File Now as Hobbs' Tax Confusion Leaves Families in Limbo

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, March 31, 2026

PHOENIX, ARIZONA—With Tax Day approaching in a matter of weeks, Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen and House Speaker Steve Montenegro are making clear that Arizonans should not delay filing because of the uncertainty created by Governor Hobbs' actions.

Earlier this year, Hobbs' Department of Revenue issued tax forms assuming full tax conformity before state law was updated, conflicting with her own proposal, while telling taxpayers to file anyway. In response, Republican lawmakers moved quickly, sending one of the fastest tax relief bills of the session to the Governor's desk. The measure provided certainty and relief for families, including childcare deductions, retirement relief, and eliminating taxes on tips and overtime. Hobbs vetoed the bill. Lawmakers then sent a second measure to fully align state law with the forms already issued, ensuring taxpayers would not be forced to amend their returns. Hobbs vetoed that bill as well. The result is uncertainty during peak filing season, with warnings that more than a million Arizonans could be forced to amend their returns if changes are made now.

"Arizonans should go ahead and file. They shouldn't have to wait or deal with the fallout from this confusion," said President Petersen. "We've heard from people across the state looking for answers, including a woman who waited because she was trying to follow the rules. During that time, someone filed a return using her identity after a breach of her W-2. Her return was rejected because the IRS had already accepted a filing under her Social Security number, and now she's stuck proving who she is and fixing the damage. That's the real risk of telling people to wait. We sent solutions to the Governor to give taxpayers certainty. She vetoed them. Now families are paying the price."

"Let's be clear. This is a failure of leadership," said Speaker Montenegro. "The Governor's office issued tax forms based on a law that did not exist, told people to file anyway, and then vetoed the bills that would have fixed the problem. Now families are left wondering whether they will have to redo their taxes, pay more later, or spend weeks dealing with a mess they did not create. This could have been avoided if Hobbs had stepped up and called the special session we urged last fall so this could be addressed before filing season. Now Arizona Republicans are holding the line. File your taxes. We will not support anything that forces Arizonans to refile or pay more because of the Governor's poor decisions. Arizona families deserve certainty, and Governor Hobbs failed to provide it."

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For more information, contact:

Kim Quintero

Director of Communications | Arizona State Senate Republican Caucus

kquintero@azleg.gov