Author: Will Humble

AzPHA Annual Members Meeting:

January 11, 2023

11:00am – 1:00pm (Zoom)

Register Here

Agenda

• Welcome & Introductions
• Approval of 2021 Business Meeting Minutes
• Treasurer’s Report
• Public Health Policy Committee Report
• Professional Development Committee Report
• Membership Committee Report
• Community Health Justice Committee Report
• Executive Director’s Report
• Recognize Outgoing Board Members
• Recognize New Incoming Board Members
• Passing the Gavel & Remarks by Incoming President

Register Here

_________________________

In part, because of redistricting, there is a ton of turnover at the Arizona State Legislature coming. Thise changes will have big implications for the movers and shakers down at the Capitol because so much of lobbyist’s influence is due to relationships. With so many new faces – they’ll need to build new relationships – and a lot of them.

I started writing a piece earlier this week to explain what it all means- but then the Arizona Agenda came out with an explainer last week. There’s no way I can explain it better than Rachel Leingang & Hank Stephenson did in their piece last week…  so, I’m providing it for you here (with attribution).

If you’re not a subscriber to the Arizona Agenda I encourage you to become one. A terrific well-written and consumable email like the one below will come to your in-box every weekday morning for only $120 per year. Here’s where to subscribe: Welcome to the Arizona Agenda (substack.com)

__________

With Democrats freshly in control of nearly every statewide office and massive turnover in the Legislature, the power dynamics at the Capitol are rapidly changing.

Many of the old power brokers are on the outs, and a new class of influencers will have an opportunity to prove they can enact policy in the newly purple state. Holding the Republican caucus together is no longer the go-to play. The mandate from the Governor’s Office is a bipartisan policy agenda, and in a split government, building a coalition is key.

Sure, the Legislature is still full of MAGA warriors. Warren Petersen is leading the state Senate, and Sen. Wendy Rogers and her ilk mostly run the Legislature’s most powerful committees. But if you’re a lobbyist looking to pass bills at the Capitol next year, you’re probably not asking “Freedom Caucus” leader Rep. Jake Hoffman to sponsor them.

The Republican firebrands who have largely set the tone and direction of the state Legislature are on the outs, as are their friends in the lobbying class.

Instead, Capitol lobbyists say they’re looking at moderate Republicans and, for the first time in more than a decade, Democrats, to help push their policy priorities through the legislative process.

The same politicians who were preparing for four years on the back bench under a Kari Lake governorship are now seeing their political fortunes skyrocket. A month ago, for example, Republican Sen. T.J. Shope was blocked on Twitter by the potential next governor. Today, he’s almost universally considered one of the Capitol’s most influential leaders, several lobbyists said.

“T.J. Shope will have to run all the bills,” one lobbyist joked. 

The ranks of moderate Republicans have been decimated in recent years. But we may for the first time see the “moderate caucus” grow, or at least see an increasing number of Republican lawmakers crossing the aisle to work with Democrats to pass shared priorities out of necessity or self-preservation. 

Keep an eye on Republican lawmakers from swing districts¹, like Reps. Justin Wilmeth and Matt Gress, and Sens. Steve Kaiser, Shope and J.D. Mesnard. Political insiders also point to a handful of Republicans with independent streaks, like Reps. Ken Bennett and David Cook and Sen. Sine Kerr, or a willingness to cut deals, like Sen. David Gowan, as the type that will thrive in a divided government.   

And legislative Democrats, with their former colleague now on the Ninth Floor, are a more powerful force than they have been in more than a decade. While individual Democrats are sure to shine under a Democratic governorship, the Democratic leaders in both caucuses will now wield nearly as much power as their Republican counterparts. Senate Democratic Leader Raquel Terán and House Democratic Leader Andrés Cano, working with the Governor’s Office, will likely drive the state budget process, for example, not Republicans. 

But it’s not just the politicians whose influences are waxing or waning. The lobbying class will change as well. While many of the old-timers were savvy enough to not make personal enemies with either candidate, others put all their eggs in the Lake basket.

Those in the lobbying and consulting corps who offered their full-throated backing of losing America First candidates could see their fortunes flop, like their candidates. Lobbyists like Spencer Kamps of the Homebuilders’ Association of Central Arizona, Bas Aja of the Cattlemen’s Association, Danny Seiden of the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Patrick Bray of the Arizona Farm and Ranch Group were all major Lake supporters who were rumored to be among possible picks for her administration.

Instead, the political power center of Arizona is now built around centrist Democrats like lobbyist Mike Haener, the co-chair of her transition team who has been a staple in state government and policy since the Janet Napolitano administration; Chad Campbell of Strategies 360, a former lawmaker and longtime Hobbs friend and ally; and Joe Wolf, Hobbs’ top campaign adviser, as well as a few Republicans who stuck by Hobbs through the campaign.

Perhaps the biggest question is where Arizona’s progressive infrastructure fits into the Hobbs machine. What kind of influence groups like LUCHA, Progress Arizona and unions that supported Hobbs will have on the governor’s agenda, and will they ultimately work as friend or foe to her generally center-left administration? On that front, one lobbyist warned that while progressives will certainly have their best opportunity for wins in years, similar to far-right Republicans, progressives focused on controversial issues should stay sober about what’s possible, even under a Democratic governor.

Wednesday, January 11, 11:00am – 1:00pm (Zoom)

Register Here

Agenda

• Welcome & Introductions
• Approval of 2021 Business Meeting Minutes
• Treasurer’s Report
• Public Health Policy Committee Report
• Professional Development Committee Report
• Membership Committee Report
• Community Health Justice Committee Report
• Executive Director’s Report
• Recognize Outgoing Board Members
• Recognize New Incoming Board Members
• Passing the Gavel & Remarks by Incoming President

Register Here

The Governor is just one person. There are 32,000 people working in various capacities in state government. So how is it that just one person, the governor, can impact the work culture and morale of 32,000 employees? It’s all about leverage.

The governor is the most powerful person in the state. She or he has enormous statutory authority and can hire or fire just about any state employee (virtually all state employees are ‘at will’ these days – meaning they can be fired for no reason at all).

Governors seldom reach deep down into agencies and fire and replace people…  but it’s common for governors to replace agency heads, deputies, legislative affairs people and communication directors (especially at the beginning of an administration). It’s also customary for the governor to make wholesale changes in governor’s office personnel.

So how does all that statutory authority including the authority to change agency directors and their deputies change the work culture of state government?

Perhaps the biggest thing is that agency directors set the tone for workplace behavior, agency priorities, flexible work schedules, whether to allow programs to hire folks, selects the deputy and assistant directors to carry out her or his wishes, gives the programs green, yellow, or red lights to apply for grants, and makes decisions about administrative rulemakings.

The decisions that the directors and her or his assistants make have a profound impact on workplace culture and morale. Add to that the kinds of executive orders the governor gives, like capping agencies at a certain FTE level or freezing changes to administrative code and you can start to see how a single person can have such a profound impact on work culture.

Agency director management style can influence culture in more subtle & insidious ways. For example, appointed directors can stifle innovation and harm morale by instructing staff to clear all decisions with them before proceeding. Even worse, appointees may tell staff to halt action until he or she “hears back from the governor’s office“…  resulting in long delays or even a complete lack of progress.

When there’s a change in the governor, as there will be in about 30 days, it’s a real opportunity for cultural change.

Many persons that work in various sectors of public health in private, nonprofit, or among other levels of government will be looking forward to potential changes in the coming work environment and may be attracted to serve in the new administration if they believe the incoming governor better appreciates the importance of evidence-based public health practice and improves morale by creating a healthier agency culture.

Many people are likely looking forward to a cultural renaissance in Arizona state agencies and will be looking forward to working with the new administration.

Some folks who might not have considered working for the ADHS over the last few years might be willing to give the agency a 2nd look in the coming months. I expect interest in (and competition for) positions at ADHS to pick up once the governor is sworn in and new leadership is selected. Why not get in on the ground floor?

On one hand, it’s a shame that there are nearly 100 open positions at ADHS these days, but on the other hand – those vacant positions represent opportunities for folks to join the new team early in the administration.

A quick review of open positions on the AZ State Jobs website reveals openings for epidemiologists, emergency medical services staff, newborn screening positions, maternal health (PRAMS) jobs, laboratory and behavioral health tech’s, a tribal liaison, several positions in licensing and compliance, vaccine coordinators, opioid prevention, biomedical research, even the agency director.

You get the idea…  there are many open positions that many of you may be interested in exploring in anticipation of the cultural changes that’ll be coming to state government in the coming months. Now is a good time to explore the possibilities.

You can start your search at this link – the AZ State Jobs Website

Submit Your Resume to the Hobbs Administration Resume Bank to be Considered for a Leadership Post in the Administration