On Monday, Arizona's Republican Governor Doug Ducey proposed a $1 billion desalination challenge.
Ducey revealed a plan to take away salt from sea water to make use of in Arizona in his annual State of the State tackle at a joint session of the state's Home and Senate, however the governor offered little element relating to the challenge's specifics.
"As a substitute of simply speaking about desalination—the expertise that made Israel the world's water superpower—how about we pave the best way to make it really occur?" mentioned Ducey.
Ducey mentioned he labored with state Home Speaker Rusty Bowers and Senate President Karen Fann, each Republicans, on the plan. He did not point out the place the desalination plant could be constructed. Nevertheless, water coverage specialists have mentioned probably utilizing water from the Sea of Cortez in Mexico, the closest sea to Arizona.
Some environmentalists are towards desalination resulting from its potential hurt to sea creatures and the truth that it's power intensive.
The western U.S. is at the moment experiencing a drought. There have been decreases to Arizona's allocation of Colorado River water, forcing some farmers to go away their fields uncultivated. Extra cuts are prone to occur sooner or later.
"The plan is complete and it is broad, however all the main points legally are going to want loads of work," he mentioned. "That is going to be our focus this yr."
Ducey enters his ultimate yr with Arizona seeing a giant funds surplus, a significant turnaround from his first speech to lawmakers in 2015 when he confronted a $1 billion deficit. Lawmakers additionally put aside $200 million final yr for future water infrastructure.
Even when lawmakers approve, the challenge would nonetheless be years within the making, however Bowers mentioned Ducey and legislative leaders need to get began whereas the state has the cash obtainable.
Bowers is aiming even greater than a desalination plant, mentioning different potential out-of-state water sources equivalent to capturing Midwestern flood waters and saying he'll introduce a invoice that would assist spending "within the billions."
Ducey delivered his speech nearly final yr because the state was within the midst of spiking coronavirus infections. This yr, he celebrated a return to the normal dwell supply even because the Omicron variant is spreading quickly.
He didn't reveal any new plans to fight COVID-19 however repeated his admonition that colleges won't shut. He has resisted masks or vaccine mandates and restrictions on public gatherings, saying vaccination is the important thing to getting previous the pandemic.
He mentioned the state will create a summer time faculty to assist kids atone for math, studying and civics.
"There's been an excessive amount of consideration placed on masks and never practically sufficient positioned on math—a give attention to restrictions somewhat than studying and writing," Ducey mentioned.
The political divide on utilizing masks to sluggish the unfold of the coronavirus was on show within the packed Home chamber, with few Republicans carrying one and plenty of Democrats donning them.
The governor additionally known as on lawmakers to "broaden faculty alternative any manner we are able to" and mentioned lawmakers ought to ban the educating of crucial race concept, a college-level educational idea not taught in public colleges. Lawmakers banned it final yr within the funds, however the state Supreme Court docket discovered a number of funds payments unconstitutional, together with the one with the ban. He mentioned colleges ought to be required to publish "all curriculum and educational supplies" on-line.
Ducey took goal at Democrats across the nation, together with President Joe Biden and his administration, over border safety and the tax insurance policies in liberal states like California. He known as on Arizona's Democratic U.S. senators, Mark Kelly and Kyrsten Sinema, to demand that his border priorities be handed on the federal degree.
Arizona Home Minority Chief Reginald Bolding mentioned the governor's water proposal "may very well be an space of promise" if he includes Democrats in discussions, however he mentioned it might be troublesome to get Democrats on board if they don't seem to be consulted.
On the state degree, Ducey mentioned he'll search cash to broaden the state police unit targeted on the border and drug trafficking together with sections of a state-funded border wall and more durable penalties for smugglers. He additionally mentioned Arizona regulation enforcement officers will work with counterparts in Texas on border safety.
He additionally proposed growing the stipend paid to grandparents or different family who're caring for youngsters who would in any other case be positioned with a stranger in foster care. The state has traditionally paid a lot much less to family than to unrelated caregivers.
Ducey took workplace in 2015 with a pledge to chop taxes yearly and get earnings taxes as near zero as doable. He has largely succeeded, culminating along with his signing final yr of a invoice chopping taxes to 2.5% for everybody—a small minimize for folks with low incomes and a giant boon for the wealthiest taxpayers.
That almost $2 billion tax minimize is on maintain after critics collected sufficient signatures to provide voters an opportunity to remove it later this yr. To get round that, lawmakers are contemplating repealing it and changing it with a brand new, probably bigger tax minimize.
Ducey has declined to weigh in on that proposal however pledged Monday that "we'll minimize taxes."
The Related Press contributed to this report.
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