PHOENIX — Gov. Katie Hobbs' decision to bypass the Republican-controlled Legislature by appointing deputy directors to run state agencies was a violation of Arizona law, a judge ruled this week.
An ongoing political dispute over how the governor can appoint directors to oversee housing, veteran services and child safety has now resulted in a state judge ruling in favor of Republican lawmakers.
Senate President Warren Petersen sued Hobbs last year after the Democratic governor withdrew her unconfirmed director nominees to run Arizona's many state agencies.
Since Republicans hold a majority in the Legislature, they have enough votes to reject the governor's director nominees. Lawmakers created the nominations committee last year, which replaced the former process of nominees getting vetted by the subject-matter committee in the Senate.
The governor said the Senate's nominations committee had imposed an "impossible standard" after the committee rejected some of her nominees. Hobbs then decided to have her nominees serve as executive deputy directors without confirmation from the Senate.
In a ruling released June 5, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Scott Blaney determined the governor's deputy directors were appointed to their leadership roles without legislative oversight in violation of Arizona law.
"Their indefinite tenure without Senate consent directly violates (Arizona Revised Statutes) which states: 'In no event shall a nominee serve longer than one year after nomination without consent,'" the judge's ruling states.
Even if the governor's frustration with a co-equal branch of government is justified, the judge wrote that doesn't exempt Hobbs' director nominees from Senate oversight.
The judge is giving both parties until late July to resolve the dispute before scheduling an evidentiary hearing which would determine whether the court should issue any further orders.
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