2012 Legislative Arts Heroes Selected by Arizona Citizens/Action for the Arts

Arizona legislators from districts across the state have been selected as 2012 Arizona Legislative Arts Heroes by Arizona Citizens Action for the Arts, a statewide arts advocacy organization.

            Members of the Arizona House of Representatives and  the Arizona Senate were chosen “for working on behalf of arts and cultural organizations and arts education programs and administrators across the state,” said Catherine “Rusty” Foley, executive director of Arizona Citizens/Action for the Arts.

            Specifically, the legislators were instrumental in supporting the Arizona Commission on the Arts through its so-called “sunset review” process, a legally-mandated review that all state agencies must undergo at least once every 10 years. As a result of their efforts, the Arizona Legislature overwhelming passed HB 2265 in the recent legislative session which reauthorized the Commission on the Arts for the full 10 years allowed under law. Governor Jan Brewer later signed the legislation into law.

The Commission also has sustained severe cuts in its funding over the last three years, Foley said. This year, however, legislators also restored a partial sweep of funds from the Arizona Arts Trust, thereby increasing funding for the Arts Commission by about $115,000.

 “The support these elected officials have demonstrated for the Arizona Commission on the Arts is making a critical contribution to the survival and sustainability of the arts and culture in Arizona during a very difficult time for us all,” Foley said.

            Each legislator will receive his or her award at events scheduled over the next several months in in their home districts and at arts and cultural events in metropolitan Phoenix.

            Members of the Arizona Senate receiving the award are:

            Senate President Steve Pierce (R-Prescott), Nancy Barto (R-Phoenix), Michele Reagan (R-Scottsdale), Adam Driggs (R-Phoenix), John Nelson (R-Phoenix), Steve Gallardo (D-Phoenix), Robert Meza (D-Phoenix), David Lujan (D-Phoenix), Leah Landrum Taylor (D-Phoenix), David Schapira (D-Tempe), Jerry Lewis (R-Mesa), Rich Crandall (R-Mesa), John McComish (R-Ahwatukee), Al Melvin (R-Tucson), Olivia Cajero Bedford (D-Tucson) and Paula Aboud (D-Tucson).

            Members of the House of Representatives (listed by new legislative districts) receiving the award are:

            Karen Fann (R-Prescott), Speaker of the House Andy Tobin (R-Prescott Valley), Albert Hale (D-St. Michaels), Doris Goodale (R-Kingman), Amanda Reeve (R-Phoenix), Heather Carter (R-Cave Creek), Michelle Ugenti (R-Scottsdale), Rick Gray (R-Sun City), Jim Weiers (R-Phoenix), Kimberly Yee (R-Phoenix), Kate Brophy McGee (R-Phoenix), Eric Meyer (D-Paradise Valley), Steve Montenegro (R-Avondale), Jerry Weiers (R-Glendale), Anna Tovar (D-District 19), Chad Campbell (D-District 14), Debbe McCune Davis (D-District 30), Lela Alston (D-Phoenix), Katie Hobbs (D-Phoenix), Ruben Gallego (D-Phoenix), Catherine Miranda (D-Phoenix), Jeff Dial (R-Chandler), Bob Robson (R-Chandler), Tom Forese (R-Gilbert), JD Mesnard (R-Chandler), Frank Pratt (R-Casa Grande), Russ Jones (R-Yuma), Lynne Pancrazi (D-Yuma), Peggy Judd (R-Willcox), David Stevens (R-Fort Huachuca), Macario Saldate (D-Tucson), Steve Farley (D-Tucson), Bruce Wheeler (D-Tucson), David Gowan (R-Sierra Vista).

            For more information, visit www.azcitizensforthearts.org