'The best job in state government': AG Mayes reflects on first year, readies for fights to come

Attorney General Kris Mayes did not waste a minute of 2023. Her top priority? Protecting Arizonans' safety and well being.

She sat down with the Arizona Republic's Stacey Barchenger to discuss how the Arizona Attorney General's Office tackled some big issues facing Arizonans this year including fighting the fentanyl crisis, defending reproductive rights, combatting senior abuse and neglect, safeguarding our state's precious natural resources, and protecting consumers against scams and fraud.

Read highlights from the article below.

Not wasting a minute

"Ask Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes to outline her priorities for her second year in office, and she'll share a lengthy list.

"Prosecute elder abuse. Combat fentanyl. Object to a major grocery merger. Protect Arizonans, and the state itself, from environmental harm. Be more accessible to the public. Hold steady the office budget in light of the state's expected deficit."

Priorities for next year

"Mayes said her office has drafted a version of what is often called a red-flag law. Broadly speaking, those laws allow courts to order the seizure of firearms from people who might be a threat to themselves or others."

"She said law enforcement needs more ability to seize suspected criminal proceeds, but that was curtailed by the changes to anti-racketeering or RICO law. Those previous reforms won the support of Republicans and Democrats who said the system led to 'policing for profit.'"

Lookback at first year

"Mayes said her first year in office laid the groundwork. She stood up new reproductive rights and elder affairs units. She dealt with the "overhang" of the prior administration..."

'Best job in state government'

"Mayes' career in public service included stints working for the state's last Democratic governor, Janet Napolitano, and as an elected utility regulator on the Arizona Corporation Commission.

"But she declared being attorney general the best job in state government."

Read the full article

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