Good afternoon, Tucson. We hope you’re staying warm! ❄️
Frigid overnight lows are expected to continue for the next few days. Tonight it will drop to 30°, and Wednesday it’s expected to be sunny with a high of 61°. Temperatures will hover just above freezing Wednesday night, and showers are expected Thursday with a high of 51°.
🌵 Governor Hobbs delivered her second State of the State address yesterday.
Her speech focused on bipartisan issues, and some members of the Republican-controlled legislature said she is growing more comfortable working with a divided government. Among her big-ticket items planned for this year: groundwater regulation, reining in prescription drug prices, affordable housing, reforming the state’s education voucher system, and continuing to press the federal government for help with border security.
🌵 As Arizona’s new legislative year begins, lawmakers must tackle a $400 million budget deficit.
The Arizona state constitution requires an annual balanced budget. Just one year ago, the state had a surplus of $1.8 billion. Driving the deficit is a tax cut signed into law by former governor Doug Ducey that took effect in 2023, and an expansion of the state’s school voucher program, which subsidizes parents who send their children to private schools.
🌵 Tucson marked the 13th anniversary of a shooting that killed six people and wounded 13 others, including then-Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords.
Giffords attended a remembrance at the January 8 memorial in El Presidio Park. In a Facebook post, she remembered the victims and said that her Giffords organization, which aims to prevent gun violence, has helped pass more than 620 gun safety laws. “Just like my recovery, progress happens step by step and day by day,” she said.
🌵 A Tucson man was ordered to pay $180,000 for starting a wildfire in the Catalinas last year.
The fire started after Michael Sobcynski fired a shotgun loaded with incendiary ammunition at the Molino Basin target shooting area in April. The shots sparked several small fires that grew into what became the Molino II Fire. Sobcynski was cited for using incendiary ammunition and ordered to pay $180,000 in restitution to the U.S. Forest Service.
- AZPM: Video of Molina II Fire start
- AZPM: Tucson man who started Molino II Fire ordered to pay restitution to United States Forest Service
🌵 Lastly, a new jaguar was spotted just north of the Mexico border.
Wildlife enthusiast Jason Miller captured footage of a jaguar on Dec. 20, 2023 using a trail cam he set up in the Huachuca Mountains. The jaguar’s rosette pattern, which acts as a unique fingerprint for the big cats, does not match any known jaguars. A jaguar was photographed twice in 2023 but its rosette pattern could not be identified.