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• Slug: BC-CNS-Hydropower Halted,710 words.
• File photo. audio available (thumbnail, caption below)

By Alex Hager
KUNC

Federal energy officials took the unusual step of denying permits Thursday to several pumped hydropower projects proposed on the Navajo Nation, citing a new policy that gives tribes a greater voice in projects on their lands.

The tribe and environmental groups had urged the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to deny applications for several of the pumped storage projects, saying they worried about the impact of the projects but had not been consulted by developers. Continue reading “Federal regulators deny permits for hydropower projects on Navajo Nation”

• Slug: BC-CNS-AZ Hugs. 1,220 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Sadie Buggle
Cronkite News

TEMPE — Despite the city of Tempe recently denying a special event permit for nonprofit AZ Hugs, the founder, Austin Davis, says the organization’s weekly Sunday picnics that work to provide food and resources to the city’s unhoused population won’t stop.

The nonprofit, which used to be known as AZ Hugs for the Houseless, provides resources like food, water and connection to shelters and detox facilities to the unhoused community.

Continue reading “Nonprofit aiding unhoused community continues events despite Tempe denying special event permit”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Migrant Tumble,810 words.
• Photo, graphic available (embed code, thumbnail, caption below)

By Ian McKinney
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – Border encounters plunged from record highs of more than 300,000 in December to 176,205 in January, a 42% drop that Customs and Border Protection attributed to enforcement efforts and a traditional seasonal drop.

While most people welcomed the drop, few were confident that it will remain at this level – a level that critics said should still be considered a “crisis.” Continue reading “January sees sharp drop in border numbers after record-setting December”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Narcan Vending Machine. 635 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Jack Orleans
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – Valle del Sol, a health clinic serving Latino and underserved communities in Phoenix, recently unveiled a naloxone vending machine at its south Phoenix location on S. First Avenue and Buckeye Road.

The vending machine dispenses the medication for free without requiring the person to interact with staff. Naloxone, branded as Narcan, is a medication designed to rapidly reverse overdose from opioids such as heroin, morphine and oxycodone. It is a temporary treatment that could revive someone in time for emergency personnel to respond.

Continue reading “Naloxone vending machine unveiled in Valle del Sol clinic in south Phoenix”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Holocaust Center,690 words.
• Photo available (thumbnail, caption below)

By Martin Dreyfuss
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – A House panel gave tentative approval Wednesday to a Holocaust education center, but not before stripping out funding for the project that supporters said will provide an “immersive experience for the next generation on hate and genocide.”

Lawmakers on the House Appropriations Committee, mindful of the current budget shortfall, stripped out $10 million in state funding that was called for in the bill. But committee members, who overwhelmingly approved the amended bill, said they are confident they will be able to fill in a number as the session progresses. Continue reading “House panel advances bill for a Holocaust center, but holds back funds for now”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Animal Shelter. 1,135 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Julia Schamko
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – Walking into the Maricopa County Animal Care and Control (MCACC) West Valley Animal Care Center, visitors are met with endless rows of barking dogs, some two to a kennel, with the organization at more than 100 dogs over capacity as of Monday.

“It’s both a human crisis and animal,” said Leanna Taylor, CEO of the Arizona Pet Project, which works with shelters across the state to keep pets and owners together.

Taylor said that as Arizona residents have struggled financially in recent years, more feel they have no choice but to give their pets up to a shelter.

Continue reading “As animal shelters exceed capacity, groups seek to keep pets with families”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Election Summit,680 words.
• 3 photos available (thumbnails, captions below)

By Ian McKinney
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – The federal government provides funds to make sure bridges and dams don’t collapse – it should do the same for the nation’s elections, a bipartisan group of Arizona officials said this week.

The comments by Maricopa County Supervisors Bill Gates and Jack Sellers and Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes came at a National Association of Counties discussion on elections, which Fontes called “the most egregious unfunded mandate in the American political system, or any political system.” Continue reading “State officials call for federal funds to protect election systems, workers”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Flight Attendant Walkout. 310 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).
• Video available.

By Jack Orleans
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – Dozens of flight attendants of several airlines walked out at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport Tuesday. At terminals 3 and 4, they chanted and demanded better pay and working conditions.

The Association of Flight Attendants-Communications Workers of America, the Association of Professional Flight Attendants and the Transportation Workers Union of America are seeking updated union contracts.

The walkout in Phoenix is part of a larger wave across the country with workers walking out at 30 airports, according to the unions

Continue reading “Flight attendants demand better pay and working conditions during Sky Harbor Airport walkout”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Homelessness Climate. About 800 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).
• Embeddable chart available.

By John Sanders
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – The Valley of the Sun is no stranger to heat, as the bustling metropolis experienced record-breaking temperatures last year. The heat made international headlines, with the city experiencing 133 days of over 100-degree weather. This heat, driven by climate change, is likely to alter how Phoenicians spend time outdoors. For those who are experiencing homelessness, it’s a more serious matter entirely.

According to the 2023 Point-In-Time Homelessness Count, there were 9,642 unhoused individuals in Maricopa County on Jan. 23, 2023, about half of whom had some form of shelter. That was up from 9,026 in 2022 and up sharply from 7,419 in 2020. No count was done in 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Continue reading “As summers get hotter, St. Vincent de Paul works to assist unhoused individuals”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Tribal Nations,740 words.
• 2 photos available (thumbnails, captions below)

By Ian McKinney
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – Tribal nations are seeing themselves represented more than ever before in the government, but they still need to make their voices heard more loudly at the ballot box, the president of the National Congress of American Indians said Monday.

NCAI President Mark Macarro’s comments came as part of the annual State of Indian Nations address, that included comments from tribal youth and congressional response from Rep. Mary Peltola, D-Alaska.

Macarro, making his first such address as president, called for more stable health care funding and improved resources for tribal police – but he repeatedly turned to the need for ballot access, mentioning the issue multiple times during a nearly 30-minute address. Continue reading “State of Indian Nations is good, but could be better, speakers say”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Next Gen Farmers,950 words.
• 6 photos, video story available (thumbnails, captions below)

By Lauren Kobley
Cronkite News

AJO – Jesse Garcia was first introduced to farming in his grandmother’s garden. As a child, he recalls not quite understanding the true purpose of growing and how important it is.

It was in high school that he first started taking an interest in farming and agriculture. After graduating, he had a number of jobs, but he did not feel passionate about any of them. It was then that he found the Ajo Center for Sustainable Agriculture.

Arizona farmers are aging. With a hope to sustain farming practices in the state, particularly within Indigenous communities, the co-executive directors of Ajo CSA, Sterling Johnson and Nina Sajovec, are training the next generation of growers through their beginning farmer apprenticeship program. Continue reading “Ajo Center for Sustainable Agriculture teaches next generation farmers sustainable practices”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Pregnant Pause,850 words.
• 2 file photos available (thumbnails, captions below)

By Ian McKinney
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – It’s been nearly two months since the Arizona Supreme Court heard arguments over the state’s abortion law, and its ruling in that case could all but ban abortions in the state or allow them to continue up to 15 weeks.

Both sides of the debate said they are bracing for that ruling – and waiting. Continue reading “As Arizona Supreme Court weighs abortion law, both sides brace for ruling”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Ballot Dodged,700 words.
• File photo available (thumbnail, caption below)

By Lillie Boudreaux
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – State lawmakers pushed through a bipartisan, last-minute plan to give election officials more time to cope with expected mandatory recounts this year – but it gives voters and candidates less time in the process.

The bill, approved Thursday and signed Friday by Gov. Katie Hobbs, includes new election security requirements but, most importantly, moves the date of the state primary ahead one week, to July 30.

That has a domino effect on other election dates, moving up voter registration deadlines, the mail-in ballot and early voting schedule and the time in which prospective candidates have to file petition signatures to get on the ballot. Continue reading “New July 30 primary date will mean new deadlines for voters, candidates”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Tamale Bill. 1327 words.
• 3 photos available (thumbnails, captions below).
• 1 video available.

By David Ulloa Jr.
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – The accordion, bass guitar and percussion harmonize seamlessly in the energetic beat of Grupo Frontera and Bad Bunny’s chart-topping corrido, “Un X100TO.” Amid the easygoing, upbeat music, the enticing sweet and salty aroma of sizzling bacon and onions from Sergio Vargas’ pushcart stovetop permeates the air of the intersection where he meticulously assembles the ingredients for his signature Sonoran hotdogs.

Continue reading “Behind the cart: Food vendor’s take on tamale bill discussion”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Arizona Indian Festival. 585 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Marnie Jordan
Cronkite News

SCOTTSDALE – The bustling Arizona Indian Festival showcases Native singing, dancing and art to promote tourism and awareness of Arizona’s tribal communities. Visitors can learn about Indigenous culture and history through vendors, art and demonstrations.

To ensure that visitors to the festival, which was Saturday and Sunday, interact with real Native art, an Arizona Indian Festival committee vets all festival vendors for authenticity. Vendors are also required to show a certificate of degree of Indian or Alaska Native blood, which proves they are authentic members of Native American nations in Arizona.

Continue reading “Arizona Indian Festival showcases authentic Indigenous art”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Severe Nursing Shortage. 880 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Annika Tourlas
Cronkite News

PHOENIX — The National Center for Health Workforce Analysis predicts Arizona will have 28,100 fewer registered nurses than are needed in the state by 2025, a bigger disparity than in any other state in the country.

The evolving nursing shortage across the country already has caused delays in care; researchers warn the continuing shortage could cause clinical errors that lead to higher mortality rates for patients.

The nursing shortage particularly impacts critical access hospitals, which are rural community hospitals designated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and tribal health care facilities that provide care to Native American communities in rural areas. According to Heidi Sanborn, president of the Arizona Nurses Association, seeking care at these facilities could mean hour-long waits in emergency department hallways.

Continue reading “Arizona projected to have largest nursing shortage in U.S. in 2025”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Rainy Day Driving. 525 words.
• Photos available.

By Julia Schamko
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – With the winter months bringing rain to the Valley, concerns are growing over driver safety on the roads.

According to a study by the Arizona Department of Transportation, almost 4,300 accidents in 2022 occurred when there was precipitation, about 3.5% of all crashes for that year.

And these accidents aren’t just due to the weather, but a lack of preparedness among both native and nonnative Arizonans.

Continue reading “Rain check: How Arizonans can prepare for rainy drives”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Cardiac Schools,570 words.
• Photos, video story available (thumbnail, caption below)

By Lauren Kobley
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – More than 23,000 children each year will experience cardiac arrest, according to the American Heart Association. Of these incidents, 40% are related to sports.

Pyper Midkiff was one of those children. Last April, when she was 12, she suffered cardiac arrest during the middle of her soccer practice at a Mesa park. Pyper’s dad, Matt Midkiff, was called over to the field by Pyper’s twin sister, Emeri. By the time he arrived, another parent had begun CPR. Continue reading “Arizona Heart Association lobbies for bill mandating cardiac arrest emergency plans in schools”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Satanic Reverses,650 words.
• Photo available (thumbnail, caption below)

By Martin Dreyfuss
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – A Senate committee gave preliminary approval Wednesday to a bill that would ban satanic displays on public grounds, following an often-testy debate over whether Satanism is a religion to be respected or a “desecration of public property.”

The Reject Escalating Satanism by Preserving Essential Core Traditions, or RESPECT Act, would ban “satanic memorials, statues, altars, or displays, or any other method of representing or honoring Satan” on public property.

Opponents, including Satanists who testified against the bill, called it a clear violation of their freedom of religion rights. But a combative Sen. Jake Hoffman, R-Queen Creek, called Satanism the “antithesis of religion.” Continue reading “Bill to ban satanic displays advances, after heated debate on religion”