• Slug: BC-CNS-988 Changes. 1,010 words.
• Photo available (thumbnail, caption below).

By Morgan Kubasko
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – The 988 crisis hotline went live nationwide two years ago, replacing a hard-to-remember 800 number so that people considering suicide could more easily reach out for help.

But unlike 911 calls, which go to the nearest dispatch center, calls to 988 are connected to a center in the caller’s area code.

With 80% of those calls coming from cell phones, people in crisis often end up speaking with a volunteer or counselor thousands of miles away who has no way to send help.

“If they call 988 and they get a call center in another state, then you’ve kind of broken that trust,” said Margie Balfour, a psychiatrist with Connections Health Solutions in Tucson, adding that the concerns are bad enough that “we’ve actually kind of hesitated really pushing people to call 988.”

Continue reading “Calls to 988 suicide hotline go to a crisis center in the caller’s area code, but may soon get routed to the closest counselor”

• Slug: BC-CNS-School Phone Bans. 1,110 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Lauren De Young
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – As a middle school teacher, Dana Ramos didn’t restrict cell phone use in her classroom. Now, as principal of Lowell Elementary School, a K-8 school in Phoenix, Ramos has adopted guidelines to limit access to the devices during the school day.

Ramos has been an educator for 11 years, working first as a teacher and then as an administrator. She has witnessed the integration of technology into the classroom and seen the whole gamut with phone use.

“I’ve seen technology and cell phone usage be something that actually was really beneficial,” Ramos said. “Students who didn’t have a computer could go on Google on their phone and have access to homework assignments. I’ve seen it be useful with different kinds of projects where you might be using photos, or you might be using videos or taking audio.”

Continue reading “Arizona schools combat phone use in the classroom, see effect on youth mental health”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Heat Public Housing. 1,315 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Isabelle Marceles
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – On June 13, the federal government’s top official for public housing appeared with Tucson’s mayor at the Martin Luther King Apartments and announced emergency relief aimed at making it “as easy as possible” to help residents of public housing “afford air conditioning.”

The new program is meant to make it easier for local housing agencies to subsidize utility bills during extreme heat – and highs have topped 110 degrees in Tucson during the current heat wave.

But housing authorities in Arizona’s biggest cities haven’t rushed to implement the program. The Phoenix Housing Department has 2,126 tenants.

Continue reading “Tucson and Phoenix won’t push emergency utility relief to public housing tenants this summer”

EDS: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated the views of delegate Mark Robert Gordon. The story below has been corrected, but clients who used previous versions are asked to run the correction found here.

• Slug: BC-CNS-Delegates Arizona Biden. 1,330 words.
• File photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Benjamin Adelberg
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – A 91-year-old Arizona Democrat called Friday for the 81-year-old president to drop his reelection bid, becoming the first Arizona delegate to abandon Joe Biden and expressing hopes that others follow his lead.

Roberto Reveles, a former president of the ACLU of Arizona, is the oldest of the Arizona Democrats who’ll vote on the party’s nominee next month.

Continue reading “Biden’s Arizona firewall starts to crack as oldest Democratic delegate in the state calls for him to quit presidential race”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Solar Farms. 590 words. By Amaia J. Gavica.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

WASHINGTON – For 31 straight days last summer, temperatures in Phoenix hit or topped 110 degrees, the longest such streak ever. That searing Arizona heat dehydrates crops and evaporates water the state needs to conserve.

Creating shade is one way to combat the problem.

By using solar panels, farmers can simultaneously protect their plants, save water and lower their energy bills – and some are doing just that with help from federal programs designed to encourage this sustainable method of growing.

Continue reading “Arizona farmers turn to solar panels to shade crops, save water and generate power”

EDS: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated how much longer people could apply under a pending bill. The story below has been corrected, but clients who used previous versions are asked to run the correction found here.

• Slug: BC-CNS-RECA Expired. 1,545 words.
• Photo available (thumbnail, caption below).

By Keetra Bippus
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – A federal program to compensate people exposed to fallout from U.S. nuclear testing expired June 10.

The Radiation Exposure Compensation Act has paid out $2.6 billion to over 41,000 people since 1992. In March, the U.S. Justice Department projected that another 1,070 claims would be approved by the end of September.

“Why do we have to beg to pass RECA?” said Maggie Billiman, whose father, a Navajo Code Talker during World War II, died of stomach cancer she attributes to exposure to fallout that affected their hometown in Arizona. “You don’t put a price tag on human life.”

Starting with the Manhattan Project’s Trinity test on July 16, 1945, weeks before bombs destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the U.S. government conducted 94 tests that produced radioactive mushroom clouds in remote areas of the West. Most were over Nevada. One was over New Mexico.

Continue reading “Navajo uranium miners, people downwind of atom bomb tests demand justice as Congress lets aid program lapse”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Arizona primary reform. 668 words.
• 2 File photos available and video (thumbnail, caption below).

By Aoife Kane
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – A campaign aiming to open Arizona’s primary elections filed its petition to qualify for the November ballot on Wednesday after collecting over 560,000 signatures.

If passed, the state constitutional amendment would let Arizona voters participate in primaries regardless of their party affiliation.

That would let more than 1.3 million independent voters who aren’t registered as a Republican or Democrat vote on those parties’ presidential primaries.

The office of the Secretary of State has up to 20 business days to certify the petition, but only 383,923 valid signatures are required.

Even if voters approve the amendment in November, it would be up to the Legislature – which is controlled by the two parties – to decide the mechanics of how nominees are picked for a general election.

If passed, the amendment would take effect in time for the 2026 primaries.

Continue reading “Arizona could see open primaries on the ballot this November, allowing independents to weigh in on presidential nominees”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Homeless SCOTUS. 1,065 words.
• File photo available (thumbnail, caption below).

By Sahara Sajjadi
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – Advocates for homeless people in Arizona fear the Supreme Court has raised the risk of violence at the hands of police by upholding ordinances that criminalize sleeping in public places.

Phoenix made national headlines for months last year after a judge in Maricopa County ordered the city’s largest homeless encampment, The Zone, to be cleared. Downtown businesses had complained it posed a safety hazard.

Advocacy groups denounced the order. By November, the encampment was cleared, displacing hundreds of people.

Continue reading “Arizona’s homeless could be targeted by police under Supreme Court ruling allowing bans on public encampments”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Arizona Abortion Politics, 1,126 words.
• 2 file photos and 1 courtesy photo available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Alex Cunningham
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – Democrats are banking on abortion as their saving grace in Arizona, where President Joe Biden won by just 10,000 votes in 2020 and currently lags Donald Trump in their rematch.

Arizona for Abortion Access, a coalition that includes the ACLU and Planned Parenthood, submitted a stack of 800,000 signatures Wednesday morning to get an initiative in front of voters in November.

That’s one in five registered voters.

The measure would protect access to abortion through fetal viability. In the two years since the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade, similar ballot initiatives have bolstered Democrats in red, blue and purple states.

Continue reading “Abortion ballot measure in Arizona could drive turnout as Biden campaigns hard on reproductive rights”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Criminal Migrants Trump, 1,050 words.
• Photo available (thumbnail, caption below).

By Benjamin Adelberg
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON –  Since President Joe Biden took office, the U.S. population has grown by at least 4 million more migrants who entered the United States illegally. 

During last week’s debate with Biden, former President Donald Trump asserted the tally includes “millions” of criminals and mental patients – an eye-popping claim not supported by government data.

The Trump campaign ignored repeated requests to provide evidence.  Continue reading “Migrant experts: Trump’s debate claim that ‘millions’ of criminals, mental patients have flooded U.S. under Biden doesn’t hold up”

• Slug: BC-CNS-DNC Trump Ads Arizona, 530 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Alex Cunningham
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – The Democratic National Committee took over Tuesday’s homepage of the Arizona Republic website with ads attacking Donald Trump as an existential threat to democracy.

The ads link to a 90-second video that shows Trump ducking a question about whether he will accept the outcome of the November election three times during last week’s prime-time debate.

The ads will run for a week on the Arizona Republic’s site, azcentral.com, according to DNC deputy communications director Abhi Rahman, starting shortly after midnight Tuesday.

Continue reading “Democrats plaster Arizona Republic website with ads calling Trump a threat to democracy, with other blitzes in Georgia, Pennsylvania”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Fake Elector Delegates. 895 words.
• File photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Grey Gartin and Keetra Bippus
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – Three of the Arizona Republicans indicted as “fake electors” for their roles in an attempt to overturn the 2020 presidential election will serve as delegates at the Republican National Convention in July. And they are defiant.

Arizona Republicans who picked them for the honor were well aware of the charges.

Continue reading “3 indicted in ‘fake electors’ scheme among Arizona delegates to RNC”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Bump Stocks. 1,090 words.
• File photo available (thumbnail, caption below).

By Sahara Sajjadi
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – Bump stocks are back thanks to the U.S. Supreme Court. Some survivors of the Las Vegas massacre that left 60 people dead aren’t pleased.

That includes Justin Uhart, a gun owner who was working as a bartender at a music festival in 2017 when a man named Stephen Paddock fired over 1,100 rounds during a 10-minute shooting spree – a rampage made possible by use of a device that converts an ordinary rifle into a rapid-fire weapon.

Continue reading “Arizona survivor of Las Vegas massacre reflects on Supreme Court ruling to make bump stocks accessible”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Schweikert Targeted. 1,300 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Alex Cunningham
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – U.S. Rep. David Schweikert eked out a win in 2022 by just 3,000 votes. With abortion likely on the ballot in November, Democrats are confident they can flip the Phoenix-area district this time around, and a half dozen have lined up to try.

The district includes many of Arizona’s wealthiest suburbs, and Schweikert, a Republican, has emphasized sound fiscal policy and low taxes throughout his seven terms in Congress.

Continue reading “Democrats see abortion rights as a potent issue as they aim to topple seven-term U.S. Rep. David Schweikert”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Border Use of Force. 1,080 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Benjamin Adelberg
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – U.S. Customs and Border Protection has reported a sharp drop in the use of force against migrants at the southern border since last summer – 27% for the 12 months that ended May 31 – compared to a year earlier.

]Migrant advocates are skeptical.

The Government Accountability Office found significant underreporting in a report issued last July. One practice GAO spotlighted was counting an incident as a single event even when it involved numerous CBP officers and dozens of migrants.

Continue reading “Customs and Border Protection data shows sharp drop in use of force, but accuracy is questioned by migrant advocates”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Retro Gaming, 670 words.
• 7 photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Stella Subasic
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – In the heart of downtown Phoenix, modern spaces are bringing retro gaming back to life, drawing crowds of all ages.

Leading this trend are Cobra Arcade Bar and Stardust Pinbar, establishments that have successfully merged vintage video games with a modern bar atmosphere. The combination has captivated locals and tourists, transforming downtown Phoenix into a destination for nostalgic entertainment.

Marcus Boykin, Cobra’s assistant general manager, has witnessed this transformation firsthand since the bar’s inception. “We hit the ground running,” Boykin said. “From our soft openings in January 2016, we’ve had lines out the door on weekends, and it hasn’t slowed down since.” Continue reading “Nostalgia meets nightlife: Phoenix’s Cobra Arcade Bar, Stardust Pinbar highlight retro gaming resurgence”

EDS: This is a partner story from KUNC. If you choose to use it, please fill out this form to help their tracking.

• Slug: KUNC-Phoenix Water Engineering. 2,670 words.
• 7 photos available (thumbnails, captions below).
• Audio available.

By Alex Hager
KUNC

Brett Fleck does not have an easy job. He manages water for a city in the desert. He has to keep taps flowing while facing a complicated equation: Peoria is growing – attracting big business and thousands of new residents each year – but its main source of water is shrinking.

Standing on the edge of a sun-baked canal with palm trees lining its banks, Fleck watched water flow into the pipes that supply the Phoenix suburb.

Continue reading “Does Arizona have enough water? Phoenix-area cities are spending big to make sure it does”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Buffalo Tribal Reintroduction. 1,050 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Brianna Chappie
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – Buffalo are so iconic, Congress designated them as the national mammal in 2016. Native American oral histories estimate that 30 to 60 million once roamed the plains.

After nearly going extinct, the shaggy beasts are making a comeback and soon, many could find themselves on reservations where their kind hasn’t set hoof in decades.

A bipartisan bill pending in Congress would pay to relocate some of the 20,500 buffalo from public lands across the West and Midwest to reservation lands that were historically part of the animals’ range.

Continue reading “Where the buffalo roamed: Bill would return herds to ancestral Native American lands”

• Slug: BC-CNS-Abortion Anniversary VP. 1,200 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).
• Video available.

By Morgan Kubasko and Lauren De Young
Cronkite News

Marking two years since the Supreme Court struck down federal abortion rights, protesters marched on the court Monday, and Vice President Kamala Harris stumped in Phoenix to put a spotlight on the tussle over abortion in Arizona.

“Our work right now is absolutely directly going to affect the people of Arizona, the people of our country, but will have an impact on people around the world. That’s what’s in our hands right now,” Harris said at a reproductive freedom campaign event in Phoenix.
Continue reading “In Phoenix, VP Kamala Harris puts focus on abortion rights as advocates mark two years post-Roe v. Wade”