Hobbs explains why some former agency director picks will not proceed

(The Center Square) – Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs explained the decision to not resubmit some director picks to the Senate Committee on Director Nominations in the next legislative session.

A legal agreement was made between the Republican-led Senate and the Hobbs administration following a court's ruling that her decision to pull picks from the process and create the role of "Executive Deputy Directors" could not go on. The administration argued that the committee was run in a hyper-partisan fashion, whereas proponents say it serves as a necessary stopping point for nominees before they come for a full Senate vote.

"We had clear indication of folks who didn't have a path to nomination. Now, nothing is gonna to happen until after the election, after there's a new Senate in place," Hobbs told reporters at the media availability on Wednesday.

Dana Allmond at the Department of Veterans' Services, Karen Peters at the Department of Environmental Quality and David Lujan and the Department of Child Safety will not be resubmitted to the committee in January, according to an informal notification from the Hobbs administration to the state Senate last week. Hobbs' director of operations Ben Henderson will lead DCS and ADEQ in the interim, along with John Scott leading DVS in the interim.

However, Hobbs hinted at optimism that the narrowly Republican majority legislature could flip blue in November, which could help her significantly when it comes to the confirmation process.

"I just want to reiterate this agreement is with the current leadership with the Senate," she continued.

Sen. Jake Hoffman, R-Queen Creek, who currently leads the committee that determines whether a nominee goes for a full vote, said in a statement that the court decree is an admission that "Katie Hobbs broke the law."

"Her withdrawal of additional problematic nominees is a good first step; however, the withdrawal of these nominees has inched Hobbs closer to an all-time historic high for failed executive nominations, if she’s not the record holder already — a record that should rightly concern all Arizonans," the senator stated.

"The people of Arizona can rest assured that the Senate always has an open door, so I hope Hobbs will choose to consult with the Committee and Majority on who she’s considering to nominate as replacements in advance moving forward," he continued.