Think twice before voting for DialPosted: 2014-08-21 Hildy Angius August 9, 2014 Ahwatukee Foorthills News
This letter is to inform the voters in LD18 about an experience I had with Rep. Jeff Dial.
Dial sponsored a bill, HB 2178, which was enacted into law in 2012. This law favored a small group of property owners with land in Mohave County. The new law would have forced Mohave County to refund and/or to forgive property taxes to a specific group of people. The cost to Mohave County taxpayers would have been approximately $460,000. Our legal review of this new law indicated that it was unconstitutional in that it “benefited a few at the expense of the many.”
While we were researching our options, Rep. Dial said he was “irritated” that we were not paying this in a timely manner, and threatened to punish Mohave County through the Arizona state budget process. Please stop and think about that … the representative from LD18, your representative, threatened to use the full force and power of the state against Mohave County because he didn’t like the idea we were challenging the constitutionality of a law he sponsored. Well, Mohave County did challenge the law and on July 23, 2013, the Arizona Attorney General ruled HB 2178 unconstitutional. In May of this year, the Maricopa Superior Court also ruled HB 2178 unconstitutional.
Sometimes in the lawmaking process, honest mistakes are made and that is forgivable. Threatening to punish a person or organization by using your position of power is never forgivable. I believe society refers to that as “bullying.” Is this the kind of person you want representing your district?
If you want to read more or confirm what I have said, please visit www.mohavecounty.us and search HB 2178.
Hildy Angius
Chairman of the Mohave County Board of Supervisors
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