2026 Legislative Agenda & Policy Goals

• Actively participate in the PEEPS program to support expanded access in Pima County.
• Support expanded funding streams for Early Childhood Education, to include adding e-cigarettes to the existing Arizona tobacco luxury tax.
• Partner with Tucson Values Teachers to recognize and attract high quality teachers for Southern Arizona.
• Engage emerging leaders through the Civic & Political Leadership Academy.
• Engage with Southern Arizona’s education leaders, including Southern Arizona Superintendents’ Consortium.
• Support Pima Community College’s efforts to bolster workforce development.
• Prioritize SALC’s efforts to capitalize on policy and programmatic opportunities that arise along the P-20 continuum.
• Amplify Pima JTED opportunities that help ameliorate workforce shortages in key sectors.

• • Champion sustainable statewide funding for all transportation modes.
  • Advance priority projects, including the Sonoran Corridor (Tier 2 EIS), I-10, I-11, intercity passenger rail, and cross-border trade infrastructure.
  • Ensure effective use of federal infrastructure funds (IIJA, ARPA).
  • Convene and lead key coalitions, including Business Partners for Trade and Transportation and the Tucson Regional Water Coalition.
  • Advocate for resilient, modern infrastructure across transportation, water, energy, aviation, broadband, and the electric grid.
  • Protect dedicated infrastructure funds (Highway User Revenue Fund, State Aviation Fund) and modernize revenue sources.
  • Monitor and engage in federal Surface Transportation Act reauthorization to elevate Southern Arizona priorities.

• Keep SALC members informed on healthcare trends and policy impacts.
• Support policies that expand workforce pipelines, protect 340B, improve access to mental health and substance-use treatment, and enhance affordability and coverage (KidsCare, AHCCCS).
• Advocate for policies that reduce administrative burden, protect continuity of care, and improve data sharing, including Health Information Exchange and targeted regulatory reforms.
• Support responsible approaches to healthcare labor policy.
• Advance digital health and precision medicine in partnership with regional stakeholders.
• Use tools like the MAP Dashboard to drive measurable improvements in population health.

• • Support University of Arizona research and tech transfer, with emphasis on AI, data systems, and imaging.
  • Promote opportunities to engage with Advanced Mobility innovators, manufacturers, and stakeholders.
  • Support policies that expand availability of risk capital and deliver high ROI for Arizona’s innovation economy.
  • Support efforts to streamline governmental administrative processes to improve business attraction and job creation.
  • Support workforce pipeline platforms that serve students, job seekers, and employers across multiple industries.
  • Protect the Technology & Research Innovation Fund (TRIF) for universities.
  • Collaborate with key partners, including MAP Dashboard, Arizona Bioscience Roadmap, Startup Tucson, TenWest Festival, and the Tucson Innovation Partnership.

• • Promote effective regional collaboration, particularly on transportation infrastructure and the courts.
  • Convene SALC members with local and state officials to address policy impacts on Southern Arizona’s businesses and communities.
  • Build civic and policy awareness among emerging leaders through SALC Associate Memberships and support of the Civic & Political Leadership Academy.
  • Support modernization of the citizens’ initiative process and improvements to local and state election administration.
  • Advance system-level reforms to strengthen fair, effective, and accountable governance, including primary election reform, ward-only elections in Tucson, term limits, redistricting reform, and updates to the Voter Protection Act and supermajority requirements.