By Joshua Bowling |The Arizona Republic:
The money, dubbed the “AZCares Fund,” is meant for smaller and mid-sized cities, towns and counties that haven’t already received the federal aid. These locales are only getting a slice of the $1.86 billion because it’s not clear what the future holds and the state doesn’t want to prematurely dole out all of its aid, Ducey said.
./ screengrab/ Arizona Republic
“There are going to be needs that are yet unforeseen,” he said.
“We’re all trying to get a handle on our revenues and where our economy is.”
The governor sat between mayors and county supervisors from Kingman to Sahuarita during a news conference in which he touted “flexibility” and “minimal red tape” attached to the funding.
Municipal and county leaders around the state have been calling on Ducey to distribute the funds since at least early May. Pinal County Supervisors recently voted to sue to force the state to act. The county has not yet filed the lawsuit, spokesman James Daniels said.
The Pinal County Board of Supervisors had a board meeting scheduled Wednesday. None of the supervisors were at Ducey’s announcement.
