By Katie Campbell | Arizona Capitol Times
A Maricopa County Superior Court judge ruled today a 2016 law preventing cities and towns from telling companies what fringe benefits they must offer employees is voter-protected and unconstitutional.
In his ruling Wednesday, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Joshua D. Rogers found the law stemming from House Bill 2579 violated the 1998 Voter Protection Act on two fronts.
The VPA stipulates that the Legislature can only amend or supersede a voter-approved initiative if the proposed legislation “furthers the purposes” of the initiative and is approved with three-fourths of the vote in both chambers. Rogers pointed out in his ruling that HB2579 did not pass with the requisite majority.
Additionally, he determined HB2579 ran afoul of a 2006 initiative measure, Proposition 202, more commonly known as the “Raise the Minimum Wage for Working Arizonans Act.”
