House Engrossed Senate Bill

state emergency council; membership; procedures

State of Arizona

Senate

Fifty-fifth Legislature

First Regular Session

2021

SENATE BILL 1719

AN ACT

amending section 26-304, Arizona Revised Statutes; relating to the state emergency council.

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Section 26-304, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE26-304. State emergency council; membership; powers and duties; definition

A. The state emergency council is established consisting of the following persons or their designee:

1. the governor.

2. the secretary of state.

3. the attorney general.

4. the adjutant general.

5. the director of the division of emergency management.

6. the director of the department of transportation.

7. the director of the department of health services.

8. the director of environmental quality.

9. the director of the department of public safety.

10. the director of the Arizona department of agriculture.

11. the director of the department of administration.

12. the director of water resources.

13. the president, majority leader and majority whip of the senate as an advisory member members.

14. the speaker, majority leader and majority whip of the house of representatives as an advisory member members.

15. The minority leader, assistant minority leader and minority whips of the senate as advisory members.

16. The minority leader, assistant minority leader and minority whips of the house of representatives as advisory members.

B. The powers and duties of the council include:

1. Making recommendations for Recommending orders, rules, policies and procedures to the governor.

2. Recommending to the governor the assignment of any responsibility, service or activity to a state agency relative to emergencies or planning for emergencies.

3. If the governor is inaccessible, issuing, in the event of inaccessibility of the governor, a state of emergency proclamation under the same conditions by which the governor could issue such a proclamation., if the action is taken The proclamation must be issued at a meeting of the council called by the director, and if not less than at least three of the council members, at least one of whom is an elected official, must approve the action.

C. The council shall monitor each emergency declared by the governor and the activities and response of the division to the emergency. The council shall recommend to the governor or the legislature based on the reports submitted to it by the auditor that the emergency conditions have stabilized and that the emergency is substantially contained.

D. The governor shall convene the council on or before the fourteenth day after proclaiming a statewide state of emergency pursuant to section 26-303 and shall continue to convene the council at least once every fourteen days for the duration of the statewide state of emergency.  If the governor does not convene the council as prescribed in this subsection, the statewide state of emergency terminates.

D. E. For the purposes of this section, "advisory member" means a member who gives advice to the other members of the state emergency council at meetings of the council but who is not eligible to vote, is not a member for purposes of determining whether a quorum is present and is not eligible to receive any compensation or reimbursement of expenses by the council. END_STATUTE

Sec. 2. Applicability

Section 26-304, Arizona Revised Statutes, as amended by this act, applies to a statewide state of emergency proclaimed pursuant to section 26-303, Arizona Revised Statutes, on or after March 1, 2020, except that the governor shall convene the state emergency council on or before the fourteenth day after the effective date of this act and shall continue to convene the council at least once every fourteen days for the duration of the statewide state of emergency.