The 16 State Bills Arizona Conservatives Will Totally Hate In 2016

Given all the right-wing bills introduced each year at the Arizona Legislature, it’s hard to imagine there are any left-leaning elected officials in the state Capitol at all.

But guess what? They do exist, and they introduce legislation, too.

Here are 16 bills that probably won’t make it to Governor Doug Ducey’s desk but will thoroughly piss off conservatives:

16) HB 2275: Requires a special label for foods that are genetically engineered.

15) HB 2276: Outlaws the use of the death penalty.

14) HB 2281: Prohibits the use of three insecticides considered toxic to bees.

13) HB 2274: Allows minors to have abortions without parental consent if a physician deems them mentally and physically capable of making the decision.

12) HB 2407: Prohibits hydraulic fracturing ("fracking") in Arizona

11) HB 2393: Limits what an employer can ask about a person's criminal history during the hiring process.

10) HB 2408: Repeals Arizona's now-infamous ban on banning plastic bags law.

9) HB 2415: Extends the state's "fair housing" rules by prohibiting discrimination based on gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, or disability.  

8) HB 2344: Repeals ARS 15-112, which says:  "A school district or charter school in this state shall not include in its program of instruction any courses or classes that include any of the following:
1. Promote the overthrow of the United States government.
2. Promote resentment toward a race or class of people.
3. Are designed primarily for pupils of a particular ethnic group.
4. Advocate ethnic solidarity instead of the treatment of pupils as individuals."

7) HB 2410: Mandates that sexual education courses teach about contraceptive methods to prevent unplanned pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections and says no sex education course may include material that discriminates based on sex, race, ethnicity, national origin, disability, religion, sexual orientation, or gender identity.

6) HB 2174: Requires that private prison companies contracted with the state be subject to the same open public-records law as state, county, or municipal-run facilities.

5) HB 2097: Automatic voter registration for all eligible Arizona residents.

4) HB 2177: Entitles paid sick time for all employees. (Employees can accrue one hour of paid sick time for every 30 hours worked.)

3) HB 2093: Requires that candidates running for public office disclose all campaign contributions, including those from private entities. 

2) HB 2226: Recognizes June 19 as "Juneteenth," a day celebrating the abolition of slavery in the Confederate South. (Arizona and seven other states don't recognize it as a holiday.) 

1) HCR 2032: Brings Arizona into the 21st century by ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment of 1972, which states that women and men have equal rights under the law.