Official Summary Text
HB2168 - 572R - Senate Fact Sheet
Assigned to
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COMMITTEE
ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Seventh
Legislature, Second Regular Session
FACT SHEET FOR
H.B. 2168
public
nuisance; consent requirement
Purpose
Stipulates that the Attorney General (AG) may only bring an action in
superior court to abate, enjoin or prevent activity that is considered a public
nuisance with the consent of the county board of supervisors (county BOS).
Background
Statute deems that it is a public nuisance for anything to: 1) be
injurious to health, indecent, offensive to the senses or an obstruction to the
free use of property that interferes with the comfortable enjoyment of life or
property by an entire community or neighborhood, or by a considerable number of
persons; or 2) to unlawfully obstruct the free passage or use of any navigable
lake, river, bay, stream, canal or basin, or any public park, square, street or
highway. It is also a public nuisance for any person to sell, offer to sell,
transfer, trade or disseminate any item considered obscene within 2,000 feet
of: 1) any building used as a private or public elementary school or high
school; 2) any public park; or 3) any residence district. A county attorney,
the AG or a city attorney may bring an action in superior court to abate,
enjoin and prevent activity that is considered a public nuisance. A person who
knowingly maintains or commits a public nuisance, or who knowingly fails or
refuses to perform any legal duty relating to the removal of a public nuisance
is guilty of a class 2 misdemeanor (
A.R.S.
� 13-2917
).
Statute likewise prohibits persons from engaging in consumer fraud, which
means the use of deception, deceptive or unfair acts or practices, fraud, false
pretense, false promise, misrepresentation, or concealment, suppression or
omission of any material fact in connection with the sale or advertisement of
any merchandise. The AG has broad investigative authority to enforce
prohibitions against consumer fraud (
A.R.S. �� 44-1521 et seq.
).
There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund
associated with this legislation.
Provisions
1.
Stipulates
that the AG may only bring an action in superior court to abate, enjoin or
prevent activity that is considered a public nuisance with the consent of the
county BOS.
2.
Makes
technical changes.
3.
Becomes
effective on the general effective date.
House Action
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Prepared by Senate Research
March 16, 2026
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Current Bill Text
Read the full stored bill text
HB2168 - 572R - H Ver
House Engrossed
public nuisance
action; consent requirement
State of Arizona
House of Representatives
Fifty-seventh Legislature
Second Regular Session
2026
HOUSE BILL 2168
AN
ACT
amending section 13-2917, Arizona
Revised Statutes; relating to nuisance actions.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it
enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Section 13-2917, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:
START_STATUTE
13-2917.
Public nuisance; abatement; classification
A. It is a public nuisance, and is no less a
nuisance because the extent of the annoyance or damage inflicted is unequal,
for anything:
1. To be injurious to health, indecent, offensive to
the senses or an obstruction to the free use of property that interferes with
the comfortable enjoyment of life or property by an entire community or
neighborhood or by a considerable number of persons.
2. To unlawfully obstruct the free passage or use,
in the customary manner, of any navigable lake, river, bay, stream, canal or
basin, or any public park, square, street or highway.
B. It is a public nuisance for any person to sell,
offer to sell, transfer, trade or disseminate any
obscene
item
which is obscene
as defined in section 13-3501
,
within two thousand feet, measured in a straight line,
of the nearest boundary line of any of the following:
1. Any building used as a private or public
elementary or high school.
2. Any public park.
3. Any residence district as defined in section 28-101.
C.
The attorney general with the
consent of the board of supervisors,
the county attorney
,
the attorney general
or the city attorney
may
bring an action in superior court to abate, enjoin and prevent the activity
described in subsections A and B of this section.
D. Any person who knowingly maintains or commits a
public nuisance or who knowingly fails or refuses to perform any legal duty
relating to the removal of a public nuisance is guilty of a class 2
misdemeanor.
END_STATUTE