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HB2753 - 572R - H Ver
House Engrossed
board of directors;
commerce authority
State of Arizona
House of Representatives
Fifty-seventh Legislature
Second Regular Session
2026
HOUSE BILL 2753
AN
ACT
Amending section 41-1502, Arizona Revised
Statutes; relating to the arizona commerce authority.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it
enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Section 41-1502, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:
START_STATUTE
41-1502.
Arizona commerce
authority; board of directors; conduct of office; audit
A. The Arizona commerce authority is
established. The mission of the authority is to provide private
sector leadership in growing and diversifying the economy of this state,
creating high quality employment in this state through expansion, attraction
and retention of businesses and marketing this state for the purpose of
expansion, attraction and retention of businesses.
B. The authority is governed by a board of directors
consisting of:
1. The governor, who serves as chairperson.
2. The chief executive officer.
3. Seventeen private sector business leaders who are
chief executive officers of private, for-profit
enterprises. None of these members may be an elected official of any
government entity. These members must be appointed from
geographically diverse areas of this state and not all from the same
county. These members shall serve staggered three-year terms
of office beginning and ending on the third Monday in January.� These members
shall be appointed as follows:
(a) Nine members who are appointed by the governor.
(b) Four members who are appointed by the president
of the senate.
(c) Four members who are appointed by the speaker of
the house of representatives.
4. The following as ex officio members without the
power to vote:
(a) The president of the senate
or
the president's designee
.
(b) The speaker of the house of representatives
or the speaker's designee
.
(c) The president of the Arizona board of regents.
(
d
) The
chairperson of the senate finance committee, or its successor committee, or the
CHAIRPERSON'S designee.
(
e
) The
chairperson of the House of representatives international trade committee, or
its successor committee, or the chairperson's DESIGNEE.
(
f
)
THE RANKING MINORITY PARTY MEMBER ON THE SENATE FINANCE
COMMITTEE, OR ITS SUCCESSOR COMMITTEE, OR THE RANKING MEMBER'S DESIGNEE.
(
g
)
THE RANKING MINORITY PARTY MEMBER ON THE HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMITTEE, OR ITS SUCCESSOR COMMITTEE, OR
THE RANKING MEMBER'S DESIGNEE.
(d)
(
h
)
The president of each
state university under the jurisdiction of the Arizona board of regents.
(e)
(
i
)
One president of a
community college who is appointed by a statewide organization of community
college presidents.
(f)
(
j
)
The chairperson of the
governor's council on small business, or its successor.
(g)
(
k
)
The chairperson of the
workforce Arizona council established by executive order pursuant to section 41-5401.
(h)
(
l
)
One member of the rural
business development advisory council established by section 41-1505 who
is appointed by the governor.
(i)
(
m
)
The president of a
statewide organization of incorporated cities and towns who is appointed by the
governor.
(j)
(
n
)
The president of a
statewide organization of county boards of supervisors who is appointed by the
governor.
C. For members who are appointed by the governor
pursuant to subsection B of this section, before appointment by the governor, a
prospective member of the board of directors shall submit a full set of
fingerprints to the governor for the purpose of obtaining a state and federal
criminal records check pursuant to section 41-1750 and Public Law 92-544. The
department of public safety may exchange this fingerprint data with the federal
bureau of investigation.
D. The following shall serve as technical advisors
to the board to enhance collaboration among state agencies to meet
infrastructure needs and facilitate growth opportunities throughout this state:
1. The director of environmental quality.
2. The state land commissioner.
3. The director of the department of revenue.
4. The director of the office of tourism.
5. The director of the department of transportation.
6. The director of water resources.
7. The director of the department of insurance and
financial institutions.
8. The director of the Arizona-Mexico commission
in the governor's office.
9. The director of the office of economic
opportunity.
10. An attorney who is appointed jointly by the
president of the senate and the speaker of the house of representatives and who
has experience litigating constitutional cases involving article IX, section 7
of the Arizona Constitution.
E. The governor shall appoint a cochairperson of the
board of directors from among the voting members. The board may
establish an executive committee consisting of the chairperson, the
cochairperson, the chief executive officer and additional voting members of the
board elected by the board. The chairperson may appoint
subcommittees as necessary.
F. The board may request assistance from
representatives of other state agencies to maximize economic development
opportunities by leveraging their access to strategic assets and planning
processes.
G. Board members serve without compensation but are
eligible for reimbursement of expenses pursuant to section 41-1504,
subsection E, paragraph 1.
H. A majority of the voting members, which must
include the chairperson and the chief executive officer, constitute a quorum
for the purpose of an official meeting for conducting business.� An affirmative
vote of a majority of the members present at an official meeting is sufficient
for any action to be taken.
I. The board shall keep and maintain a complete and
accurate record of all of its proceedings.� Public access to the board's
records is subject to section 41-1504, subsection M. The
public portion of board meetings shall be recorded. These recordings
shall be posted on the authority's website within three business days after the
meeting and shall remain on the website pursuant to section 38-431.01,
subsection K.
J. The board
of directors
,
executive committee, subcommittees and advisory councils are subject to title
38, chapter 3, article 3.1, relating to public meetings, except as follows:
1. In addition to section 38-431.03, the
board, executive committee and subcommittees may meet in executive session for
discussion about potential business development opportunities and strategies
that, if made public, could potentially harm the applicant's, the potential
applicant's or this state's competitive position.
2. Social and travel events related to the
expansion, attraction and retention of businesses are not public meetings if no
legal action involving a final vote or decision is taken.
3. Activities and events held in public for the
purpose of announcing the expansion, attraction and retention of projects are
not public meetings.
K. The board and the officers and employees of the
authority are subject to title 38, chapter 3, article 8, relating to conflicts
of interest.
L. The board of directors shall adopt written
policies, procedures and guidelines for standards of conduct, including a gift
policy, for members of the board and for officers and employees of the
authority.
M. The compensation of all officers and employees is
considered a public record pursuant to title 39, chapter 1.
N. The authority shall operate on the state fiscal
year. The board shall cause an annual audit to be conducted on or
before October 31 of each of the authority's public funds established by this
chapter by an independent certified public accountant. The board
shall immediately file a certified copy of the audit with the auditor general.�
The auditor general may make such further audits and examinations as necessary
and may take appropriate action relating to the audit or examination pursuant
to chapter 7, article 10.1 of this title. If the auditor general
takes no further action within thirty days after the audit is filed, the audit
is considered to be sufficient.
O. All state agencies shall cooperate with the
authority and make available data pertaining to the functions of the authority
as requested by the authority.
P. The authority may not have more than one hundred
full-time employees, excluding any full-time employees that are
funded with monies other than state monies.
END_STATUTE