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The Arizona State Legislature website is one of the best websites of its kind. There are many points of information available, and this post will help you navigate it efficiently. This basic tutorial will help a user to understand how the website’s menu bar is set up, and where to go to find the information you are seeking. For a glossary of terms you might find on the website, click here. To understand how the legislature is organized, click here.
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MAIN PAGE:
The legislature’s website is http://www.azleg.gov. This link brings you to the main home page. See the above photo for a screen shot of the home page.
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LIVE PROCEEDINGS:
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On the left side of the home page is an FAQ box. The last item is Live Proceedings. Choosing this option opens a pop-up window to the live streaming of both the House and Senate hearing rooms.
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You may choose which room in the House or Senate to watch by clicking on the room number you want. An agenda usually accompanies the video on the right side of the pop-up box. If you are unsure of which room you want, click on each of them to find the committee you are seeking.
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You can also view archived video at this link.
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A.L.I.S.:
A.L.I.S. is an acronym for Arizona Legislative Information System. The system allows a reader to quickly see what the legislative calendar looks like for the day checked. You can find the hyperlink ALIS Today in the middle of the home page.
The A.L.I.S. Tracking web site is an extension of the AZ Legislature web site. This is for users who track a large number of bills. You can visit this site directly at http://alistrack.azleg.gov or download the PDF manual: AlisTracking
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HORIZONTAL MENU:
| There are eight items in the horizontal menu at the top of the page. Scroll over those headings for a drop-down menu of options. |
| Senate, House, Legislative Council, JLBC, More Agencies, Bills, Committees, and Calendars/News. |
| Senate and House menu options contain similar information. Each gives the member rosters for each chamber. From those rosters, a user can select a legislator and view information about that legislator’s committee assignments, contact information, and bill sponsorships/co-sponsorships. |
| The Legislative Council options are links to the Arizona Revised Statutes and the Arizona Constitution, articles and sections. |
| The JLBC option is a direct link to the website of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee. The JLBC studies and evaluates the state’s fiscal situation–specifically the state’s revenues and expenditures. |
| More agencies provides links to a number of legislative, executive, and judicial branch agencies. |
| The Bills option is one the most useful tools on this website. See below for a more extensive tutorial. |
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BILLS:
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Scroll over Bills and a drop-down menu appears with the following threads:
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The Bill Info is the top choice on the list. This opens a page to a list of House or Senate bills, sorted by number.
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By selecting a bill, specific information can be found.
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The Bill Summary/Fact Sheets link brings the user to a list of the summaries of the bill written by legislative staff for the various committees. In the case of longer bills, this can be a useful resource for a basic understanding of the legislation.
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The Bill Status link brings the user to a page listing the sponsors and co-sponsors of the bill, a list of actions related to the bill (when it was read in one or the other chamber, what committees it was assigned to, committee votes, floor votes, ultimate disposition of the bill, etc.)
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The Sponsors link show the user a list of the sponsors of the bill. The first name listed is the original sponsor, any names listed with a “P” are primary sponsors, and those listed with a “C” are co-sponsors.
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The Bill Versions link shows the user the different versions of the bill – as introduced, and House Engrossed and Senate Engrossed (if a measure gets that far).
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The Adopted Amendments and Proposed Amendments links take the user to lists of adopted and proposed amendments. These amendments are written based on the underlying bill so they don’t often make sense in their “stand-alone” versions.
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The House Agenda, Senate Agendas, House Calendars, and Senate Calendars links bring you to pages that show when the bill is scheduled for committee or floor action.
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The Bill Video Archive link shows a list of videos of the committee and floor considerations of the bill in question. However, because bills reuse the same number every regular sessions, special session, and year to year; a bill number may be reused many times (i.e. HB 2001 was used multiple times in 2009 due to one regular session and multiple special sessions.) Therefore, it’s best to know when the bill you are interested in was up for consideration.
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COMMITTEES:
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Scroll over the Committees tab and a drop-down menu appears with the following threads:
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The Standing Committee is a list of links to each chamber’s permanent committees.
The Interim Committee is a list of links to the various temporary, ad hoc, and special committees.
The House Agendas, Senate Agendas, and JLBC Agendas are lists of links to the agendas of upcoming committee meetings. This is helpful in planning visits to the Capitol or viewing online sessions.
The Conference link is a list of conference committee meetings and agendas. This one is rarely used.
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CALENDAR NEWS:
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Scroll over the Calendars/News tab and a drop-down menu appears with the following threads:
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The Press Releases link is an archive of press releases.
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The Capitol Events link provides a calendar of events at the legislature.
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Tags: arizona education, Arizona Legislature, Arizona schools, Contact Governor Brewer, education
[...] See more here: The AZ Legislature: Website 101 | Arizona Education Network [...]
It would be interesting to see a comparison of legislator education appropriations voting records, and their individual educational background. i.e. public/private, level of college etc.