Policy Impact Series - Arizona Legislative Update

Arizona Legislative Session started on Monday, January 13, 2025

At our first Policy Impact event of the year, get an exclusive update one month after Session starts, including a behind-the-scenes looks at upcoming bills, the state budget, & the future of Proposition 123.

All elected officials from Arizona State Congress Legislative District 12 will be in attendance, including Senator Mitzi Epstein, Representative Patty Contreras, and House Minority Whip Stacey Travers.

Our Policy Impact Series is always free, thanks to sponsors like Salt River Project & Dignity Health.
 

Meet Senator Mitzi Epstein

Senator Mitzi Epstein represents our community full time, with a caring, collaborative, positive approach. She is a computer systems analyst who has worked for multinational companies including Olin Brass, and Citicorp. She owns a very small business called Custom Language Training. She was elected to the State Senate, after serving 6 years in the AZ House of Representatives. 

Public education is the heart of Mitzi's vocation. She has co-founded local and statewide coalitions of parents, teachers, retirees, and business leaders to advocate for high quality public education. She served as a Kyrene School Board member from 2005-2008.

As the previous Democratic House Minority Leader, she has led the Democratic budget efforts with a keen eye to improve funding for education, worthy wages for caregivers and state workers, and generally managing Arizonan's resources with fair and responsible stewardship. In 2019, she established the bicameral “Sustainability Workgroup” in the legislature to protect clean air, fresh water, and wildlife in a changing climate.

Senator Epstein stands on the principle that every solution is better when it is developed with a wide range of perspectives at the table.
 

Meet Representative Patty Contreras

As a public servant for much of her career, Patty Contreras is passionate about working to provide legislation that will enhance the lives of residents of Arizona. Patty ran for the Arizona House of Representatives on the issues of fully funding education, helping seniors and veterans, combating climate change, and protecting Arizona’s water supply.

Ms. Contreras retired from the City of Phoenix after over 31 years of service to Phoenix residents. She worked in both the Parks and Recreation and Human Services Departments primarily providing services, resources, and programs to seniors and people with disabilities.

Patty Contreras is a native Arizonan; her family has been in Arizona for over 100 years. Originally from Somerton, near Yuma, she owns a home in Ahwatukee where she has lived for over 30 years.

In the 1910’s, Patty’s great-grandparents emigrated from Mexico and settled in Morenci where they worked in the mines. They became seasonal farmworkers after moving to Somerton, near Yuma, in the 1920’s. Her grandparents and parents were also seasonal farmworkers. Her father was later a successful businessman in Yuma.

Patty has a Bachelor of Science degree from ASU and a Master of Administration degree from NAU. Her parents, Patty, and her seven siblings attended Arizona public schools. She and five of her siblings graduated from Arizona State University. Two of her sisters have Master's degrees in Education.
 

Meet House Minority Whip Stacey Travers

Stacey Travers was elected in 2022 to the Arizona House from Legislative District 12. She serves on the House Military Affairs and Public Safety; Natural Resources Energy and Water; International Trade, and the Governor’s Water Policy Council.

Rep. Travers continued her family’s tradition of service and is a veteran of the U.S Army. She received her B.S. in Geosciences at the University of Arizona. She continued her public service, advocating on behalf of veterans, an issue important to her.

Rep. Travers was the only House freshman in her caucus to have a bill signed by Governor Hobbs this session - HB2670, which allows Reservists and National Guardsmen to be buried in State VA cemeteries. She looks forward to continuing to represent Chandler next year.