Arizona stories ready to republish | October 8, 2026

Below are today’s Arizona and national stories, available for immediate republication. You can access them via The Center Square RSS feed or BLOX Content Exchange.

Congressional candidates debate economy, data centers
Cost of living, immigration, water and data centers were among the issues debated Wednesday night by candidates for Arizona’s Congressional District 1. The forum, which streamed live from Scottsdale, Ariz., offered a stark contrast between the two major party candidates: the Republican, Thomas “Jay” Feely IV, and the Democrat, Dr. Amish Shah. The race for the open seat is widely regarded as one of the competitive contests that will help determine which party takes control of the U.S. House in the Nov. 3 midterm election. By Chris Woodward.

Arizona to vote on amendment to strengthen election security
Arizonans will vote Nov. 3 on a proposed constitutional amendment to strengthen the state’s voting laws and curb foreign influence on elections. Voters will decide the fate of Proposition 144, which would require government-issued identification to cast a ballot and prevent noncitizens from voting in Arizona elections. Proposition 144 would also allow voters to have their ballots counted at polling locations and stop foreign nationals from making campaign contributions that could impact an Arizona election. By Zachery Schmidt.

Republicans mull federal gas tax holiday with price tag of billions
With the national average gas price hovering around $4.37 per gallon, some Republicans are pushing for a temporary suspension of the federal gas tax. Doing so would provide Americans some savings at the pump, but it would also cost billions each month and potentially hasten the depletion of the struggling Highway Trust Fund. 

EXCLUSIVE: Congress urged to protect energy companies, consumers amid Suncor case
In light of the U.S. Supreme Court hearing oral arguments in the landmark climate case Suncor v. Boulder, energy worker advocacy group Power the Future called on Congress for swift passage of the Stop Climate Shakedowns Act of 2026 in order to protect energy companies from it says are unfair lawsuits and consumers from higher prices. 

School choice programs grow in popularity across U.S.

School choice programs are expanding across the country, giving families more options for educating their children, which prompts a debate over whether student outcomes will improve and how much the programs will cost taxpayers. This is the first in a three-part series.

New tariffs would take nearly a decade to cover Trump's $5,000 checks
President Donald Trump told reporters Tuesday that sending $5,000 to every adult if Republicans keep Congress would "work out very easily," but he did not say how, and tariff revenue alone won't cover the cost.

Parental rights bill targets funding of state child welfare programs
U.S. Rep. Mary Miller says her newly introduced legislation will stop bureaucrats from using taxpayer-funded child welfare systems to tear children away from families. The Illinois Republican introduced the Yaeli Martinez Child Protection Act on Monday. The measure would bar federally funded state child welfare systems from removing children from fit parents simply because the parents affirm their child’s biological sex.

Big tech group pressures Trump administration to drop conservative patent rule
A group representing big tech companies, including Amazon, Google and Microsoft, wants the Trump administration to scrap a proposed rule that would limit repeated patent challenges. The rule’s supporters say it would help small inventors who can’t afford to keep defending their patents against big companies. 

Bipartisan permitting reform bill targets gaps in US transmission planning
With electricity demand rising rapidly nationwide, a bipartisan U.S. Senate bill aims to create a process for planning transmission between regions — a step toward a more interconnected power grid that could help keep electricity more reliable and affordable.

4 states sue tech company claiming it deceived millions of Americans about Chinese ties
The states of Nebraska, Montana, Iowa and Florida each individually sued TP-Link – a tech company that provides networking devices – accusing it of deceiving consumers about its ties to China, thereby putting millions of Americans’ privacy at risk and endangering national security.

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DEI INITIATIVE: Arizona voters will vote Nov. 3 on Proposition 142, a constitutional amendment proposal that would prevent taxpayer money from funding diversity, equity and inclusion programs. The Center Square interviewed proponents and opponents of this measure. By Zachery Schmidt.

ILLEGAL VOTERS: Vulnerabilities in Georgia's voting system could allow tens of thousands of potentially illegal ballots to be cast next month by people no longer living at their addresses of record, an elections data analyst is warning state officials. The state's elections office says federal law should be changed to make that easier to prevent, but then refused to look at data estimating the extent of the problem, which was generated by analyst Mark Davis at the request of The Center Square.

IBOGAINE MONEY: An April executive order directed at least $50 million through ARPA-H to partner with states on psychedelic research, but six months on no agency has said where the money came from or where it went. A review of federal spending records for the ARPA-H account found no obligations tied to psychedelic or ibogaine research. The one state program the order points at, Texas, has $50 million appropriated and no contract executed, with the state citing the consortium's failure to meet matching-fund and intellectual property requirements. The Center Square breaks down what is actually being spent and what the trial protocol FDA opened for comment this week would cost. (Brett Rowland)

FARM SUPPORT:  The USDA announced its “largest annual payout by far” through two federal farm safety-net programs, raising questions about whether the record $13.8 billion reflects unusually difficult economic conditions for farmers or increasingly generous federal agricultural policies or both. (Morgan Sweeney)

IOWA DEBATE: Candidates for U.S. Senate in Iowa debated in the first and only planned policy discussion on Wednesday. (Andrew Rice)

GEORGIA DEBATE: Candidates for U.S. Senate in Georgia will participate in a debate on Thursday night (Andrew Rice)

SCHOOL CHOICE SERIES: States with existing school choice programs continue to opt into the federal Education Freedom Tax Credit Program, with supporters arguing that the federal program can complement state program options. This is the second in a three-part series. (Esther Wickham)

ALLEGED TITLE VI VIOLATION: The U.S. Attorney General’s Office of Civil Rights is expanding its investigation into Swarthmore College over allegations that the Pennsylvania school failed to address antisemitic harassment, which could be a violation of Title VI. (Esther Wickham)

FRAUD: Vice President JD Vance is hosting a press conference regarding the government’s investigation into fraud. (Sarah Roderick-Fitch)

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