Gov. Doug Ducey addresses a joint session of the Arizona Legislature, Jan. 12, 2015.
Nearly two dozen bills have been filed in advance of the Jan. 9 opening of the legislative session.
Many bills fix minor or technical problems with laws already on the books, but some of the proposals are of note.
State Sen. John Kavanagh, R-Fountain Hills, sponsored a bill to make it a felony to steal an American flag.
Kavanagh is also the prime sponsor of a bill to make it easier to deny public records requests the government finds “unduly burdensome.”
State Rep. Mark Cardenas, D-Phoenix, sponsored a bill legalizing small amounts of marijuana.
Cardenas also put in another marijuana-related bill. It would make the possession of an ounce or less of pot a civil penalty subject to a $100 fine.
“Arizona is the only state left that has a felony for the lowest possession of marijuana. It is time for us to join 49 other states and see it as a petty crime,” said Cardenas.
The bills sponsored by Cardenas and Kavanagh are not new to the Legislature. Both have been proposed before and failed.
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