Arizona House Bill 2477 (HB2477) would require prosecutors to establish a higher evidentiary standard for asset forfeiture. The bill also takes on federal forfeiture programs by banning prosecutors from circumventing state laws by passing cases off to the feds in most situations. It passed the House by a unanimous 60-0 vote. (learn more here)
It now needs to pass the Senate Judiciary Committee to move forward. A vote is likely to happen at a March 23rd meeting so PLEASE TAKE THE FOLLOWING ACTIONS to support this important bill right now.
1. Call the Senate Judiciary Committee Chair, Judy Burges. THANK HER for scheduling HB2477 for a hearing. Strongly, but respectfully urge her to vote yes as well. A phone call has 10x the impact of an email.
Burges: (602) 926-5861
2. Call the rest of the committee members. Again, be strong, but respectful. Urge each of them to vote YES on HB2477.
Nancy Barto Vice-Chairman (602) 926-5766
Lupe Contreras (602) 926-5284
Andrea Dalessandro (602) 926-5342
Frank Pratt (602) 926-5761
Martin Quezada (602) 926-5911
Bob Worsley (602) 926-5760
3. Call Back – any NO or UNDECIDED – in 2-3 days. Make sure to follow-up with any who are undecided or even no.
If they say YES, be sure to thank them and, if possible, announce their committed YES vote to email and social media contacts. If they say no, politely ask them why. Get the information from them and contact us.
4. Spread the Word. Share this information widely by facebook, twitter, email and other social networks.
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5. Report Back. Tell us how your actions went. Click the button below.
