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LEFT: Arizona Attorney General, Kris Mayes. RIGHT: Water from the Colorado River flows through an irrigation canal at an alfalfa farm near Eloy, Arizona.

The Buzz: Arizona's rural water fight continues

Sep 20, 2024 Debate over how to regulate groundwater pumping continue, with some officials calling for immediate action.
Newspaper classified listings.

Arizona unemployment remained historically low in August

Sep 19, 2024 The state's first-ever streak of sub-3.5% unemployment continued through the end of the summer.
Burners on a gas stove.

Southwest Gas bills should drop for customers in October

Sep 18, 2024 A Corporation Commission filing shows the company is zeroing out a fee on bills
A sign in front of Fondomonte's 10,000 acre farm in La Paz County shows that, as of July 2024, the company is hiring.

AG Mayes wants approval of new well for Saudi-backed alfalfa farm revoked

Sep 13, 2024 Mayes letter to state water department requests action within 10 business days.
The Securities and Exchange Commission has announced that they are charging Keurig Dr Pepper over inaccurate claims made by the company about the recyclability of its disposable K-Cup pods.

Keurig misled the public over claims its K-Cup pods are 100% recyclable, the SEC says

Sep 12, 2024 Questions over whether the single-use, hard-to-recycle plastic Keurig K-Cups are environmentally friendly have hovered over the company for years.
The downtown Tucson skyline as seen from the base of Sentinel Peak. August 2024.

Tucson's 'Somos Uno' initiative unveils first State of Culture report

Sep 9, 2024 The 'Somos Uno' initiative aims to preserve and grow the city’s cultural heritage through arts, history, and community engagement.
A sign in front of Fondomonte's 10,000 acre farm in La Paz County shows that, as of July 2024, the company is hiring.

Saudi-backed farm Fondomonte receives approval for new well on its property

Sep 6, 2024 The new well is a sign that the company is growing its Arizona operations despite the loss of state land leases.
Kroger CEO William Rodney McMullen speaks during a Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Competition Policy, Antitrust, and Consumer Rights hearing on the proposed Kroger-Albertsons grocery store merger on Nov. 29, 2022, in Washington.

CEOs of Albertsons and Kroger says shoppers would see lower prices after merger

Sep 4, 2024 The executives argued for what would be the largest grocery chain merger in U.S. history while testifying on Wednesday during a federal court hearing in Oregon.
This map shows an area of land identified by locals as the 15 Circles. State data still shows this land as being leased by Fondomonte, the Saudi-backed alfalfa farmers.

Hedge funds and foreign farms get water, rural Arizonans get empty wells

Sep 4, 2024 A Saudi presence in La Paz County is already well known. So who else is using the area's water?
A home for sale in the Sam Hughes neighborhood in Tucson, Arizona.

Southern Arizona's mortgage market rebounding

Sep 3, 2024 The number of loans for homes is among the fastest growth rates in the nation.
Stacks of hay bales sit beside an irrigation canal in Imperial Valley on June 20, 2023. Critics have called for reductions to the amount of alfalfa grown with Colorado River water. The particularly thirsty crop is mostly used for cattle feed.

The Buzz: Arizona/Saudi relations go back long before Fondomonte

Aug 30, 2024 We listen to an episode of AZPM's podcast Tapped that traces the link between the two deserts
Experts say signs like this one could become more common this fall, as state and national moratoriums on evictions in the face of COVID-19 are lifted. Arizona already has one of the highest rates of housing losses in the nation, a new report says.

Court ruling contributes to July evictions jump

Aug 28, 2024 Evictions jumped 88% from June to July in Pima County.
LEFT: Date Palms on the campus on the University of Arizona. July 2024. RIGHT: Arizona alfalfa field with flood irrigation on a sunny day.

From date palms to alfalfa: How Arizona became fertile ground for Saudi farms

Aug 28, 2024 What started with a camel handler would grow into a lucrative trade, but eventually ended in exploitation of lax water laws.
FILE - Mitch Maddox, a bread route salesman, loads bread outside the Eagle Rock Albertsons store in Los Angeles, May 30, 2006. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)

Kroger and Albertsons head to court to defend merger plan against US regulators' objections

Aug 26, 2024 The two companies proposed what would be the largest supermarket merger in U.S. history in October 2022.
Help Wanted A now-hiring sign is posted at Chase Bank in downtown Phoenix. February 2023

The Buzz: What does record-low unemployment mean for Arizona?

Aug 23, 2024 There are positives and negatives for the state when there are so few people in need of work.
A dormitory on the campus of the University of Arizona.

UA move-in week expected to boost Tucson economy by nearly $10 million

Aug 22, 2024 This year all dorms are at capacity as more than 7,500 students move in.

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