Over the past 15 years, even with groundwater restrictions in effect that limit new irrigated land, at least several thousand acres of dormant farmland have again started siphoning groundwater to sustain new crops in Arizona’s Douglas basin, often under industrial-scale owners that consolidated the land—and the grandfathered water rights tied to it—into massive operations.
Posted inMethodology
Our methods: Groundwater regulation weakness exploited by large farms
To understand the growth of active farmland and groundwater declines in the Douglas basin, AZCIR analyzed data from local and state agencies, including the Arizona Department of Water Resources, as well as satellite data compiled by federal agencies such as the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Posted inHealth
State leaders misled public about scope of Medicaid fraud crisis
State leaders have admitted that fraudulent billing extended beyond a small portion of the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System, contradicting previous assertions that fraud only impacted a small share of the agency. The revelations came to light after AZCIR pressed AHCCCS about its waiver of key provider screenings during the pandemic, ultimately affecting the agency’s entire provider ecosystem, not just those highlighted as the epicenter of the scandal.
Posted inGovernment
Arizona bill aims to reclaim social equity licenses from investors, corporate marijuana dispensaries
Arizona lawmakers have proposed a bill to return social equity licenses to their original owners, alleging private investors and cannabis corporations used predatory tactics to seize control of nearly all the lucrative marijuana dispensary licenses.
Posted inEvents
(Dis)Information and Democracy
presented by (Dis)Information and Democracy by special invitation Join AZCIR for a discussion about the vital role independent journalism plays in reclaiming community narratives in an age of mis- and disinformation. You’ll hear from featured guest speaker Richard Stengel, former managing editor of TIME Magazine and Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public […]