The RTA Next election next month won’t raise your taxes, but it will decide what roads will (or won’t) get fixed in the next few years. And if you ride the bus, this election could play a big role in how you get around town. www.tucsonagenda.com/p/the-rta-ne...

#PimaSupes took a first step toward restricting ICE activity in Pima County, passing a resolution yesterday that put limits on raids on county property and a mask ban for law enforcement. Supporters call it a message to federal agents; GOP Supervisor Christy calls it “toothless.”

Being Tucson’s top cop doesn’t mean running the whole show. Monica Prieto inherits a department shaped by City Hall budgets, union deals and a Safe City agenda — and a system that doesn’t change overnight.

Silverbell Road is still cracked and crumbling. Tangerine Road improvements are still delayed. Now Marana voters are being asked to trust RTA Next will finally deliver — here’s what’s actually in the $2.67B plan for the fast-growing town. www.tucsonagenda.com/p/from-farml...

Arizona AG Kris Mayes wants regulators to slash Tucson Electric Power’s proposed 14% rate hike to 4%, setting up a high-stakes showdown at the Arizona Corporation Commission — and this one comes with real political baggage on both sides. www.tucsonagenda.com/p/mayes-vs-t...

Pima County is on track to finish the year in the black, but supervisors are already eyeing future revenue options — including a possible $100 million bond, a fall vote to raise the county’s spending cap, and a likely property-tax increase. www.tucsonagenda.com/p/the-roads-...

Pima County Administrator Jan Lesher — the most powerful person in county government you didn’t vote for — is retiring, kicking off a quiet but consequential search for her replacement. Read it here: www.tucsonagenda.com/p/a-change-a...

The Arizona Republican Party is now being led by a former Tucsonan. Will this be a boon for the Pima County Republican Party and its candidates in 2026? Maybe, if can unite a fractured state party. www.tucsonagenda.com/p/the-former...

Hundreds of federal agents, a freshly painted black border fence, and a whole lot of Trump praise: DHS Secretary Kristi Noem brought a carefully staged victory lap to Nogales — heavy on symbolism, light on substance.

Breaking: Tucson Police Chief Chad Kasmar is retiring and will take a position in the Pima County Administrator's Office.

Tucson’s budget math isn’t mathing: a $22M hole now, $40M next year, and council members are side-eyeing everything from free buses to state tax cuts — which means the “no sacred cows” phase of budgeting has officially begun.

Legal weed sales are cooling off, and the City of Tucson is now staring at a $22 million budget gap — with less marijuana sales tax cash flowing to police and fire department coffers than expected.

Nearly tied in fundraising. Millions in the bank. And #AZ06 is already rated a toss-up. The JoAnna Mendoza vs. Juan Ciscomani is shaping up to be one of the most competitive House races in the country — and the money is already flying.

Tuesday’s #PimaSupes meeting tees up masked law enforcement, ICE raids on county land, opposition to the Marana detention center — and what’s not being discussed (hello, #ProjectBlue money.)

Before dawn, volunteers combed Tucson’s washes and alleys for the annual Point-in-Time Count — a one-day snapshot of homelessness that may still miss how many people are living on the streets.

Tucson City Councilwoman Miranda Schubert just broke with RTA Next — calling the $2.7B regional plan incompatible with the city’s own transportation vision. Her alternative? A future where Tucson funds its own transit priorities, even if it means going it alone. www.tucsonagenda.com/p/what-s-the...

The modern streetcar is the RTA’s crown jewel. The rest of the story? Half-built roads, unfinished promises, and a March vote that decides what gets finished — and what stays stuck forever. Ballots for RTA Next (Props 418 & 419) hit mailboxes Feb. 11. tucsonagenda.beehiiv.com/p/tucson-s-s...

#PimaSupes sign off on a plan to lease county-owned land in downtown Tucson to developer, plans are to build a new multi-story hotel on empty lot.

The ICE raids haven’t hit #Tucson yet. But the arguments have. A public dust-up between County Attorney Laura Conover and columnist Tim Steller shows how thin the line is between legitimate enforcement and state-sanctioned intimidation — before the goons even arrive.

Phoenix is officially in silly season. Lawmakers are back, the rules are being written in real time, and more than 1,500 bills are about to clog the Capitol. If you’ve ever wondered who actually has power — and how anything gets done — we’ve got a cheat sheet for that.

If elections are a contact sport, 2026 is a full-contact year. Early voting starts in weeks. Primaries hit in August. The general election is November. We’re laying out what happens when — and why it matters. (Link below👇)

BREAKING: On a 4 to 1 vote, the Arizona Corporation Commission voted to approve an Energy Supply Agreement between the developers of Project Blue and Tucson Electric Power.

In today's Tucson Agenda, co-founder @curtprendergast.bsky.social offers a thank-you to everyone who took a moment to share their thoughts with us. Your responses shape what we'll do next year. (And it's not too late to weigh in on our survey.) www.tucsonagenda.com/p/thankful-f...

Today's Tucson Agenda is @joeferguson.bsky.social ’s love letter — not to journalism, but to the readers who helped him earn his seat again. Read why he’s deeply grateful for the grace and space you’ve given him. www.tucsonagenda.com/p/thankful-f...

ICYMI: On Friday, we dedicated the entire edition with a small quiz asking readers what they want to see in the Tucson Agenda in 2026. Take the quiz here: www.tucsonagenda.com/p/looking-ba...

ICYMI: After months of political sniping, the #TucsonCouncil and #PimaSupes sat down and declared “peace,” and got to work on fentanyl, homelessness and court reforms. The détente might be the real headline. www.tucsonagenda.com/p/its-not-a-...

ICYMI: Tucson is staring down a $40 million budget hole, but instead of dropping bad news from the dais, city officials are taking it straight to residents. Monday night’s Ward 2 forum showed just how much they want your feedback before the cuts come. www.tucsonagenda.com/p/how-to-fix...

Tucson + Pima County are finally sitting down to talk it out at their Big Beautiful Meeting — fentanyl crisis, homelessness, budgets, and jurisdictional turf wars on the table. Plus: Project Blue drama, and the latest plan to crack down on public fentanyl use. www.tucsonagenda.com/p/a-four-mee...

If you’re wondering whether Re. Juan Ciscomani showed up to a town hall in his own district… he didn’t. Tucson voters still turned out — and pressed Sen. Ruben Gallego on healthcare until the very last minute. www.tucsonagenda.com/p/going-wher...

Congressional District 7 finally has its seat back — and @adelitaforcongress.bsky.social wasted zero time showing what she’s going to do with it. #AZ07

The shutdown may be over, but the healthcare showdown is just beginning. And the dueling votes from Adelita Grijalva and Juan Ciscomani are a perfect snapshot of the political fault lines running through Southern Arizona. Link below 👇

This is because the bill that created the Turquoise Alert was neutered from its initial purpose resulting in the first alert that went out being a non-Indigenous person and many Indigenous children being ignored by this new statewide alert system.

Tucson stayed blue at the ballot box Tuesday, approving every Democrat for City Council and every school bond / override. Plan Tucson 2025 passed, buses may stay free, but the new Council will have to tackle a $70 million budget deficit isn’t going away. Link below. 👇

ICYMI: Kris Mayes sued Speaker Mike Johnson for refusing to swear in Adelita Grijalva — calling it the longest delay in modern history. But so far, she’s chosen not to request a fast-track hearing. Her office says they’re being strategic, but could file one “at any time.” Link below: 👇

#Tucson doesn’t just tell ghost stories — some of us work in the buildings that are haunted.. From where gallows at the old courthouse used to be to the haunted hotel rooms, here’s your guide to the spirits still hanging around. Link below. 👇

ICE wasn’t moving fast enough. So Trump is swapping them out for Border Patrol agents in Phoenix, Los Angeles, and beyond — the same crew that rappelled from Black Hawks and tear-gassed a kids’ parade in Chicago. Link to the story below.

Tucson’s future is on your ballot as Proposition 417. Affordable housing, climate resilience, public transit, poverty reduction—it’s all wrapped into Plan Tucson 2025. We made you a quiz and the answers are included. (You’re welcome.) Link below. 👇

Three districts, three ballot questions, and one big theme: the state isn’t keeping up, so schools are asking you to back them at the polls. Link below 👇

The right hand doesn’t know what the left is doing. Marana, Pima County, the state, and the feds are all out of sync over the fate of a shuttered prison. Link below 👇

Did you read our #ProjectBlue edition from Friday? Here is your second chance. A 417-page trove of emails and memos reveals how Project Blue was kept under wraps — and when local officials really knew. Link below. 👇

What looked like a routine summer slump has turned into a $24 million warning sign — and Tucson’s City Council is bracing for worse. Read the story here: www.tucsonagenda.com/p/welcome-to...

Tucson Agenda co-founder Curt Prendergast has even more #Tucson news in today's Education Agenda. azeducationagenda.substack.com/p/as-lukewar...

Project Blue wasn’t on Tuesday’s #PimaSupes agenda — but hundreds of protesters packed the boardroom anyway, demanding Supervisors Heinz and Scott kill the $20.9M land sale tied to #ProjectBlue. Link below 👇

Wonder Woman’s on her side. So is the Arizona Attorney General. But will a federal judge finally make Mike Johnson swear Adelita Grijalva in? Link below 👇

#Tucson showed up. From Presidio Plaza in downtown to a long stretch of Speedway Boulevard in midtown, more than five thousand rallied for democracy and justice in one of the largest protests since Trump took office. And yes — the frogs stole the show. More below. 👇

Former Marine JoAnna Mendoza is the clear Democratic frontrunner in CD6 and has nearly $1 million cash on hand. But Ciscomani didn’t amass a $2.4M campaign war chest by himself, national GOP groups are pouring cash into keeping CD6 red.

They can’t agree on water, fentanyl, or Project Blue — but the City and County will at least try talking it out. We will find out next month when they hold a joint meeting next month. Link below 👇

“Not worth $500 million”: UA student leaders are urging the UA President Suresh Garimella to reject White House compact. Students warn that trading federal dollars for political control undermines privacy protections and academic freedom. Link below 👇

Free bus fares have been one of Tucson’s most debated policies. Ward 6 candidate Miranda Schubert says charging fares won’t solve crime — and may make things worse. Click below for the link. 👇

From delivering pizzas to running Tucson’s Domino’s empire — and now running for City Council. Jay Tolkoff thinks City Hall has its priorities all wrong. Link below 👇