HAPPY FATHERS DAY

IN THIS NEWSLETTER

1. Request to SEND Email to Governor Hobbs to Support our bill SB1257/HB2953
   
2. Open Letter to Mayor Romero and Tucson City Council:
   Environmental Health and Public Safety Crisis
3. City of Tucson KNOWINGLY Releasing Methane Gas In VIOLATION of EPA, may be fined by Pima County

KEEP SENDING EMAILS to GOVERNOR HOBBS to SIGN OUR BILL!

THANK YOU TO THOSE WHO HAVE ALREADY SENT!  

WE NEED 30 MORE MEMBERS TO SEND AN EMAIL!  PLEASE TAKE 1 MINUTE and 3 STEPS BELOW

Our bill, SB1257/HB2953 is ONE HUGE SOLUTION to the Crime and Suffering on our streets is in jeopardy of being VETOED by the Governor.  This bill was drafted by TCFC/Pima County Legal and Medical Doctors who work directly with the people you see in the streets.

Governor Hobbs has a chance to make a difference to take a first step, but is under pressure by lobbying groups to VETO the bill.

Please send an email to Governor Hobbs and ask her to "Let PIMA County Lead the way when others REFUSE!"

Here are talking points you can copy in an email.  Add your Name, Address and Contact Information if you want a response.

Below is a news story on KVOA Ch 4, from last night where TCFC and a Medical Doctor discusses the bill.

CLICK HERE watch Josh, Kevin and Dr. Rhodes - Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKBcEtw1fKY

Click Here: Here is a PDF summary of the Bill

PLEASE Take 1 minute. 3 steps, to SEND an EMAIL TO GOVERNOR Hobbs

Feel free to add your contact information at bottom if you choose.

engage@az.gov, help@tucsoncrimefree.com

STEP 2: Copy and paste this text into the subject line of your email:

Please Sign SB1257-HB2953 - health care; 2025-2026 - Petitions for Court-Ordered Stabilization

STEP 3: Copy, paste this text below in the email. Edit as you wish. SEND!

Dear Governor Hobbs:

Please sign this bill for all the following reasons:

1. Doing Nothing Leads to Preventable Suffering and Death

Why it's persuasive: When individuals in acute crisis are left on the street without stabilization, they are far more likely to continue deteriorating, suffer medical complications, or die—often alone, in pain, and without any chance at recovery. This bill enables a structured, short-term intervention to give people a chance at life and stability.

🡒 Addresses concern: “It’s better to leave them alone than risk infringing rights.”
🡒 Counterpoint: Doing nothing has a fatal track record. Intervention offers hope.

2. The 5-Day Stabilization Is a Medically Supervised Safety Net

Why it's persuasive: Some argue that taking people off drugs reduces their tolerance and increases overdose risk later. But the greater risk is letting people continue uncontrolled use. This pilot provides a medically supervised period where patients are monitored, stabilized, and connected with continuing care options to reduce relapse and fatal overdose.

🡒 Addresses concern: “Stabilization might make future use more dangerous.”
🡒 Counterpoint: Continued use now is even more dangerous—and often deadly.

3. Built-In Daily Assessments and Voluntary Options Empower the Patient

Why it's persuasive: Every person is assessed daily for continued impairment, and treatment must be offered with the option to consent at any time. If they stabilize sooner or want to stay voluntarily, the system supports that autonomy. The goal isn’t punishment—it’s a path toward healing.

🡒 Addresses concern: “This strips people of autonomy.”
🡒 Counterpoint: The bill actually creates more opportunities for consent-based care.

4. Legal Protections and Oversight Safeguard Rights

Why it's persuasive: Legal counsel is assigned, patients have the right to a hearing, and petitions must meet strict clinical criteria. The court is obligated to deny stabilization if evidence is lacking. These checks prevent misuse and ensure that only those truly at risk are temporarily detained.

🡒 Addresses concern: “This invites abuse or unjustified holds.”
🡒 Counterpoint: The bar for intervention is high—and tightly controlled.

5. It’s a Temporary, Transparent Pilot Program with Measurable Results

Why it's persuasive: The bill sunsets in 2027 and mandates full data reporting to evaluate effectiveness, impact, and cost. This approach isn’t permanent—it’s a cautious, evidence-driven attempt to see if we can prevent unnecessary deaths and build a better long-term model.

🡒 Addresses concern: “It’s costly or unproven.”
🡒 Counterpoint: That’s why it’s a pilot—with built-in transparency and accountability.

Thank you for your consideration.

Open Letter to Mayor Romero and Tucson City Council:
Environmental Health and Public Safety Crisis

One of our members recently reported a deeply troubling situation on Grant Road, near the bridge at Jackrabbit Road. While driving with the windows down, he was hit with an overwhelming stench—like open sewage and rotting garbage. This prompted him to turn around and investigate further. What he found was shocking: a scene of pollution and decay that we had previously reported to 311, with no sign of cleanup or mitigation. Upon visiting the area ourselves, we can confirm that the situation remains just as dire as when we first reported it. Since our initial complaint, rain has caused the garbage and sewage to spread further, pooling into puddles that are now contaminated with drug paraphernalia, trash, and raw sewage.

This is not just a public safety concern—it’s an environmental disaster in the making. If this waste is allowed to continue seeping into the ground, it will inevitably contaminate the aquifer that supplies Tucson’s drinking water. This could lead to increased costs for water purification and alternative water sourcing, costs that taxpayers will ultimately bear. We ask plainly: why is this being tolerated in our city? Why are residents being forced to live with this health hazard while our elected leaders remain silent?

Public Safety in Crisis

This location is just one of many across Tucson where encampments and open drug use are threatening public safety. Parks, washes, and even bus stops are now common sites for fentanyl use and other illicit activity. Families trying to use public spaces are being met with needles, foil, straws, and the very real danger of exposure to drugs and disease. The situation is deteriorating as we approach the peak of summer. Yet, we have seen little action from the Mayor or Council. In fact, after a City Council vote on March 18th regarding the continued allowance of encampments in parks and washes resulted in a tie, A follow-up vote was never held. This delay is unacceptable. Tucsonans deserve clarity: are our public parks going to be safe for children, families, and pets—or not? Councilmember Fimbres’ verbal vote was recorded but apparently not heard in time to affect the outcome. The Council promised to revisit the vote, yet nothing has happened. We demand that this issue be brought back immediately for a final vote.

Leadership and Responsibility

Mayor Romero has frequently spoken of her commitment to environmental issues. But what about the visible and urgent environmental crises playing out right now in our own city? Where is the accountability? The EPA and state health agencies would certainly take an interest in untreated sewage pooling in a city wash. This is not a partisan issue. It’s about public health, basic sanitation, and the safety of our families. It’s about whether Tucson is a city that respects its environment and its people.

We urge Mayor Romero and the City Council to:

1. Immediately address the environmental health hazard at Grant and Jackrabbit and all washes and parks across Tucson.
2. Hold the follow-up vote on encampments in city parks and washes.
3. Establish a clear, enforceable policy to protect Tucson's parks and public spaces.

Tucson deserves better. We deserve action on the growing encampments. People experiencing drug addiction and houselessness deserve better, and our children deserve safe parks and clean water.

CITY OF TUCSON: KNOWINGLY RELEASING METHANE GAS AT LOS REALES LANDFILL 

From the folks at the City of Tucson who brought you a plan to plant a million trees, hired a tree coordinator, and renamed the Los Reales landfill The Los Reales Sustainability Campus, comes the irony of all ironies. As reported in the Daily Star, The City of Tucson has allowed excess methane emissions, sometimes in the magnitude of twice the legal limit as set forth by the EPA and Pima County to spew from the landfill for over a year. 

Pima County has proposed fining the City of Tucson $300k to force it to comply with environmental regulation and protect its own community and the environment. 

Assistant City of Tucson Manager Kristin Swallow wrote in a memo that  “The city understands the importance of preventing landfill gas emissions above regulatory limits and the air quality degradation caused by the emissions discovered on April 10, 2024,”

Once again the City of Tucson promotes ideology and marketing over reality. We invited members to review data from Carbon Mapper, a non-profit group at: https://data.carbonmapper.org/#1.08/30.8/50.5

There is one large methane plume in all of southern Arizona and it’s literally owned, managed and caused by the City of Tucson. 

To the City of Tucson- congratulations on fulfilling the city’s longtime moniker of the "Dirty T". It’s the one promise you have disappointingly fulfilled. Please take immediate action to install systems to capture methane gas in your own landfill, stop with the marketing, and be real partners in sustainability, not partners in name only.