Sine Kerr
Sine Kerr | |
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| Member of theArizona Senate from the25thdistrict | |
| Assumed office January 9, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Tyler Pace |
| Member of theArizona Senate from the13thdistrict | |
| In office January 21, 2018 – January 9, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Steve Montenegro |
| Succeeded by | J. D. Mesnard |
| Personal details | |
| Political party | Republican |
| Residence | Buckeye, Arizona |
Sine Kerris an American politician and aRepublicanmember of theArizona Senaterepresenting District 25 since January 2023. She was previously appointed to the District 13 seat in January 2018.
Background and business activities
[edit]Kerr grew up in ruralBuckeye, Arizona,[1]and graduated fromBuckeye Union High School.[2]She owns a large dairy farm.[3]
Political career
[edit]Appointment and elections
[edit]Kerr is the member for state Senate District 13, which covers theWest Valley.[2]In January 2018, she was appointed by theMaricopa County Board of Supervisorsfrom among a list of three candidates to fill the state Senate seat, which was vacated bySteve Montenegrowhoresigned to runfora special election for the seat in Congressvacated byTrent Franks.[2]
In August 2018, Kerr won the Republican nomination for a full term in office, defeating Brent Backus andDon Shooter.[4]
Tenure
[edit]In 2021, Kerr proposed legislation that would ban nearly allabortions in Arizona,even in cases of rape or incest.[5]The bill would subject physicians who perform abortions, and anyone assisting them, to prison terms of almost nine years.[5]Kerr proposed the measure as an amendment to an unrelated bill on license plate designs. Abortion-rights groups said that Kerr's proposal was flagrantly unconstitutional.[5]
In 2021, Kerr, along with other Republican state legislators and Republican GovernorDoug Ducey,supported legislation to strip theArizona Corporation Commission(the state utilities regulator) of its power to setrenewable energyportfolio standardsfor the state.[6]The legislation was opposed by Democrats, environmental groups, and some business groups.[6]
Kerr supported legislation to make it easier to blockstatewide voter ballot initiativesby requiring initiative proponents to gain a certain percentage of signatures in each of Arizona's 30 legislative districts to get on the ballot; the proposal would essentially allow a single district to block a ballot initiative proposal that was broadly supported elsewhere. The legislation was pushed by Republican state legislators and business interests in 2019 after Arizona voters approved a 2016 initiative to raise the state'sminimum wageand a 2006 initiative to ban the use ofgestation cratesin pigs and calves (a measure that angeredagribusiness). The legislation was opposed by theLeague of Women Voters.[7]
As chair of the state Senate's Natural Resources, Energy and Water Committee, Kerr blocked legislation to protect Arizona's watersheds from being added to the committee's hearing schedule.[8]
References
[edit]- ^Shayla Hyde,An Arizona dairy woman grows appreciation for female farmers,Cronkite News (Arizona PBS) (December 23, 2017).
- ^abcAllie Bice (January 4, 2018)."Dairy farmer Sine Kerr to represent West Valley in Arizona Senate".The Arizona Republic.
- ^Felicia Fonseca,Deadline Nears for Colorado River Drought Plan,Associated Press (January 28, 2019).
- ^Ben Giles,Shooter political comeback falls short,Arizona Capitol Times(August 28, 2018).
- ^abcBob Christie,Arizona Senate proposal would ban nearly all abortions,Associated Press (March 30, 2021).
- ^abBob Christie,GOP lawmakers fast-tracking bill blocking energy standards,Associated Press (January 28, 2021).
- ^Howard Fischer,Arizona measure could make it easier to block voter initiatives,Arizona Capitol Times(February 25, 2019).
- ^Ian James,Attempts to protect Arizona's groundwater and rivers meet legislative resistance,Arizona Republic(March 10, 2021).
56th Legislature(2023-present)
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