Arizona high court rejects legislature's attempt to block schools from requiring masks

PHOENIX (AP) — The Arizona Supreme Court on Tuesday unanimously upheld a lower court judgment that found the Republican-controlled Legislature violated the state constitution by including new laws banning school mask mandates and a series of other measures in unrelated budget bills. ...

The state constitution says each bill must cover but one subject with each item properly connected to others. Separately, the titles of each bill must reflect the contents and give lawmakers and the public adequate notice of what’s included....

The decision will have far-reaching ramifications for the Legislature. Republicans who control the Senate and House have worked around that requirement for years, slipping policy items into budget bills. This year, the Legislature was particularly aggressive and packed the 11 bills that make up the budget with a hodgepodge of conservative policy items, some of which had failed as standalone bills....