KJZZ's Stories You Don't Want to Miss

As Democrats across the country formulate plans to oppose the incoming Trump administration, Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs is taking a different approach. One of the oldest observatories in the country now boasts one of the newest ways to explore the universe. Native candidates up and down the ballot made historic gains across the country. Plus the latest in Fronteras Desk, business and metro Phoenix news.

Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs has signaled her strategy to navigate a split government hasn’t changed. The Arizona Department of Education has begun distributing what will be more than 16,000 Narcan anti-overdose kits to schools throughout the state. Phoenix is facing significant budget shortfalls — about $200 million over the next two years. Plus the latest health, tribal natural resources, metro Phoenix and Fronteras Desk new.

Earlier this week, the Yavapai-Apache Nation and U.S. Forest Service inked a rare land exchange in the Verde Valley to expand one of the smallest reservations in Arizona. By approving Proposition 314, voters have effectively increased Phoenix police officer workload by making them immigration agents, too. The Phoenix Union High School District wants the state to investigate after two independent audits found issues with the district’s hiring practices. Plus the latest business, metro Phoenix, Fronteras Desk and health news.

Two competing measures on Arizona’s ballot will allow voters to pick how the state's primary elections will be run in the future. The state-regulated delivery of recreational marijuana to adults is scheduled to be available starting Friday. UA and ASU are working together with the Rob Dollar Foundation on a new device designed to help bicyclists stay safer on the roads. Plus the latest Fronteras Desk, tribal natural resources and metro Phoenix news.

Arizona will be one of ten states this election to vote on an abortion-related ballot measure. President Biden is planning to formally apologize for the nation’s 150-year campaign to assimilate Indigenous children while meeting with a Phoenix-area tribe. The president of the Arizona State Troopers Association says hundreds of positions remain vacant inside the Arizona Department of Public Safety. Plus the latest in Fronteras Desk, education, metro Phoenix and politics news.

A video of Phoenix police violently arresting a disabled Black man has sparked national outcry over the officers’ actions — and the fact that the man was charged with assault and resisting arrest. Volunteers from all five regions of the Navajo Nation are gathering signatures to trigger the recall of President Buu Nygren. A former state lawmaker is challenging a longtime incumbent congressman in Arizona’s 1st Congressional District. Plus the latest education, metro Phoenix, tribal natural resources and Fronteras Desk news.

At least one high-profile opponent of an abortion rights measure appearing on Arizona ballots has conceded it will likely pass. Phoenix leaders are frustrated over a new state law that expands what’s allowed for backyard guest houses, also called casitas. The city of Tempe will use nearly $2 million in federal funds to help build affordable housing in north Tempe. Plus the latest education, metro Phoenix and Fronteras Desk news.

State legislatures don’t get as much attention during elections as the races for president and Congress — but they might have more impact in your daily life. It’s not the first time a question about abortion laws has appeared on ballots in the state. The Arizona Department of Administration has approved a waiver request to allow $15 million in funding to be used for school safety personnel. Plus the latest metro Phoenix, business, aging and Fronteras Desk news.

After Phoenix’s hottest summer ever, fall is now off to a record-breaking start. ASU announced it will close its Lake Havasu campus and implement a tuition surcharge for on-campus students due to what the university said is $24 million of state cuts to higher education. And what is it like to be a border resident right now? Plus the latest metro Phoenix, tribal natural resources and business news.

The series "Policing the Police" that looks at the U.S. Department of Justice investigation of the Phoenix police department continued all this week. Chronic absenteeism has increased in schools in the years following the COVID-19 pandemic. Department of Labor Acting Secretary Julie Su was in Tucson this week, talking to local leaders and workers about the newly-proposed federal heat protections. Plus the latest tribal natural resources, business, health and metro Phoenix news.