Does your state lean blue or lean red? Check out our new report, highlighting partisan control of state government from 1992-2013.
Attorney General of Arizona
| Arizona Attorney General | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Office Type: | Partisan |
| Term limits: | 2 consecutive terms |
| Structure | |
| Length of term: | 4 years |
| Authority: | Arizona Constitution, Article 5, Section 1 (Version 2) |
| Selection Method: | Elected |
| Current Officeholder | |
 | |
| Name: | Tom Horne |
| Officeholder Party: | Republican |
| Assumed office: | January 2011 |
| Compensation: | $90,000 |
| Elections | |
| Next election: | November 4, 2014 |
| Last election: | November 2, 2010 |
| Other Arizona Executive Offices | |
| Governor • Secretary of State • Attorney General • Treasurer • Superintendent of Public Instruction• Auditor• Agriculture Director • Insurance Director• Lands Commissioner• Labor Director• Corporation Commission• State Mine Inspector | |
Contents |
Current officeholder
The current attorney general is Tom Horne, a Republican, who assumed office in 2011 following his 2010 election. Horne's first term will end in 2015 and he will come up for re-election in November 2014.
Before becoming attorney general, Horne served as Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction from 2003 to 2011. He was a private attorney for more than 30 years, during which time he served as a Special Assistant Attorney General, Superior Court Judge Pro Tem and Court of Appeals Judge Pro Tem. He was also a state representative from 1996 to 2000.[3]
Authority
The office of attorney general is established by the Arizona Constitution as part of the state's executive department.
Arizona Constitution, Article 5, Section 1 (Version 2)
| The executive department shall consist of the governor, secretary of state, state treasurer, attorney general, and superintendent of public instruction... |
Qualifications
The Arizona Constitution requires all of the officers in the state's executive department, including the attorney general, to be at least 25 years old, a U.S. citizen for 10 years, and an Arizona resident for five years.
Arizona Constitution, Article 5, Section 2
| No person shall be eligible to any of the offices mentioned in section 1 of this article except a person of the age of not less than twenty-five years, who shall have been for ten years next preceding his election a citizen of the United States, and for five years next preceding his election a citizen of Arizona. |
Arizona law further requires the attorney general to have been a "practicing attorney before the supreme court of the state" for five years.[4]
Arizona Revised Statutes, Title 41, Chapter 1, Article 5, Section 41-191
| The attorney general shall have been for not less than five years immediately preceding the date of taking office a practicing attorney before the supreme court of the state. |
Elections
Arizonans elect their attorney general in midterm election years (2006, 2010, 2014, etc.) for a term of four years. The winner assumes office on the first Monday of January after his or her election. If no candidates receives a majority (over 50%) of the votes, a run-off election is held between the two candidates that received the largest amount. If the two candidates in the run-off receive an equal number of votes, the state legislature chooses a winner.
Arizona Constitution, Article 5, Section 1 (Version 2)
| A. The executive department shall consist of the governor, secretary of state, state treasurer, attorney general, and superintendent of public instruction, each of whom shall hold office for a term of four years beginning on the first Monday of January, 1971 next after the regular general election in 1970.
B. B. The person having a majority of the votes cast for the office voted for shall be elected. If no person receives a majority of the votes cast for the office, a second election shall be held as prescribed by law between the persons receiving the highest and second highest number of votes cast for the office. The person receiving the highest number of votes at the second election for the office is elected, but if the two persons have an equal number of votes for the office, the two houses of the legislature at its next regular session shall elect forthwith, by joint ballot, one of such persons for said office. |
Term limits
Per Article 5, Section 1 of the state constitution, attorneys general are limited to two consecutive terms. Former officeholders may run again after they have remained out of office for one full term.
Vacancies
Article 5, Section 8 of the state constitution allows governor to fill vacancies in the office of attorney general by appointment.
Duties
The attorney general is chief legal officer of the state. He or she "represents and provides legal advice to most State agencies; enforces consumer protection and civil rights laws; and prosecutes criminals charged with complex financial crimes and certain conspiracies involving illegal drugs."[5] The attorney general brings and defends lawsuits on behalf of the state and also handles all appeals from felony convictions in the state.
The attorney general also represents some local government agencies, such as school districts or municipalities, in disputes related to conflicts of interest and antitrust/price-fixing activities.
Divisions
The attorney general's office is the largest law office in Arizona, with approximately 400 attorneys and 1,000 employees. The Attorney General's Office is divided into the following departments:[5]
- Executive Office
- Solicitor General
- Administrative Operations
- Employee Services
- Policy and Program Development
- Child and Family Protection
- Civil
- Finance
- Civil Rights
- Criminal
- Public Advocacy
Compensation
- See also: Compensation of state executive officers
2012
In 2012, the attorney general was paid an estimated $90,000. This figure comes from the Council of State Governments.
2010
In 2010, the attorney general received compensation in the amount of $90,000.[6] The exact pay rate of the attorney general is determined by the Arizona Commission on Salaries for Elective State Officers, which submits recommendations for elective state officer salaries to the governor every even-numbered year. Unless those recommendations are changed or rejected by the governor, they became effective on the first Monday of January of the following calendar year. The attorney general's compensation will next be adjusted in January 2013.[7]
See also
Contact information
Capitol Address:
Attorney General Tom Horne
Office of the Attorney General
1275 West Washington Street
Phoenix, AZ 85007
Phone: (602) 542-5025
Toll Free Phone: (800) 352-8431 (toll free in State of Arizona, outside Maricopa and Pima Counties)
Fax: (602) 542-4085
E-mail: ag.inquiries@ag.state.az.us
External links
References
- ↑ Coleman for Arkansas, "Home," accessed April 8, 2013
- ↑ Office of the Arizona Attorney General, "About the Office," accessed June 6, 2011.
- ↑ Office of the Arizona Attorney General, "AG Horne's Biography," accessed June 6, 2011.
- ↑ Arizona Revised Statutes, "Title 41, Chapter 1, Article 5, Section 41-191," accessed June 6, 2011.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Arizona Attorney General's Office, "About the Office," accessed July 6, 2011.
- ↑ The Council of State Governments, "Book of the States 2010, Table 4.11," accessed May 20, 2011.
- ↑ Arizona Revised Statutes, "Title 41, Chapter 13, Article 1, Section 41-1904," accessed June 6, 2011.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
State of Arizona Phoenix (capital) |
|---|---|
| Ballot measures |
List of Arizona ballot measures | Local measures | School bond issues | Ballot measure laws | Initiative laws | History of I&R | Campaign Finance Requirements | |
| Government |
Arizona State Constitution | House of Representatives | Senate | Joint Legislative Budget Committee | Legislative Council | Auditor General | |
| State executive officers |
Governor | Attorney General | Secretary of State | Treasurer | Superintendent of Public Instruction | Director of Insurance | Director of Agriculture | Commissioner of Lands | Director of Labor | Chairman of Corporation Commission | State Mine Inspector | |
| Elections |
Recalls | Vote fraud | |
| Judiciary |
Arizona Supreme Court | Arizona Court of Appeals | Arizona General Jurisdiction Court | Arizona Limited Jurisdiction Courts | Judicial selection in Arizona | Judicial News | |
| Transparency topics |
Public Records Law | Transparency Checklist | Government corruption reports | Transparency Legislation | Open Records procedures | Transparency Advocates | State budget | Taxpayer-funded lobbying associations | |
| Divisions |
State |
List of counties |
List of Cities |
List of school districts | |
