The Constitution of the State of Arizona is the governing document and framework for the State of

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

. The current constitution is the first and only adopted by the state of Arizona.

History

The

Arizona Territory The Territory of Arizona, commonly known as the Arizona Territory, was a territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863, until February 14, 1912, when the remaining extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the ...

was authorized to hold a constitutional convention in 1910 at which the constitution was drafted and submitted to Congress. The original constitution was approved by Congress, but subsequently vetoed by President William H. Taft on his objections concerning the recalling of judges. The constitution was amended by the constitutional convention removing the recalling of judges and resubmitted, upon which President Taft approved Arizona's statehood as the 48th

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

on February 14, 1912.Arizona State Library, Archives, and Public Record – The Road to Statehood
Accessed November 6, 2006 Fairly quickly after Arizona became a state, the state legislature approved a

constitutional amendment A constitutional amendment (or constitutional alteration) is a modification of the constitution of a polity, organization or other type of entity. Amendments are often interwoven into the relevant sections of an existing constitution, directly alt ...

which restored the ability to recall judges, which was approved in the 1912 general election. The following individuals were the delegates to the convention:

Fred Colter Fred Tuttle Colter was an Arizona rancher and farmer, as well as being the state senator for Apache County, Arizona, Apache County beginning with Arizona's second state legislature in 1915. Colter spent six terms in the Arizona Senate. He also l ...

(D), representing Apache County; E. M. Doe (R) and C. C. Hutchinson (R), representing

Coconino County Coconino County is a County (United States), county in the North Central Arizona, North-Central part of the U.S. state of Arizona. Its population was 145,101 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The county seat is Flagstaff, Arizon ...

; E.E. Ellinhwood (D), John Bolan (D), H. B. Sims (D), C. M. Roberts (D), F. R. Bradner (D), Thomas Fenney (D), A. F. Parsons (D), E. A. Tovreau (D), D. L. Cunningham (D), C. F. Connelly (D), representing Cochise County; George W. P. Hunt (D), J. J. Keegan (D), Alfred Kinney (D), John H. McCormick (D), Jacob Weinberger (D), representing

Gila County Gila County ( ) is a county in the central part of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2020 census, the population was 53,272. The county seat is Globe. Gila County comprises the Payson, Arizona micropolitan statistical area which is incl ...

; Lamar Cobb (D), A. R. Lynch (D), Mit Simms (D), A. M. Tuthill (D), William T. Webb (D), representing Graham County; A. C. Baker (D), Lysander Cassidy (D), John Orme (D), Orrin Standage (D), J. E. Crutchfield (D), F. A. Jones (D),

Benjamin Baker Moeur Benjamin Baker Moeur (December 22, 1869 – March 16, 1937) was an American physician who served as the fourth governor of Arizona. Biography Born in Decherd, Tennessee, Moeur attended medical school in Little Rock, Arkansas. After graduating ...

(D), Alfred Franklin (D), Sidney Osborn (D), representing

Maricopa County Maricopa County () is a county in the south-central part of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2020 census the population was 4,420,568, or about 62% of the state's total, making it the fourth-most populous county in the United States and ...

; Henry Lovin (D) representing Mohave County; James Scott (R), and William Morgan (D), representing Navajo County; Thomas N. Wills (D) and Elmer Coker (D), representing Pinal County; S. L. Kingman (R), W. F. Cooper (R), George Pusch (R), Carl Jacome (R), and J. C. White (R), representing

Pima County Pima County ( ) is a County (United States), county in the south central region of the U.S. state of Arizona, one of 15 List of counties in Arizona, counties in the state. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 1 ...

; Bracey Curtis (R) representing Santa Cruz; Mulford Winsor (D), F. L. Ingram (D), and C. E. Short (D), representing Yuma County; and E. M. Wells (R), M. G. Cunniff (D), A. A. Moore (D), Homer R. Wood (D), Morris Goldwater (D), and Albert Jones (D), representing Yavapai County.

Preamble

Summary

The Arizona Constitution is divided into a preamble and 30 articles, numbered 1–6, 6.1, 7–22, and 25–30, with articles 23 and 24 having been repealed. Article 30 is no longer in force due to being ruled illegal. * Preamble * Article 1 declares the boundaries of the state in great detail. * Article 2 titled the Declaration of Rights and is the state's equivalent of the

Bill of Rights A bill of rights, sometimes called a declaration of rights or a charter of rights, is a list of the most important rights to the citizens of a country. The purpose is to protect those rights against infringement from public officials and pri ...

. At the time the Arizona Constitution was adopted, the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...

had not yet ruled that the

in the

United States Constitution The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, on March 4, 1789. Originally includi ...

was applicable to or binding upon the states. In 2024, Article 2 was amended to contain an explicit right to abortion. * Article 3 declares the state government shall be divided into three distinct divisions, the

legislative A legislature (, ) is a deliberative assembly with the legal authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country, nation or city on behalf of the people therein. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers ...

, executive and

judicial The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

. * Article 4 establishes the legislature and the people through initiative as legislative authority for the state and outlines the qualifications for state

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

and

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

and the division of districts (30 districts to elect 1 senator and 2 representatives). * Article 5 outlines the qualifications for

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

and other

Executive branch The executive branch is the part of government which executes or enforces the law. Function The scope of executive power varies greatly depending on the political context in which it emerges, and it can change over time in a given country. In ...

officials and to their duties. * Article 6 frames the court system including the

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

and

superior court In common law systems, a superior court is a court of general jurisdiction over civil and criminal legal cases. A superior court is "superior" in relation to a court with limited jurisdiction (see small claims court), which is restricted to civil ...

and qualifications for judges. * Article 6.1 creates a Commission on Judicial Conduct to oversee the judicial system. * Article 7 deals with suffrage and elections. * Article 8 provides the method of removal from office for all elected officials including judges, legislators, and executive officials either through

impeachment Impeachment is a process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In Eur ...

or recall. * Article 9 provides taxation powers to the legislature and limits the amount of debt for the state's political divisions. * Article 10 concerns the usage of state and school lands. * Article 11 concerns education in the state and that all public schools be free. Establishes

Board of Education A board of education, school committee or school board is the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or an equivalent institution. The elected council determines the educational policy in a small regional area, ...

and Superintendent of Public Instruction. * Article 12 deals with the

counties A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

of the state. * Article 13 deals with cities, towns and other municipal corporations. * Article 14 deals with general corporations. * Article 15 establishes the Corporation Commission to regulate corporations as well as the rates of public utilities. * Article 16 concerns the

militia A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or se ...

and national guard. * Article 17 declares the

common law Common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law primarily developed through judicial decisions rather than statutes. Although common law may incorporate certain statutes, it is largely based on prece ...

riparian A riparian zone or riparian area is the interface between land and a river or stream. In some regions, the terms riparian woodland, riparian forest, riparian buffer zone, riparian corridor, and riparian strip are used to characterize a ripar ...

system of water rights void and reconfirms preexisting appropriated water rights. * Article 18, as well as Article 25, concerns labor, regulating

child labor Child labour is the exploitation of children through any form of work that interferes with their ability to attend regular school, or is mentally, physically, socially and morally harmful. Such exploitation is prohibited by legislation w ...

, defining a work day to be 8 hours, and declaring Arizona a

right to work The right to work is the concept that people have a human right to work, or to engage in productive employment, and should not be prevented from doing so. The right to work, enshrined in the United Nations 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Ri ...

state. * Article 19 creates the office of State Mine Inspector and the inspection of mines operating in the state. * Article 20 concern specific topics that while normally outside of Congress's subject jurisdiction, are controlled by Congress. This includes the right to

religious freedom Freedom of religion or religious liberty, also known as freedom of religion or belief (FoRB), is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice ...

, banning of

polygamy Polygamy (from Late Greek , "state of marriage to many spouses") is the practice of marriage, marrying multiple spouses. When a man is married to more than one wife at the same time, it is called polygyny. When a woman is married to more tha ...

, public and Indian lands, banning importation of intoxicating liquors onto Indian reserves until 1957, and state officials required to speak, read, and write English, among other things. These sections can only be repealed with the approval of Congress; however, since the U.S. Supreme Court invalidated a similar restriction in '' Coyle v. Smith'', the validity of that rule is unclear. * Article 21 outlines the mode of amending the Constitution. * Article 22 deals with scheduling and miscellaneous topics. * Articles 23 and 24 both concerned

prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic b ...

and were repealed in 1932. * Articles 26, 27, and 29 are short articles dealing with real estate agents, the regulation of ambulances, and public retirement systems. Article 27 specifies that Arizona citizens may not be forced to purchase healthcare or fined for not purchasing such care. * Article 28 concerns English as the official language. * Article 29 deals with public retirement systems. * Article 30 restricts marriage to a man and a woman.

Oddities

Two sections in the Constitutions are duplicated, having resulted from three constitutional amendments being approved in 1992 (Propositions 100, 101, and 107 all amending term limits with Proposition 107 creating a second version in both sections). * Article 5, Section 1. * Article 19, Section 1. * Article 6, Section 2, provides in part, "The upremecourt shall be open at all times, except on nonjudicial days, for the transaction of business," thus stating that the court is open, except when it is closed.

References

External links

Arizona State Legislature – Arizona Constitution

Full Transcript

LAPR – Documents Leading To Statehood
{{Constitutions of the United States 1912 establishments in Arizona 1912 in Arizona 1912 in American law

Arizona law 1912 documents