Arizona State Consultant Alex Kolodin referred to as Arizona’s illegitimate Democrat governor out in a letter to her workplace Thursday after $339 million “disappeared” from the state finances.
Kolodin instructed The Gateway Pundit, “Possibly someone’s siphoning off some funds.” He clarified, “Possibly some are errors. Who is aware of? However they don’t match up.”
This isn’t the primary, nor the second, time Hobbs has come underneath scrutiny for mismanagement or corruption involving massive sums of cash.
As The Gateway Pundit reported, in November, Hobbs was within the highlight after her Workplace of Tourism awarded a $700,000 contract to create a hideous new state brand to an organization with shut ties to the company’s director.
“Hobbs’ faux director of tourism has been caught funneling MASSIVE contracts to her personal brother,” State Senator Jake Hoffman mentioned. “Katie Hobbs continues to exploit her workplace, break the legislation, and make the most of the folks of Arizona.”
Beforehand, Hobbs got here underneath fireplace for different questionable contract selections after accepting important donations made to a darkish cash group that was used for Hobbs’ inaugural occasions in 2023 and appeared to affect state contract selections. Hobbs reportedly obtained $400,000 from a company that later made millions in return.
Former Arizona Lawyer Normal Democrat Terry Goddard even agreed that an investigation by legislation enforcement is warranted, and the Democrat Lawyer Normal and Republican Maricopa County Lawyer launched probes into the obvious quid professional quo.
Kolodin notes in his letter to Hobbs that the obvious pay-for-play scheme involving her inaugural fund “stays underneath investigation by the Lawyer Normal’s and Maricopa County Lawyer’s workplace.”
“This lacking cash was, looks as if it might be related to the inaugural fund, which has already been a topic of legislative investigation,” Kolodin instructed us. “It at the very least raises the looks of a quid professional quo. The legislature goes to should dig into this extra to determine whether or not it’s, and in that case, what adjustments we have to make to our finances course of to account with the truth that we’re coping with this administration.”
Arizona State Consultant Alex Kolodin fired off a letter “Re: Mismanagement of State Funds and Businesses; Urgent Finances Questions” to Hobbs on Thursday.
“$339m disappeared from Arizona’s finances, and I’ve questions for Katie Hobbs!” Kolodin mentioned on X:
$339m disappeared from Arizona’s finances and I’ve questions for Katie Hobbs! pic.twitter.com/1xTJHUrwcA
— Rep. Alexander Kolodin (@realAlexKolodin) January 30, 2025
In his letter, Kolodin outlines his shock that “the Legislature was knowledgeable the State has a number of bancrupt companies and requires a $339 million bailout to shut out the present Fiscal 12 months.” He continues, “Since your liaisons devoted to briefing members of the Legislature failed to supply element on how we obtained right here, I’m placing my request in writing: Arizonans should know the main points.”
A lot of the controversy surrounds an enlargement to the state’s Medicaid company, Arizona Well being Care Value Containment System (AHCCS), which Kolodin says Hobbs did “unilaterally” with out informing the legislature throughout finances negotiations.
“Within the final finances cycle, when she submitted her draft finances when the legislature was negotiating her finances along with her, she by no means instructed us that she was aspiring to approve a significant enlargement of ACCHS, which someway she will be able to do unilaterally, at the very least, to approve the enlargement,” Kolodin instructed The Gateway Pundit. “As a consequence, that enlargement was by no means budgeted for. However as soon as the finances obtained handed, she did it and began sucking that cash out of the state treasury for that enlargement. So, it siphoned off a complete bunch of cash that was imagined to go to different issues.”
He added, “She did not inform us once we have been negotiating the finances as a result of she was attempting to be sneaky and go round us.”
Additionally regarding is the resignation of Hobbs’ finances director contemporaneous with the brand new discovery. “Any person needed to take the autumn,” mentioned Kolodin. He continued, “From speaking to colleagues and employees in regards to the finances course of and about this yr’s finances course of, it is change into very obvious to me that the road between malice and incompetence, with respect to the Hobbs administration’s capabilities to competently negotiate a finances with us, is a line that’s laborious to parse.”
“Her workplace, both they do not know what they’re doing, or they’re like extremely evil with a tinge of stupidity. And it is very laborious to inform the distinction, however primarily, they make fundamental accounting errors that result in completely large divergences between her finances and actuality.”
Hobbs once more “refused to account for” a further $60 million in state liabilities for Arizona colleges, which “everyone knew about,” together with Hobbs, mentioned Kolodin. Nonetheless, she did not account for this massive obligation in her finances negotiations and spending.
Kolodin asks the next inquiries to Hobbs:
Why did you mislead the legislature in regards to the spending you supposed to approve?
Why did your finances staff refuse to work with us to finances for a recognized price?
Who in your orbit is profiting off of Arizona’s youngsters?
Why has your finances director taken the autumn?
“I believe it is in all probability time for at the very least a a primary step in a extra formal investigation,” Kolodin instructed us, noting that he wants a legislative committee chair to again him up and launch a proper investigation.
It is a creating story.
