Arizona State Consultant Alex Kolodin known 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, “Perhaps any person’s siphoning off some funds.” He clarified, “Perhaps 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 beneath 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 individuals of Arizona.”
Beforehand, Hobbs got here beneath 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 acquired $400,000 from a company that later made millions in return.
Former Arizona Legal professional Common Democrat Terry Goddard even agreed that an investigation by legislation enforcement is warranted, and the Democrat Legal professional Common and Republican Maricopa County Legal professional 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 beneath investigation by the Legal professional Common’s and Maricopa County Legal professional’s workplace.”
“This lacking cash was, looks as if it may very well be linked to the inaugural fund, which has already been a topic of legislative investigation,” Kolodin instructed us. “It not less than 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 modifications 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 Yr.” He continues, “Since your liaisons devoted to briefing members of the Legislature failed to supply element on how we bought right here, I’m placing my request in writing: Arizonans should know the small print.”
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 meaning to approve a significant enlargement of ACCHS, which one way or the other she will do unilaterally, not less than, 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 bought handed, she did it and began sucking that cash out of the state treasury for that enlargement. So, it siphoned off an entire 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 making an attempt 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 12 months’s finances course of, it is develop 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 exhausting to parse.”
“Her workplace, both they don’t know what they’re doing, or they’re like extremely evil with a tinge of stupidity. And it is very exhausting to inform the distinction, however basically, they make primary accounting errors that result in completely enormous divergences between her finances and actuality.”
Hobbs once more “refused to account for” a further $60 million in state liabilities for Arizona colleges, which “all people knew about,” together with Hobbs, mentioned Kolodin. Nonetheless, she didn’t 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 crew refuse to work with us to finances for a identified value?
Who in your orbit is profiting off of Arizona’s kids?
Why has your finances director taken the autumn?
“I believe it is most likely time for not less than 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.
This can be a growing story.
