Steve Crane

The telescope that was used to discover Pluto in 1930 is one of the claims to fame for the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff. That Arizona tie is just one of the reasons state lawmakers are considering a bill to make Pluto the official state planet. (File photo by Hope O’Brien /Cronkite News)

The number of migrants crossing the southern U.S. border reached record highs in December, but a decades-long stalemate in Congress may scuttle the latest immigration reform bill. Here, a passenger arriving legally in the U.S. by bus from Mexico retrieves his luggage after Customs and Border Protection screening in Laredo, Texas, in July. ( Photo by Glenn Fawcett/ Customs and Border Protection )

Sen. Sine Kerr, R-Buckeye, said her “Arizona Women’s Bill of Rights” aims to protect women from “unwanted intrusion” by transgender people, by redefining sex in state law as male and female only. But critics say the bill would only harm transgender individuals. (Photo by Jonah Krell /Cronkite News)

From left, Republican Sens. Wendy Rogers of Flagstaff, Jake Hoffman of Queen Creek and Justine Wadsack of Tucson all supported Hoffman’s bill that would ban satanic displays on public grounds. Hoffman said it is needed to prevent “desecration” of public land, but critics called it a blatant violation of religious rights. (Photo by Martin Dreyfuss /Cronkite News)

State lawmakers pushed through a bipartisan, last-minute plan to give election officials more time to cope with expected mandatory recounts this year by pushing the primary up to July 30 - but it also gives voters and candidates less time in the process.

Abortion-rights activists rallied outside the Arizona Capitol in June 2022 to protest the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs, which overturned Roe v. Wade. Since then, abortion law in Arizona has been unsettled – a situation that will change with an expected Arizona Supreme Court ruling. (File photo by Troy Hill /Cronkite News)

Tribal nations are seeing themselves represented more than ever before in the government, but they still need to make their voices heard more loudly at the ballot box, the president of the National Congress of American Indians said Monday.

From left, Maricopa County Supervisors Bill Gates and Jack Sellers and Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes spoke this week in Washington, where they stressed the need for federal support for local and state-run elections. (Photo by Ian McKinney /Cronkite News)

A view overlooking the rim of Black Mesa in September, where developers have proposed a pumped hydropower project. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Thursday denied a permit for it and other similar projects on the Navajo Nation, saying developers failed to consult with tribes and local activists who had raised concerns about the projects. (File photo by Chris Clements/KSJD)

House Speaker Ben Toma, backed by fellow GOP lawmakers Monday, talks about his bill that would force local governments to check the citizenship status of anyone receiving welfare benefits or state licensing – a measure critics are calling “SB 1070 2.0.” (Photo by Reagan Priest /Cronkite News)