Democratic Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs renewed a push Thursday to regulate groundwater in rural parts of the drought-stricken state, and she’s more optimistic this time that her efforts will find support in the Republican-controlled Legislature. Hobbs stood alongside local officials, rural Republican leaders and Democratic lawmakers to unveil her proposal to create new management areas to regulate groundwater pumping — long used by farmers and rural residents without restriction. She urged legislators to take swift action to reach consensus. “We made more progress last year on negotiating rural groundwater reform than has been made ever,” Hobbs said. “We’re not starting at ground zero. We’re starting at a good place.”

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• Arizona Daily Star (Tucson): Lawmakers unveil proposal to protect rural AZ groundwater