The Arizona State Senate Committee on Director Nominations (DINO) met again on Wednesday to vet Governor Katie Hobbs’s (D) choice to be the director of Arizona Registrar of Contractors (ROC), Martín Quezada.
According to his testimony before the committee, Quezada graduated from law school, served under the Arizona Court of Appeals, started a solo law practice, and then served as a Democrat legislator in both the house and the senate until the previous session. After leaving the legislature, he applied for the director position, and Hobbs offered him the job, which he said has thus far been an enjoyable experience.
The ROC is responsible for licensing and regulating residential and commercial contractors while also investigating complaints made against these contractors.
During the two-and-a-half-hour meeting, committee members asked questions and heard testimony about Quezada’s qualifications. Quezada emphasized that he opposes any form of discrimination and would not allow his political beliefs to impact his agency leadership.
However, as the meeting continued, committee member State Senator T.J. Shope (R-Coolidge) brought up Quezada’s previous voting record and said he tended to vote against small businesses. The National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB) keeps a track record of state bills it deems essential for the thriving of small businesses. During the 2020 legislative session, Quezada voted for 33 percent of these small business-oriented bills; however, that number lowered to zero percent in the following session.
In his defense, Quezada said he would often vote against a bill based on small sections he disagreed with, even if he thought the bill had a noble cause. However, Shope said this agency needs to have a pro-small business leader.
“The ROC can ultimately make or break the livelihoods of contractors within our state, so it’s important to choose a leader who supports entrepreneurs in their quest to serve our citizens responsibly and honorably,” said Shope.
Up next came allegations of racial or religious bias. When Quezada served in the legislature, he voted to approve people for state commissions. Shope shared that Quezada voted against a Jewish nominee, Danny Sitan, despite acknowledging that he was qualified and was quoted saying, “We should look at race or gender of the applicant.”
Also, the Israel Heritage Foundation called on Hobbs in April to fire Quezada. The foundation stated that his voting record shows a pattern of antisemitism, and previous social media posts show him speaking against Israel in conflicts involving Palestine and aligning with anti-Israel movements.
Quezada first responded that the Arizona Constitution requires the senate to consider demographics like sex and race. Secondly, he claimed that calls of antisemitism were likely made to attack him when he ran for State Treasurer in 2022.
Committee member State Senator Sine Kerr (R-Buckeye) accused Quezada of being biased against Republicans based on social media posts. He defended himself by saying any tweets relating to politics, struggles in the middle east, or race relations in America were meant to show he is willing to have “tough conversations” on these issues but that the views he expressed would ultimately not make a difference in his role in the ROC.
The committee then moved into a time of testimony, where several speakers from contractor organizations spoke in favor of Quezada keeping the position, except for Adam Kwasman, a former state legislator and Jew, who also accused Quezada of being antisemitic.
When it came time to vote on whether to recommend Quezada or not, the Republican members of the committee said they were not on board with him taking this position based on his views. This sentiment was also echoed in a statement released by the lawmakers following the meeting.
“We take this responsibility very seriously. We committed to the people of this state that we would do an honest, accurate, and thorough vetting of nominees, and unfortunately, as we’ve seen too often in this room, Katie Hobbs did not prioritize the best interest of the people of Arizona,” said DINO Chairman Jake Hoffman (R-Queen Creek) in his concluding remakers.
The two Democrat members of the committee voted in Quezada’s favor, and State Senator Lea Alston (D-Phoenix) accused the Republicans of partisan voting. However, the committee’s recommendation does not immediately affect Quezada’s position. The entire senate floor will vote regarding his approval at a later date.
Watch the entire meeting here.
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Neil Jones is a reporter for The Arizona Sun Times and The Star News Network. Follow Neil on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Background Photo “Arizona Capitol” by Gage Skidmore. CC BY-SA 2.0.
