Pinal County News

The Pinal County Sheriff's Office will put extra deputies on DUI patrol around Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and other holidays, using a $40,000 state grant it announced Sept. 30. The money comes from the Oversight Council on Driving or Operating Under the Influence Abatement, working with the Arizona Governor's Office of Highway Safety. The s...

Pinal County's Planning and Zoning Commission voted 9-0 on Sept. 17 to recommend a Terrible's gas station, a car wash and an office building for the northwest corner of Schnepf Road and Ocotillo Road, in the unincorporated San Tan Valley area. The commission only recommends. The Pinal County Board of Supervisors makes the final decision, and that h...

Florence Copper has 13 jobs posted as of Sept. 23, and the company says entry level starts above $28 an hour with full health coverage from the first day. The operation is at 1575 W. Hunt Highway in Florence. The 13 jobs open now Drilling Service OperatorDrilling Shift SupervisorPump Rig HelperPump Rig OperatorElectricianEnvironmental EngineerEnvir...

Pinal County Sheriff Ross Teeple told a U.S. Senate subcommittee on Sept. 23 that the newest AI-powered camera networks can violate people's Fourth Amendment rights, and he asked Congress to write clear limits on automated surveillance into law. Teeple was one of five witnesses at the hearing, held by the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and ...

Pinal County Animal Care and Control is microchipping pets for free through Oct. 18. There is no fee. The shelter asks for one of two things instead: a donation of candy, which it will hand out at its Pup or Treat event in October, or come in costume with your dog. What a Microchip Does A microchip is a small implant placed under the skin between t...

Pinal County is mailing jury questionnaires, and anyone who receives one has 10 days to return it. It Is Not a Summons A questionnaire is not a jury summons. It does not mean you have been called to serve or that you need to appear anywhere. The court uses it to decide who qualifies for the jury pool. Names are drawn at random. If you are selected ...

Pinal County property tax notices are landing in mailboxes, and the first payment deadline is 5 p.m. on Oct. 1. Treasurer Mike McCord released a walkthrough of the bill this month answering the questions his office fields every fall. Property taxes are the oldest tax levy in the country and the only major tax common to all 50 states. They pay for l...

The Pinal County Board of Supervisors adopted the property tax rates and levies for every taxing entity in the county on Aug. 17, setting the county's own primary rate at $3.2607 per $100 of assessed valuation, down about 3% from last year. The vote was unanimous. Supervisors Rich Vitiello, Mike Goodman, Stephen Q. Miller, Vice Chairman Jeff Serdy ...

Pinal County planning commissioners told the Board of Supervisors on Aug. 12 that they cannot responsibly recommend approving data centers until the county knows whether it has the water and power to support them, and until rules governing the buildings are written. No vote was taken. The two-hour session was scheduled as education only, one instal...

The Pinal County Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 on Aug. 12 to issue a 180-day termination notice to Flock Group Inc., ending the company's permission to keep its license plate reader cameras on county roads. The decision reaches the San Tan Valley area, where the Pinal County Sheriff's Office provides law enforcement for both the Town of San Tan Va...

The governing board for Central Arizona College, which runs a campus in San Tan Valley, has named Lisa Rhine as the college's 10th president. The Pinal County Community College District Governing Board appointed Rhine after a national search. The board met in special session on Thursday, July 16, reviewed survey feedback the public submitted after ...

The Pinal County Sheriff's Office is ending its contract for Flock Safety cameras, the automated license plate readers posted throughout the San Tan Valley area, Sheriff Ross Teeple told the Pinal County Board of Supervisors on Aug. 5. Teeple said he instructed his staff last month to cancel the contract, and that he did so because of what he calle...

Grammy-winning percussionist Sheila E. will headline the Town of Florence's Freedom Fest 2026, a free Fourth of July celebration with live music, food, family activities and what the town calls its biggest fireworks show yet. The event runs Saturday, July 4, from 5 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Florence Multipurpose Field and Aquatic Center, 174 W. 1st ...

The American Legion Posts 9 and 97 are inviting the community to gather in remembrance this Memorial Day at a ceremony in Florence. The event will take place on Monday, May 25, 2026, at 7:30 a.m. at Florence Memorial Park Cemetery, located at 300 Salazar Street. The ceremony is intended to honor the men and women of the United States Armed Forces w...

A Pinal County judge has ruled in favor of the Board of Supervisors and against County Attorney Brad Miller, confirming that Arizona law gives the Board exclusive authority to approve county contracts and oversee spending. The ruling came after the Board challenged a 2025 immigration enforcement agreement Miller signed with the U.S. Department of H...