Cave Creek council adopts 2026 legislative policy agenda and directs staff to seek outside representation

The Cave Creek Town Council voted March 3 to adopt a 2026 legislative policy agenda and to direct staff to seek an outside firm to represent the town’s interests with the state legislature and county government.

Town Manager Grady Miller said the agenda is intended to give staff and any lobbyist a clear guide for which bills to support or oppose, citing risks to local control and shared revenue. “This provides direction…to staff to go either support or oppose bills that will be out there,” Miller said during the presentation.

Council discussion focused on whether the League of Cities’ advocacy capacity is sufficient and how an outside firm would add value. Council Member Tom said he supported the proposal: “I’m in support of this proposal of this concept,” and argued the firm could provide “real time intel” during fast-moving sessions. Several members asked that the agenda explicitly include water security and open-space protections; council directed staff to add those edits before finalization.

Council members also discussed budgeting for the service so the expense would be visible to future councils. Miller said the town has consulting funds that could be used and that he would explore cost-sharing with neighboring towns.

During the discussion members referenced recent legislation (including SB 1487) that they said has complicated municipalities’ ability to adopt local rules; staff agreed to broaden references to problematic legislative trends rather than rely solely on a single bill citation.

The council adopted the policy agenda as modified and voted to direct staff to seek proposals from outside firms to represent Cave Creek’s legislative interests. The action formalizes the town’s priorities for the 2026 session and authorizes staff to pursue representation; staff will return with contract recommendations and cost estimates.