The ‘tamale bill’ is back for a redo after last year’s surprise veto

Arizona’s infamous tamale bill is back on the table. 

The bill, first introduced to the state legislature last year, would allow home cooks who sell food to the public to expand their offerings to include items that require refrigeration, like tamales and cheesecakes. 

That bill received wide bipartisan support, but Gov. Katie Hobbs surprised lawmakers by vetoing it after the Arizona Department of Health Services opposed the bill, citing safety concerns. 

“This bill would significantly increase the risk of food-borne illness by expanding the ability of cottage food vendors to sell high-risk foods,” she wrote in her veto letter. 

Char Ugol told the House Regulatory Affairs Committee on Wednesday that Hobbs’ veto shut down the home bakery business that she runs with her autistic son, Steven. 

“If this bill were passed into law, he would be empowered, employed and serving his community, which would make me very proud,” Ugol said, as she choked back tears. 

If this year’s bill becomes law, she said she plans to reopen the home-based business as a snack and meal prep service, partnering with local farmers to use fresh ingredients and provide healthy options to customers. 

Ugol emphasized the importance of allowing for more employment options for autistic people who require a quiet work environment to remain productive. 

Last year, Republicans attempted to overturn Hobbs’ veto with a two-third majority vote in the House, but several Democrats who initially favored the bill voted against overturning the veto. 

Hobbs’ veto caused an uproar on social media and landed her at the center of claims that she was hurting Arizona’s Latino community, including grandmothers who currently sell their homemade tamales at risk of a $500 fine and up to six months in jail. 

But the sponsor of last year’s bill, Rep. Travis Grantham, R-Gilbert, reintroduced the same legislation this year as House Bill 2042, with several edits that he said were partially inspired by issues that Hobbs brought up in her veto letter. 

Rep. Alma Hernandez, D-Tucson, who advocated for the bill last year, citing her personal ties to the issue because her mother sold cakes out of her home to make ends meet, worked with Grantham on amendments to the bill. 

The changes include the definition of a “home kitchen” as one inside a residential home that is not larger than 1,000 square feet, to address concerns that some might use the law to get around restrictions placed on other food preparation businesses, Grantham said. 

The amended version of the bill also includes a requirement to disclose pet allergens present in a home where the food was prepared and stipulates that the food labels must include a web address where consumers can report foodborne illness, find out how to verify that a home cook is registered with the state and contact information for reporting issues with a home cook’s registration status. 

“I’m here to try to make it easier for people who make home baked goods to sell them,” Grantham told the committee on Wednesday. 

Ken Holgate, owner of Simple Homemade Harvest, a homemade salsa business, also spoke in favor of the bill. Holgate, 61, who has eight children and lives on a limited income, said that his salsa business is how he plans to use his love for gardening and cooking to support his family after he retires. 

Holgate explained that he lives in a rural area north of Prescott Valley where there aren’t any commercial kitchens nearby that he can rent out to make his salsas under existing regulations. He added that, in his home kitchen, he can control everything and ensure the safety of his products. 

“I can make sure my products are kept well and I’m the only one that has access to them,” Holgate said. 

The members of the committee voted 6-0 on Wednesday to move the amended bill on to the full House of Representatives. 

More than 180 people so far registered in favor of the bill, with only two people registered opposed.