By Howard Fischer
Mail | Twitter: @azcapmedia

PHOENIX -The sale of tamales cooked in unregulated home kitchens will remain illegal in Arizona.

Ditto pupusas, hot dogs, hamburgers, ribs and other cooked foods.

A bid to override the veto by Gov. Katie Hobbs of deregulation of "cottage foods'' fell six votes short Tuesday as it gained the backing of only 35 lawmakers in the House. It needed 40 votes - two thirds of the 60-member House - to succeed.

That vote is a significant departure from the original 45-11 vote for the measure less than two weeks earlier. What changed is that 12 Democrats who supported the original measure refused to override the governor.

That failure prevented the Senate, which had approved the bill on a 26-4 margin, from considering the override.

What remains to be seen is whether some version of the measure can be resurrected.

In her veto message, the governor said she was open to some changes in law that would legalize the practice by many, particularly in the Hispanic community, of making foods at home and selling them in parking lots.

But Rep. Alma Hernandez, D-Tucson, who worked with Republicans on the unsuccessful override, said at a press conference prior to the vote that some of what she has heard from Hobbs is simply not acceptable.

"I will not put a cap on how much people can sell,'' she said. Hernandez also said she will not support allowing unscheduled inspections of homeowners' kitchens by state health officials.

Hobbs press aide Christian Slater said that was never part of what his boss wants. But he refused to provide a list of what needs to be in the bill to get her signature.

The complaints from those seeking an override went beyond the issues. Alma Hernandez called out the governor who, in her veto message, talked about the dangers of "rodent or insect infestation.''

"That is offensive,'' she said.

"I certainly do not accept or am OK with anyone saying or comparing my community of homes (as) rodent and insect infested,'' Alma Hernandez said. "And for those who are OK with that, that's on you.''

Sen. T.J. Shope, R-Coolidge, whose mother and grandmother are Mexican immigrants, took it a step farther.

"Not only was the veto outrageous, but to continue to push racist tropes of homes riddled with insect infestation or rodent infestation, it will just not be tolerated in the year 2023,'' he said.

Christian Slater would not comment on the verbiage in the veto.

One of the Democrats switching their votes to uphold the veto was Rep. Cesar Aguilar.

During Tuesday's vote, he said anyone driving through his district in west central Phoenix would see people selling tamales and burritos on the street.

"But this bill does not actually solve that problem,'' Aguilar said.

He said he supported the measure before he had conversations with not only constituents but also Salvador Reza who organizes Mexican food vendors and runs a cooperative.

But the real key, Aguilar said, is that this legislation was not introduced by Hispanic lawmakers but instead by Gilbert Republican Rep. Travis Grantham. More to the point, much of what was in HB 2509 is copied from model legislation crafted by the American Legislative Exchange Council.

That group, funded largely by corporate interests, serves as a clearinghouse of sorts for proposed changes in state laws across the nation -- changes usually sponsored by Republicans -- that can wind up being formally adopted by the Legislature here.

"Don't let this bill fool you,'' Aguilar said. "This is an ALEC bill that is being used to pander to the Latino community.''

The defeat in the House meant there was no opportunity for the Senate, which had approved HB 2509 by a 26-4 margin, to see if there were the necessary 20 votes there for an override. But there, too, some Democrats said they changed their minds after the governor's veto.

Sen. Anna Hernandez, D-Phoenix, said on taking a closer look she realized that the measure being pushed here was different -- and laxer -- than similar proposals adopted in other states. And she said it is wrong to just see the issue as simply a matter of some people being able to sell home-made tamales.

"This proposal applies to the sale of any foods that include meat and dairy, which would apply to far more situations with significantly higher health and safety concerns,'' Anna Hernandez said.

She also said this should not have become a "binary choice'' between either HB 2509 or the current unregulated and illegal sale. What is needed, Anna Hernandez said, is for everyone to be involved in negotiations -- including the state health department -- "so we can find a better solution that works for everyone.''

One of the things she wants is for those preparing foods at home to receive "basic food safety and handling instructions and requiring labels to include content information.''

But HB 2509 did, in fact, have some of that.

It would have required whoever was preparing the product of complete a food handler training course and register with the health department.

Foods would have to be packaged at home with the name and registration number of the preparer, there would be a list of ingredients and a statement that "this product was produced in a home kitchen that may process common food allergens and is not subject to public inspection.''

House Majority Leader Teresa Martinez of Casa Grande said she was willing to work with Hobbs governor to come up with something acceptable to the governor. But there are limits.

"We're not going to have people go into people's kitchens like the Gestapo at random times,'' she said.

"We do not think comparisons to Nazi Germany are appropriate here,'' Slater responded.

Tuesday's vote came amid angry comments from some Democratic lawmakers who felt they were being pressured to not allow Hobbs to be the first Arizona governor since 1981 to have a veto overridden.

"The people of District 21 elected me to be here, not the Ninth Floor,'' said Rep. Consuelo Hernandez of Tucson referring to the location of the governor's office. And she chided Democratic colleagues, particularly Hispanics, for choosing to back the governor over what she said were the interests of their constituents.

"I want you to sit or stand in front of the people that are selling in the parking lots, in the restaurants, and you to tell them to their face that that is not an important issue in Arizona,'' Consuelo Hernandez said.

"I don't know where a lot of you are hanging out or living,'' she continued. "But a lot of the people that are living in the shadows are the ones counting on us today.''

Rep. Melody Hernandez, D-Tempe, who voted for the original bill, told colleagues she came to the Capitol prepared to support the governor and oppose the override, particularly being the House minority whip and expected to support party positions. And that also was true, she said, even after she spent hours on the phone with constituents, explaining the issue and finding that every one of them supported it.

"But I just underwent a ridiculous amount of bullying,'' Melody Hernandez said, announcing she was voting for the override even if they vote her out of leadership.