REFERENCE TITLE: Alfredo Gutierrez death resolution

State of Arizona

House of Representatives

Fifty-seventh Legislature

Second Regular Session

2026

HCR 2065

Introduced by

Representatives Sandoval: Abeytia, Aguilar, Austin, Biasiucci, Blackman, Bliss, Carter P, Cavero, Contreras L, Contreras P, Crews, De Los Santos, Garcia, Griffin, Gutierrez, Heap, Hendrix, Hernandez A, Hernandez C, Hernandez L, Keshel, Liguori, Livingston, Lopez, Luna-Nájera, Márquez, Mathis, Peña, Peshlakai, Powell, Rivero, Simacek, Stahl Hamilton, Taylor, Travers, Tsosie, Villegas, Volk, Weninger, Wilmeth;  Senators Alston, Angius, Bolick, Bravo, Diaz, Dunn, Epstein, Farnsworth, Fernandez, Gabaldón, Gonzales, Gowan, Hatathlie, Kavanagh, Kuby, Leach, Mesnard, Miranda, Ortiz, Payne, Rogers, Sears, Shope, Sundareshan, Werner

A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

on the death of the honorable alfredo gutierrez.

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

The Honorable Alfredo Gutierrez, former Senate Majority and Minority Leader, passed away on July 29, 2025, at the age of 79.

Alfredo Gutierrez was born on September 1, 1945, in the copper mining town of Miami, Arizona.  Alfredo's father was a United States citizen and miner but was deported to Mexico during the Great Depression. As a result, Alfredo's family lived in fear of deportation during Operation Wetback in the 1950s. These experiences, in addition to Alfredo's upbringing during a time colored by conflict and social change, led him to a life of advocacy and activism for social justice and underserved communities.

At the age of 17, Alfredo joined the Vietnam War.  He returned home at the age of 22 to work in the mines as his father had years before. Later, using the G.I. Bill, he enrolled at Arizona State University where he cofounded the Mexican American Student Organization, which later became the Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan (MECHA). Alfredo led a student protest against the university, demanding better wages and working conditions for the campus laundry workers. The protest led to the appointment of a commission to review the allegations but was also an impetus in him being expelled from the university.

After his forced departure from ASU, Alfredo was one of the first individuals to earn the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Fellowship, an 18-month training program for fellows to pursue a career in politics, public service and social justice.  Under the fellowship, Alfredo helped start Chicano Por La Causa, one of the largest Latino nonprofit groups in the United States, and Valle Del Sol, which provides comprehensive primary care, behavioral care and counseling for underserved communities.

In 1972, at the age of 27, Alfredo was elected to the Arizona State Senate.  Only two years after his election, Alfredo was elected to serve as Senate Majority Leader due to his keen ability to build bipartisan coalitions.  He served 14 years in the Arizona State Senate where his policy prowess and political acumen contributed to a formidable legislative legacy. Under his leadership, the Arizona Department of Transportation was established and the state joined the Medicaid program, known as the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS).  He also was instrumental in the expansion of the Maricopa Community College District with the building of the South Mountain Community College campus.

After departing the legislature, Alfredo opened a successful government relations and consulting firm, Jamieson and Gutierrez.  Alfredo sold the firm in 2000 after many successful years in private practice.

Alfredo was dedicated to serving his community and championed many important causes.  He served on the boards of the Phoenix Police Foundation, Greater Phoenix Leadership, the Kino Institute, the Greater Black Chamber of Commerce and the Morrison Institute for Public Policy.  He also served as president of the Maricopa College Governing Board.

A man of many talents and interests, Alfredo was a Spanish talk-radio host, public speaker, educator, author and founder of an online current events publication called la Frontera Times. In 2013, he wrote To Sin Against Hope: How America Has Failed Its Immigrants, which addressed U.S. border politics.

Alfredo received an honorary doctoral degree from Arizona State University at the Hispanic Convocation, which he cofounded in 1984.  In 2024, he graduated from ASU with a bachelor's degree at the age of 78, more than 50 years after he was forced to leave the university.

Alfredo will be remembered for his many accomplishments in the Legislature and as a champion for civil rights, education and immigrants' rights. He was a lifelong advocate for the working class and the marginalized, and his influence helped shape Arizona's policies, public debate and the next generation of Latino leaders.

A loving husband, father, grandfather and tio, Alfredo Gutierrez is survived by his life partner and wife, Sharon, his children, Sam Gutierrez (Brenda), Luis Gutierrez (Anna June) and Ben Goldstein (Nadia), his bonus children, Marcus Bellamy and Marisol Conchola, his granddaughters, Dia, Carmen, Raven and Samantha, and his many nieces, nephews and extended family.  Alfredo will be greatly missed by many friends and the community he loved and served.

Therefore

Be it resolved by the House of Representatives of the State of Arizona, the Senate concurring:

That the Members of the Legislature express sincere regret at the passing of the Honorable Alfredo Gutierrez and extend their deepest condolences to his surviving family members.