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BILL # SB 1751 |
TITLE: death sentence; choice; firing squad |
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SPONSOR: Payne |
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PREPARED BY: Jordan Johnston |
STATUS: Senate Engrossed |
The bill would expand the allowable methods of execution to include firing squad. The bill further allows all persons sentenced to death to choose lethal gas as method of execution regardless of the date the offense was committed. The bill also makes the enactment conditional on the voter approval of Senate Concurrent Resolution (SCR) 1049.
Estimated Impact
We estimate that the bill would result in a one-time cost to establish executions by firing squad. We further estimate that the bill would result in future ongoing maintenance costs associated with lethal gas executions, however this impact would not occur for at least several years. We are unable to determine the magnitude of these costs in advance without input from the Arizona Department of Corrections (ADC). These costs will ultimately depend on the voter approval of SCR 1049.
We have asked ADC for their estimated impact of the bill and are awaiting a response.
Our estimate assumes the following:
1) According to published articles, the cost of establishing a firing squad execution method varies by state, ranging from $53,600 in South Carolina to $750,000 in Idaho. The remaining states that authorize execution by firing squad, Utah, Oklahoma, and Mississippi, did not publish information associated with the fiscal impact of establishing a firing squad execution chamber. Due to the range in costs, we are unable to determine the cost to Arizona to establish a firing squad execution chamber without input from ADC.
2) Under current law, only those sentenced to death for an offense committed prior to November 23, 1992 can elect lethal gas as a method of execution. The bill would expand this method as an option for all persons sentenced to death. We would need input from ADC on the current cost to maintain lethal gas executions to assess future ongoing maintenance costs to maintain this method of execution for all persons sentenced to death moving forward.
4/7/26