ARIZONA PIRG EDUCATION FUND INC

The Arizona PIRG Education Fund's goal is to ensure a representative democracy - one where the public's interest supersedes a narrow powerful special interest.

The Arizona PIRG Education Fund identifies, researches and advances sound public interest policy while educating and mobilizing the public; organizing diverse interests into strong coalitions; generating media attention; and building relationships with state leaders. We have a strong ethos of sustainability, and are thus well-equipped to expand our organizations' capacity.

The capabilities of the Arizona PIRG Education Fund can largely be summed up through policy victories and coalition leadership such as those highlighted below.

Additionally, although each PIRG organization is state-based, we benefit from over 45 years of experience from the federation of state PIRGs, whose mission is winning concrete results in the short-term in order to build grassroots momentum and organizational capability to achieve bigger public interest change in the long-term. U.S. PIRG Education Fund's network of shared national backup staff assist each PIRG to recruit and train staff and provide organizational development assistance including program development and packaging, fundraising, and administrative and legal support.

Taxpayer Safeguards
The Arizona PIRG Education Fund worked with the State Comptroller to ensure some of the best practices in government budget transparency websites were brought to Arizona. We presented information from other states, provided critique of the state's website and arranged meetings with diverse interests and state leaders to ensure taxpayers could easily access and understand budget information. Due in part to our recommendations, Arizona moved from the bottom into the top five state websites for showing taxpayers how our money is spent.

Energy Efficient Arizona
We were a leader in efforts to have one of the strongest energy efficiency standards in our country enacted. The Arizona PIRG Education Fund provided research highlighting energy efficiency success stories in our state; educated and involved small businesses and a variety of organizations; organized citizens to provide testimony and comments; and gained media attention across Arizona. On a continual basis, we worked closely with allies and communicated directly with policymakers.

21st Century Transportation for Arizona
The Arizona PIRG Education Fund issued a series of reports documenting shifts in transportation use in our state and across the nation. We participated in statewide policy forums, local conversations and helped to form the Coalition for Transportation Choices. Our work has helped to shift the dialogue and approach of transportation options in our state.

While each of the above accomplishments are noteworthy, we remain focused on continuing and expanding achievements to increase the youth vote, provide Arizonans with fact-based information on health insurance, ensure transparency in how taxpayer money is spent, promote energy efficiency and advance increased transportation options in our state.