PHOENIX — The Arizona House passed a bill — HB2704 — late Wednesday afternoon that would divert sales tax revenue from Chase Field and income tax revenue from the team to a fund that would pay for fixes and upgrades to the ballpark.
The bill’s sponsor, Representative Jeff Weninger, a Republican who represents District 13, said during an earlier House Commerce Committee hearing that the bill is an interesting solution to the longstanding dispute over how to maintain the ballpark.
Revenue from non-baseball events — which Chase Field hosts more than 150 a year — goes into a reserve fund to pay for ballpark upkeep.
“But it is not enough for the $500 million worth of work that we have identified needs to be to Chase Field as soon as possible,” Amilyn Pierce, the Diamondbacks' vice president of government affairs, said.
Derrick Hall, Arizona Diamondbacks President, CEO & General Partner, shared the following statement, calling the passing of the bill a "victory":
“Today was a first step victory in this much-needed public/private partnership. It shows the momentum that has been behind this bill and we are grateful to Representative Wenninger and Governor Hobbs for the leadership and encouragement, as well as all House Representatives who supported it. Allowing this proud franchise to remain at Chase Field for continued economic and community impact is in the best interest of the City, County, State, and Major League Baseball.”
Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego pushed back against the decision, saying tax dollars would be better spent supporting first responders and other departments rather than upgrading the ballpark.
Today, the State House will consider H.B. 2704, which subsidizes renovations to Chase Field with hundreds of millions hard-earned tax dollars. It takes $200 million from the City of Phoenix alone, which will have a real impact on our ability to pay for police and fire services.
— Mayor Kate Gallego (@MayorGallego) February 25, 2025
The passing of the bill comes as the city of Phoenix is mulling a tax increase because of a budget shortfall blamed on state law changes to taxes, and this would mean even more lost revenue for the city.
The bill now heads to the Senate.
