Tuesday, August 25, 2026 at 5:00 PM

Pima County Board of Supervisors — What to Watch

Tuesday, August 25, 2026 at 5:00 PM

Board of Supervisors' Hearing Room

46 substantive items on the agenda (24 for discussion, 22 on consent calendar)

Pima County Board of Supervisors: What's on the Agenda for August 25, 2026

The Board is set to vote on a resolution that would bar county officials from profiting off nonpublic government information — a measure that signals ongoing concern about insider conduct at the highest levels of county government. The meeting also includes a contested procurement appeal over a major wastewater contract, a decision on who will hire the county's next top administrator, a $35 million road repair contract extension, and a renewed multi-year water data partnership with federal scientists.

Resolution Would Ban County Officials from Profiting Off Inside Government Information

Item 17 | Discussion item

The Board will consider Resolution No. 2026-45, which would formally prohibit county officials from using nonpublic government information for personal financial gain. The resolution's title — "Protecting the Public Trust" — suggests supervisors see this as a response to a real or perceived problem, not routine housekeeping. If adopted, it would establish an enforceable policy standard for how officials handle sensitive information they receive by virtue of their positions.

Who Gets to Hire the Next County Administrator — and How?

Item 16 | Discussion item, brought by District 3

The Board will discuss and potentially take action on the process for hiring a new County Administrator, the top unelected executive who manages day-to-day county operations and a workforce of thousands. The item was brought by District 3, which may signal disagreement among supervisors over search firm selection, candidate criteria, transparency, or the timeline. How this process is structured will shape who leads Pima County government for years to come.

Contractor Challenges County's Award of Major Wastewater Repair Contract

Item 14 | Public hearing

Achen-Gardner Construction is formally appealing the Procurement Director's decision on a job order contract for repairing and rehabilitating Pima County's wastewater conveyance system. Job order contracts of this type typically authorize tens of millions of dollars in work over multiple years, and the outcome of this appeal could either redirect that work to a different contractor or force the county to revisit its selection process. Residents depend on the wastewater system daily, and disputes over who maintains it carry real consequences for service reliability and public funds.

$35 Million Road Repair Contract Gets Another Extension

Item 27 | Discussion item

The Board will vote on Amendment No. 5 to an existing job order contract shared among seven construction companies for pavement preservation and road repair across the county. The extension pushes the contract through September 2027 and carries a total contract value of $35 million. This is one of the primary mechanisms through which Pima County fixes potholes, resurfaces streets, and maintains its road network — making it a direct pocketbook issue for drivers throughout the region.

$1.25 Million Federal Partnership to Track Pima County's Water Supply Renewed

Item 11 | Flood Control District sitting

The Board, acting as the Flood Control District, will vote to extend a joint funding agreement with the U.S. Geological Survey through September 2030 for ongoing water resources investigations, at a total contract value of $1,252,100. In an arid region where water availability underpins growth, agriculture, and long-term planning, USGS data on groundwater, streamflow, and water quality is foundational to nearly every major land and development decision the county makes.

County's $7.4 Million Santa Cruz River Flood Control Work Gets Scope Expansion

Item 8 | Flood Control District sitting

An amendment to Borderland Construction's contract for training structures along the Santa Cruz River at Cortaro Narrows would extend the project through June 2028 and push the total contract value to $7,391,721. The Cortaro Narrows area has historically been a chokepoint for flooding, and training structures are engineered features designed to guide floodwaters safely through the channel. For residents and businesses near the Santa Cruz corridor in northwest Tucson, this project is a key piece of long-term flood protection infrastructure.

Economic Development Strategic Plan Comes Back for Another Vote

Item 18 | Unfinished business from August 11

The Board will again take up the Pima County Economic Development Strategic Plan for 2026–2029, which was continued from the August 11 meeting after a continuance request filed days earlier. The plan sets the county's roadmap for job creation, business attraction, and workforce development over the next three years. Multiple staff memos and a continuance request in the file suggest the plan has faced scrutiny or internal debate, and the volume of attachments points to a substantive policy discussion rather than a rubber stamp.

County's Voting System Contract Extended to 2031 — on the Consent Calendar

Consent Item 6 | Could pass without discussion

A nearly $800,000 amendment to the county's contract with Election Systems & Software would extend the company's agreement to provide Pima County's voting system and related services through September 2031. ES&S is one of the dominant vendors in American election administration, and this extension locks the county into its current voting technology for five more years. Because it is on the consent calendar, it is positioned to pass without any public debate unless a supervisor pulls it for separate discussion.

$122,000 Education Contract Returns After Public Pushback

Item 19 | Unfinished business from August 11

A contract with the Southern Arizona Education Council to advance academic success and civic engagement across Pima County — at $122,000 from the General Fund — was held over from August 11 and has generated enough community response that three separate batches of redacted public comment letters appear in the agenda file. The volume of public correspondence signals this contract is more contested than its modest dollar amount might suggest, with residents apparently divided over the organization's work or its use of county funds.

Source: Pima County Legistar