By Howard Fischer | Tucson.com
Arizona lawmakers appear ready to regulate “sober living” homes statewide, beginning in 2020.
Without dissent the House Health Committee agreed Thursday to have the Arizona Department of Health Services license the facilities that have popped up in the past few years around the state. HB 2529 now goes to the full House.
The move comes two years after lawmakers, unwilling at the time to impose state oversight, gave cities and counties the option to register these facilities, which provide a place for people to live while they are dealing with alcohol- and drug-abuse problems. Several communities have taken advantage of the power.
“Given the accommodations afforded to sober living homes, it is encouraging to see the State legislature taking an interest in ensuring that they will be run in accordance with certain standards and are actually achieving their stated purposes. Under the right conditions, sober living homes can be a beneficial addition to their communities and this proposal would be a good first step towards ensuring harmony between such homes and their oftentimes residential neighbors.”
