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A federal court temporarily blocked a steep increase in fees for citizenship and asylum application and other fees set to take effect Friday. That’s good news for migrants, but poses a challenge for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services which gets almost all of its budget from fees for services.

Judge halts fee hike that would have nearly doubled cost of citizenship

Arizona advocates welcomed the action, saying the increases would have put the cost of citizenship out of reach for many.

The McLean family, photographed through a window, spends the afternoon together in their Phoenix home earlier this month. After mom Katie and dad Reese tested positive for COVID-19, they took baby Jay for a swab test. It was negative, but they’re convinced he had the disease.

As schools reopen, Arizona confronts high rates of COVID-19 in youth

The state’s youth case rate was the third-highest among 48 states reporting, according to a report.

Arizona officials are urging people to get flu shots this fall to avoid the double threat of flu and COVID-19, which they fear could overburden state hospitals. But the state’s vaccination track record is not great, with just 42.6% of adults getting flu shots last year.

Arizona pushes flu vaccinations to avert flu-and-COVID-19 ‘perfect storm’

Health officials are hoping to head off the possibility of a surge in hospitalizations from one or both of the viruses.

Arizona Republican Party Chairwoman Kelli Ward snaps a selfie with supporters of President Donald Trump at a Latinos for Trump event in Phoenix, Monday, Sept. 14. Like Ward, most of those attending the roundtable were maskless.

As polls show him trailing in Arizona, Trump stops in Phoenix to woo Latino voters

Events aimed at winning over Hispanic voters illustrate expectations that the demographic could make or break the November election.

Experts say signs like this one could become more common this fall, as state and national moratoriums on evictions in the face of COVID-19 are lifted. Arizona already has one of the highest rates of housing losses in the nation, a new report says.

Report: Arizona had highest ‘housing loss’ rate; more evictions coming

Trends in Arizona do not bode well for the fall, experts said, as drivers of housing loss are are amplified by the pandemic.

A Census Bureau plan to move up the deadline to end “enumeration,” the process of counting U.S. residents, from Oct. 31 to Sept. 30 was put on hold by a federal judge. Critics, including the Navajo and Gila River tribes, had sued to block the move, which they said would lead to an undercount, particularly for minority communities.

Judge halts plan to end Census early, as Arizona, tribal responses lag

The order said plaintiffs in the case had raised "serious questions" about the bureau's plan to stop counting.

Republicans defend Postal Service, accuse Democrats of scare tactics

Democrats say the postmaster general's changes have led to reduced service and could threaten mail-in ballots this fall.

The number of Medicaid recipients in Arizona rose to more than 2 million this summer, after a five-month surge that mirrored the impact of COVID-19. Experts said the increase was not as large as they had feared, but also said there’s no way to predict what happens next.

Arizona Medicaid recipients topped 2 million after five-month surge

The surge follows skyrocketing unemployment in the state, as COVID-19 shutdowns have shuttered industries.

Crimes in Tucson, Phoenix fell in second quarter, as COVID-19 took hold

While property crimes fell, both cities saw an increase in aggravated assaults.

The memorial to Arizona Confederate troops at Wesley Bolin Memorial Plaza near the Capitol was erected in 1961.

Two Confederate monuments removed in Arizona amid broader push

The monuments were removed by the United Daughters of the Confederacy, who requested the state "regift" them for repairs.

Protesters in 2019 at the Supreme Court, which rejected a Trump administration plan to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census. Now the president is directing the Census Bureau to take “all appropriate action” to determine the number of undocumented immigrants, even without the question.

Critics: Trump order to discount undocumented migrants in census will fail

Opponents immediately vowed to sue, saying the move was unconstitutional and unenforceable.

A row of empty lockers in a hallway at Marana Middle School.

White House calls for quick return to school; some Arizona parents, educators balk

Some teachers and parents in Arizona said they worry that schools here will not be able to find safe ways to reopen.

Arizona has its first COVID-19 test that uses saliva. More than 6,000 people have already been tested using the test, ASU scientists say.

ASU researchers develop cheaper, faster saliva test for COVID-19

Saliva tests may be even more accurate than nasal tests, the director of ASU's Biodesign Institute says.

President Trump speaks at a June 23 event in Phoenix, in this still image from White House video of the event.

Immigration advocates criticize visa restrictions under Trump executive order

While the administration says it will free up jobs for citizens, immigration experts say it will negatively affect the economy.

A protester approaches a line of police officers in downtown Phoenix on Sunday, May 31, before the imposition of a statewide curfew to rein in protests over police violence.

Arizona Democrats among those backing sweeping police reform bill

The bill would ban the use of chokeholds and make it easier to hold officers accountable.

Arizona cities, counties to get $441 million in direct COVID-19 relief funds

Gov. Ducey said the $441 million in the AZCares Fund should be in local governments’ hands as early as Thursday.

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