Governor Katie Hobbs said border security remains a top priority and described the state National Guards role supporting U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

She said the National Guard and CBP have seized "more than 8 million fentanyl pills" since July and cited significant seizures of meth, cocaine, heroin and fentanyl powder. Governor Hobbs said she will continue to work with the legislature to "protect our border" and to better support law enforcement.

The governor said her executive budget will include a 5% pay increase for frontline law enforcement, including state police and correctional officers, and pay raises for state firefighters. She framed the raises as measures to recruit and retain personnel and to improve public safety outcomes.

Hobbs also highlighted personal examples, including Staff Sergeant Everett Griggs of the Arizona National Guard and married troopers Captain Trevor Graff and Sergeant Becky York, who fostered drug-exposed infants and benefited from the administrations paid family leave policy.

The governor said the increased public-safety funding and continued border support are necessary to prevent drug-related harms and protect Arizonans.