Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce

Todd Sanders is president and CEO of the Greater Phoenix Chamber.

Just weeks ago, Arizona business leaders rose up to kill a proposal that called for a statewide vote on sanctuary cities — and now, some are again standing against another bill they say could hurt Arizona’s economy.

Republican state lawmakers have so far voted along party lines to advance a bill to ban transgender student athletes from competing in girls sports. But the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ civil rights group, has released an open letter from 40 major businesses, including Amazon, Google and Uber, opposing such measures.

The HRC also shared polling that has found that voters do not see the regulation of transgender rights as being among their top priorities for the state government. 

The polling suggests the potential to win political points with the bill could be limited. At the same time, Todd Sanders fears it could actually hurt the growth Arizona has been enjoying in recent years because of political blowback. 

Sanders, president and CEO of the Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce, joined The Show to talk about the issue.

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