PHOENIX — U.S. Rep. Greg Stanton believes that the federal government can help people deal with extreme heat in Arizona and around the country.
“Temperatures are exceedingly high on a record basis, over 100 days straight of over 100 degrees last year,” Stanton told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Arizona’s Morning News on Friday.
Stanton clarified that he doesn’t think the federal government can actually change the weather, but that there are steps they should be taking to help residents deal with it.
“The problem really was not just the extreme highs, but the fact that the low temperature wasn’t as low as it used to be,” Stanton said. “So people that are unhoused, experiencing homelessness, their body temperatures are aren’t able to go down and that has potentially deadly consequences for them.”
Valley health officials have confirmed six heat-related deaths so far this year, with another 225 cases still under investigation.
Meanwhile, the final Maricopa County Department of Public Health report for 2024 showed 608 heat-related deaths, down from 645 the previous year.
How does Rep. Stanton say the federal government can help deal with extreme heat?
The first way that Stanton stated the government can help is by increasing the funding that the state of Arizona gets for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which is a program that helps people with their air conditioning costs.
“We are fighting to make sure that we do get our fair share of those resources because a lot of particularly seniors, people that are not able to afford the high electricity cost to keep their air conditioning on, unfortunately have major negative health impacts because of that,” Stanton said. “We want to make sure that they have the resources to keep that air conditioning at the right level so that they can stay healthy.”
Another need that Stanton listed was for resilient infrastructure that can better withstand the extreme heat and is built for the long haul.
The congressman also said that there should be ordinances in place that at least allow outside workers regular breaks and ensure they have access to cold water and shade, highlighting the ordinances the city of Tempe recently passed to protect workers.
“OSHA, which is the Occupation Safety and Health Administration, need to look at providing guidance and potentially new regulations as it relates to giving people access to the appropriate number of breaks, access to shade and water on work sites. Even timing of working,” Stanton said.
“Because if you’re out in that heat so regularly, it takes a long-term impact on you health. And that’ll increase healthcare costs for cities and other entities over time. So it’s not just good for those workers in the short run, it actually lowers costs if you allow people to work in better conditions that protect their safety and health.”
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