The bill proposes amendments to section 13-2402 of the Arizona Revised Statutes, which pertains to the crime of obstructing governmental operations. The current law states that a person commits this offense by using or threatening to use violence or physical force to knowingly obstruct, impair, or hinder the performance of a governmental function by a public servant or the enforcement of penal law by a peace officer, both acting under their official authority.

The changes introduced by the bill include minor language updates for clarity and inclusivity, such as replacing "such" with "the" and changing gender-specific pronouns to gender-neutral terms ("his" to "the public servant's" or "the peace officer's"). Additionally, the bill specifies that the offense applies to obstructing either the performance of a governmental function by a public servant or the enforcement of penal law by a peace officer, rather than listing them as separate clauses. The bill also corrects a spelling error, changing "hinderance" to "hindrance." Notably, the provision stating that the section does not apply to the obstruction of making an arrest remains unchanged.

Statutes affected:
Introduced Version: 13-2402