When Arizona bureaucrats imposed an illegal rule that effectively blocked home building in Maricopa County, the Goldwater Institute got to work. Goldwater attorneys challenged the rule in court and achieved a crucial victory for the state. Last week, the Goldwater Institute was recognized for its achievement with the Bob Williams “Guardian of Liberty” Award at the State Policy Network Annual Meeting in Orlando.
The State Policy Network (SPN) brings together state-based policy organizations that advance limited government and individual liberty across the nation. Goldwater received the award for its successful legal challenge to the Arizona water policy—a legal victory that caught the attention of leaders and policymakers across the country.
As State Policy Network wrote:
When sweeping water restrictions threatened housing development across fast-growing Maricopa County, Goldwater took action.
Representing the Home Builders Association of Central Arizona, the Institute challenged rules imposed without legislative authorization or formal rulemaking. In April, a judge struck down the restrictions, restoring the lawful approval process and protecting property rights and housing opportunity for Arizonans.
The victory also reaffirmed a principle that reaches far beyond Arizona: Government agencies must follow the law, and not make it.
Congratulations to the entire Goldwater Institute team!
Goldwater’s lawsuit against the Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR) challenged two new water-supply rules the department imposed without legislative authorization and without following Arizona’s formal rulemaking process.
For decades, developers seeking to build homes in certain parts of Maricopa County had to demonstrate that sufficient water would be physically available to serve a proposed development for at least 100 years. ADWR changed that approach after releasing an updated groundwater model, shifting from a site-specific review to one based on projected groundwater conditions across the entire Phoenix Active Management Area, a region roughly the size of Connecticut.
Under the new rules, a projected groundwater shortfall in one location could be used to block development elsewhere, even when sufficient water existed at the proposed site. The standards effectively halted groundwater-based Assured Water Supply determinations and stopped new home construction across large portions of Maricopa County.
Goldwater argued successfully that the agency had not merely reinterpreted existing law but had created substantive new rules while bypassing the procedures required under the Arizona Administrative Procedure Act. On April 21, a Maricopa County Superior Court judge agreed, declaring both rules invalid and barring ADWR from using them to review development applications.
The stakes were significant for a region already struggling with housing affordability. According to estimates by the Goldwater Institute, at least 13,000 anticipated homes—nearly one-third of the projected housing supply in the affected area—went unbuilt after the agency changed its approach. Without the lawsuit, developers would have remained unable to obtain the approvals needed to build, property owners would have remained unable to develop their land, and Arizona families would have faced an even tighter housing supply.
The ruling also established an important limit on administrative power. State agencies can enforce laws passed by elected lawmakers, but they cannot impose sweeping new policies affecting property rights, housing and economic development while avoiding the rulemaking process designed to provide transparency and public accountability.
Responsible water stewardship is essential in Arizona, but so are housing affordability and property rights. Goldwater’s victory showed that the state can address serious water concerns without allowing unelected agencies to rewrite the law on their own.
The Goldwater Institute thanks State Policy Network for its recognition of our work and for its continuing support, and we congratulate the Center of the American Experiment and the Freedom Foundation for their 2026 Bob Williams Awards, as well!
