SB 1328 Arizona Senate · 57th Legislature - Second Regular Session

domestic relations; parents' rights

SB 1328 amends Arizona law to establish that courts must presume it is in a child's best interest to have substantial, frequent, meaningful, and continuing parenting time with both parents and for both parents to participate in major decisions about the child - unless evidence shows otherwise. The bill directly affects family courts handling custody cases by requiring this presumption under Section 25-103. It mandates that courts apply this policy while promoting "parents' rights" as defined in Sections 1-601 and 1-602 of Arizona law. The change focuses on procedural requirements for custody rulings, not altering existing parental rights or obligations.
Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2026
Committee Review
Senate Passage
Feb 2026
House Passage
Governor
Introduced Jan 26, 2026 Last action Mar 10, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Introduced Version Senate Engrossed Version (02/25/2026) · 3 edits · Feb 25, 2026
MINOR
The bill was reorganized from a standard introduction format to a formal Senate Engrossed version, adding a new 'Legislative Intent' section that explicitly defines parental rights and children's rights to family integrity. A new provision was inserted into the statute stating that a child has a right to equal access to both parents, shifting the policy focus to presume shared parenting unless evidence suggests otherwise.
Scope change
The bill's scope was expanded to include a specific statutory right for children to equal access to both co-parents, moving beyond general statements about parenting time.
REQUIREMENT

Added a new subsection (B.3) to the statute declaring that a child has a right to equal access to both co-parents.

DEFINITION

Added a new Section 2 (Legislative Intent) that cites Supreme Court cases to define parental rights and establishes a public policy presumption favoring shared parenting.

TECHNICAL

Changed the document header from 'Introduced Version' to 'Senate Engrossed Version' and updated the title page layout to reflect the official legislative format.

Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
8
Key actions
3
Committee
0
Amendments
2
Feb 25, 2026
Upper · Passed
PASSED
upper
Feb 25, 2026
Upper · Passed
DPA
upper
Feb 4, 2026
Upper · Passed
DPA
upper
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Photo of Mark Finchem
Mark Finchem
RRepublican
AZ
1