Gress ad says he passed Ava's Law, a bill a Democrat sponsored and he co-sponsored
Based on reporting by TJ L'Heureux and Hank Stephenson for Arizona Agenda, published September 21, 2026.
A new campaign ad for Republican Rep. Matt Gress credits him with passing Ava's Law, but the Arizona Agenda reports that a Democrat sponsored the bill.
In the spot, a mother named Gretchen says Gress helped kids with special needs, including her daughter, Ava. "When Ava was sexually abused at school, Matt passed legislation to increase background checks," she says.
Democratic Sen. Catherine Miranda sponsored the 2025 measure, Senate Bill 1106, the Agenda reports. Gress was one of 25 co-sponsors from both parties and was not on the House Judiciary Committee, which approved it. It passed 58-0 in the House and 27-0 in the Senate.
Gress told the Agenda he was "proud to co-sponsor and vote for" the law. He said his role was helping move it through the House: working with Gretchen, urging Judiciary Chairman Quang Nguyen to schedule it, working with House leadership and building support among House Republicans.
The ad does not identify the mother as Gretchen Jacobs, a prominent Capitol lobbyist whose political donations, state records show, have gone mostly to Republicans. She declined to discuss the ad. The Agenda credits Jacobs with a major push for the bill after her daughter was abused at Chaparral High School.
The Agenda also says part of the ad is accurate: Gress sponsored HB2621 in 2026 and HB2074 in 2025, aimed at speeding up help for special needs students and improving training for school safety officers, and Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs signed both.
The Agenda faults Democrats too. A Democratic mailer claims Gress voted to jail teachers for teaching the classics, citing a 2025 bill by Sen. Jake Hoffman, but that bill never got a vote Gress could cast. The Agenda says the GOP's House Victory Fund also circulated a doctored photo of his Democratic challengers.