Construction Liability Apportionment Study Committee (CLASC)

The Background of the CLASC

Arizona contractors have been working with Arizona State Senate President Karen Fann to put an end to overreaching indemnity clauses that hold contractors responsible for the negligence of others.

In the 2018 legislative session, Senator Fann successfully passed legislation that formed the Construction Liability Apportionment Study Committee – or the CLASC. The CLASC held a series of meetings in the fall of 2018 and adopted formal recommendations that were included in SB 1271 – a bill that President Fann successfully championed into law in the 2019 legislative session. SB 1271 put an end to these risk-shifting practices in residential construction projects, and the CLASC is now looking to bring these same solutions to private commercial projects.

The CLASC is comprised of six legislators – three members of the Arizona State Senate and three members of the Arizona House of Representatives – and we will be featuring a weekly profile to introduce you to each member of this important study committee.

CLASC PROFILE: Co-Chair, Senate President Karen Fann

Senator Karen Fann (AZ-District 1) is the second female Senate President in the history of Arizona. Along with her duties as President of the Senate and Co-Chair of the CLASC, she also serves as the Chairman of the Senate Rules Committee.

Senator Fann is a lifelong Republican, raised on conservative rural values by her hardworking parents, Jim and Sylvia Fann. She moved with her family to Prescott at the age of four. Growing up in a family with a strong work ethic made it natural for her to start her own business — Arizona Highway Safety Specialists (AHSS) — which she launched in 1984 with just $500 of her own cash. Her drive and determination to succeed has turned AHSS into Arizona’s largest installer of roadway guardrails and signage.

Prior to becoming a local business owner, Senator Fann gained four years of experience in the legal field and ten in the airport/airline industry; she later obtained her license as an Arizona Realtor. She is a licensed contractor with the Arizona Registrar of Contractors; past president of Yavapai County Contractors Association; and past president, Prescott Chapter, of the National Association of Women in Construction. Her dedication to community led Karen to serve on numerous committees and boards representing Central Arizona, as well as the Town of Chino Valley, where she was Mayor for six years. Her four years of service on the Prescott City Council included Mayor Pro Tem.

Thank You President Fann!

We hope you will join us in thanking President Fann for her service and ongoing commitment to improving Arizona’s construction industry. Please take a moment to send her an email at kfann@azleg.gov or give her a call at (602) 926-5874.

For more information on the CLASC and the advocacy efforts of Arizonans for Fair Contracting visit www.azfaircontracting.com.