Katie Hobbs Refuses To Reveal Legal-Defense Fund Donors: ‘I Said What I Said’

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs declined to identify the donors financing a legal-defense fund affiliated with her campaign after the fund surfaced during the state’s investigation of contributions from a major Department of Child Safety contractor.

“Everything that’s required to be reported, we have reported,” Hobbs told reporters Sunday at an event in Glendale, according to ABC15. “Look, I’m not gonna get into this with you. I said what I said. You can go to the letter. We’ve reported everything that’s required to be reported.”

🚨🚨 “It’s the story that won’t go away…”

ROUGH segment for Katie Hobbs, who won’t disclose donors to her shadowy dark-money fund and still can’t shake the corruption allegations. pic.twitter.com/vsnEfOWyXv

— Drew Sexton (@drewsexton23) September 2, 2026

“I will refer you to the letter that we submitted, the campaign submitted to the AG’s office, and that’s all I have to say about that,” she added.

Hobbs ended the tense exchange abruptly after reporters pressed her to disclose the remaining contributors. Arizona law does not require her campaign to reveal the fund’s donors.

The fund became public after Attorney General Kris Mayes completed a two-year investigation into political contributions from Sunshine Residential Homes and rate increases the company received from DCS.

Sunshine made three $50,000 contributions to the legal-defense fund between November 2023 and May 2024, according to information Hobbs’ campaign attorneys provided to investigators. Those payments brought the combined financial support from Sunshine, company founder Simon Kottoor, and associated individuals to approximately $580,840 across Hobbs’ campaign, her inaugural fund, the Arizona Democratic Party, and the legal-defense fund, as previously reported by the California Globe.

Sunshine contributed $100,000 to Hobbs’ inaugural fund following the 2022 election. The company also made large contributions to the Arizona Democratic Party, while Kottoor and his wife made campaign contributions associated with Hobbs’ election efforts.

DCS increased Sunshine’s daily rate from $149.99 per bed to $195 in May 2023. The company’s rate subsequently rose to $234 per bed during its 2024 contract renewal.

Mayes’ office reviewed more than 100,000 documents and one terabyte of data and conducted 12 interviews during the investigation. Investigators found no evidence of the quid pro quo required to support a bribery charge, according to the attorney general’s investigative memorandum.

The memo attributed Sunshine’s rate increases to the company’s position as Arizona’s largest provider of group-home beds for sibling groups and the possibility that it could redirect beds to the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement, which paid higher rates. DCS officials told investigators that losing those beds would have strained the state’s ability to keep siblings together.

Hobbs declined an in-person interview with investigators and provided two written statements through her attorneys on Aug. 17. She denied discussing Sunshine’s rates or DCS procurement decisions with Kottoor and said neither her office nor her campaign influenced the agency’s decisions.

Hobbs told ABC15 that the legal-defense fund was created in anticipation of litigation surrounding the 2026 election. She cited previous election challenges involving former Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake and Republican gubernatorial nominee Andy Biggs as reasons for preparing to defend the election result through available legal channels.

“Look, the reason we have a legal defense fund is because people like Kari Lake and now my opponent, Andy Biggs, refuse to acknowledge the results of elections, including 2020 and 2022,” she said according to ABC15. “And as long as they’re going to continue working to undermine the will of the voters, we have no idea what’s in store for 2026. I’m going to continue to use every tool at my disposal to defend that, and that’s what we’re doing.”

The governor’s refusal to disclose the full donor list came as Arizona House Speaker Steve Montenegro continued pressing Mayes over an alleged conversation between Kottoor and former DCS Director Michael Faust.

As reported Wednesday by the California Globe, Montenegro said Faust told investigators that Kottoor offered to recommend that Hobbs retain Faust as DCS director if Faust approved Sunshine’s pending rate request.

Faust reportedly rejected the proposal and informed then-Deputy Director Robert Navarro. Montenegro said another DCS official, Alex Ong, had contemporaneous knowledge of the account. The allegation was not included in the attorney general’s publicly released investigative memorandum.

Mayes spokesman Richie Taylor described the competing accounts as an uncorroborated dispute and accused Montenegro of selectively presenting evidence to support a partisan narrative. Montenegro has asked Mayes to answer five questions about the investigation by 5 p.m. last Friday.

The attorney general’s office concluded that available evidence did not establish a reasonable likelihood of conviction and declined to prosecute Hobbs, Kottoor or Sunshine for bribery or related offenses. The memorandum said the investigation would remain open to assist the Arizona Auditor General if requested.

Rep. John Gillette (R-LD30) previously said he referred the matter to the U.S. Department of Justice and the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General for review of state and federal payments involving Sunshine. The status of that referral has not been publicly confirmed.

Mayes has said the previously undisclosed legal-defense contributions demonstrate a need for lawmakers to consider additional transparency requirements. Under current Arizona law, Hobbs is not required to disclose who else financed the fund.