We are an independent, impartial, apolitical, legislative branch agency.

What is the Arizona Ombudsman-Citizens’ Aide?

The Arizona Ombudsman-Citizens’ Aide was established to help ensure the Arizona government is fair and responsive to Arizona citizens. The public can turn to the office when they feel they have been treated unfairly by a state administrator, agency, department, board, or commission. Ombudsman services are free, and upon request, we will treat your case as confidential. The office is given its authority by Arizona Revised Statutes sections 41-1371 through 41-1383 and operates under Arizona Administrative Code Title 2, Chapter 16.

If your complaint is within our jurisdiction, and it is not premature to come to us, we our job is to may investigate your complaintit and determine whether you have been treated fairly. If we conclude your complaint is justified, we will work with you and the agency to find a fair solution. If we conclude your complaint is not justifiedwarranted, we will take the time to explain our reasoning. The ombudsman is not an advocate or someone who will automatically take your side in a conflict. Our job is to consider all sides of a question in an impartial and objective wayway. We will discuss your complaint with you in confidence. In many cases, we canWe can often provide the information you need to solve the problem yourself. In other cases, we will investigate your complaint and act as a helpful mediator in negotiating a solution. We have no power to order changes in rules, regulations, policiescannot order changes to rules, regulations, policies, or procedures or procedures. However, the great majority ofmost state administrators are cooperative and responsive to our recommendations. If we are unable tocannot work out a satisfactory solution, we can send a formal report of our findings and recommendations to the state legislature, governor the governor, and the public.

Usually, it is best to think of the Arizona Ombudsman-Citizens’ Aide Office (AOCA) as an outside-the-agency of last resort — someone who will try to help when other approaches within the agency have failed. If you have a problem, first discuss it with the person or office involved. They will often explain a specific policy or correct the issue on the spot. If you cannot work it out with the direct supervisor at the agency, then ask to elevate the concern to the agency’s internal ombudsman. Pursuant to A.R.S. §41-1006 and A.A.C. R1-1-212, every agency must have an internal ombudsman. Contact us if you don’t know who to visit or what procedure to use. We can point you to the right person and explain the best way to solve your problem. We cannot accept investigations until a person has tried to work it out with the agency first, but we can help by generally helping people navigate the government.

If you have already made a reasonable effort with the agency to resolve your problem, gone to its ombudsman, and have still not been successful, contact our office – the State of Arizona Ombudsman-Citizens’ Aide Office. At that point, you will have fulfilled the laws surrounding our office [A.R.S. §§41-1376(A)(5) and 41-1377(C)(1) and A.R.C. R2-16-301] and will be legally able to bring the complaint to us.

With the exception of matters relating to public access, we are only allowed to receive complaints about the administrative acts of the State of Arizona. We cannot take up conflicts with private individuals, companies, or organizations; federal, county, or local governments; the Board of Regents, universities, or community colleges; elected officials and their chief advisors; the legislature and its staff; or the judicial branch of government. We can also decline to look into a case where our intervention would be inappropriate.

We will tell you why if we can’t take up your case. We will also do our best to provide advice, information, and referrals when we can’t help directly. To help you, we’ve compiled a directory organized by issue or problem.