Amish Shah Voting Record

American Journal News reported on October 20, 2026 that Shah “did not vote to let convicted child molesters ‘back into our schools,’ as a new attack ad falsely claims,” and that the ad’s subject was never given the leniency it describes. American Journal News also reported that SB1253 narrowly passed the Arizona House in 2023 and was vetoed by Gov. Katie Hobbs, and that Shah supported Kayleigh’s Law and a 2019 law extending the statute of limitations for child sexual abuse survivors.

The bill in question did not pertain to whether or not sex offenders are let into schools. The person referenced in the ad was already required to notify the probation department and get notarized parental consent to have contact with minors, a requirement that does not relate to any vote taken by Amish Shah. AdImpact's transcript of the Safety and Affordability PAC ad, "Predators In Schools," has it saying that Amish Shah "voted to let convicted child molesters like him back into our schools without telling anyone they're there."

AZ Family reported that Kayleigh Kozak, Josh Jacobson's victim, faced him in court on a Friday morning and delivered a tearful statement nearly 20 years after she says she was groomed and molested by her teacher and coach. Outside the courtroom, Josh Jacobson described some of the restrictions he has lived under, including prohibitions on contact with minors without probation department approval, and that parents of children he encounters must sign notarized letters allowing contact. AZ Family reported that he was asking a judge to end the lifetime probation he accepted in exchange for avoiding prison time, and that the judge did not rule that day.

According to the AZ Mirror, the Arizona Department of Public Safety already notifies the school district in which a sex offender lives, so Amish Shah's vote against SB1253 had no impact on whether or not schools are notified. The AZ Mirror reported that the bill's sponsor, Republican Sen. Janae Shamp, said law enforcement agencies are already required to notify the community, including schools in the area, when certain types of sex offenders move there. SB1253 would have created an additional notification requirement duplicative with notification already carried out by the Arizona Department of Public Safety. The AZ Mirror reported that the bill would have required a registered sex offender who is the legal guardian of a student to give the school's principal or administrator annual notice of that status within 10 days of the student's enrollment.

Amish Shah and many other legislators voted against SB1253 because those duplicative requirements did not make Arizonans more safe and risked putting Arizona children in danger of bullying and harassment. At the House Judiciary Committee hearing, Victoria Hudson, who said she was a child victim of sexual abuse by a family member, told legislators "The children of those individuals will be harmed," the AZ Mirror reported. The governor ultimately vetoed SB1253 on the same grounds that Amish Shah and other legislators voted against it.