State Profile
Arizona
DDS approval rate
33.5%
-6.3 pts vs national
DDS approval rate
33.5%
National: 39.8%
3-year change
+2.1 pts
Annual receipts
40,572
FY2024
Hearing offices
3
20 ALJs
Latest monthly DDS data · 2026-02
Initial receipts
2,823
Initial determinations
3,395
Initial allowance rate
29.6%
Initial pending
16,525
Recon determinations
1,437
Recon allowance rate
13.6%
Hearing offices in Arizona
| Office | Rank | Processing days | Pending | Approval | Judges |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TUCSON | 114 | 296 | 1,132 | 68.8% | 7 |
| PHOENIX DOWNTOWN | 130 | 317 | 1,413 | 59.1% | 10 |
| PHOENIX NORTH | 152 | 364 | 1,360 | 54.6% | 5 |
ALJs in Arizona (20)
Sorted by approval rate.
| Judge | Office | Approval | Decisions | Awards | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mucerino, Kathleen | PHOENIX DOWNTOWN | 88.6% | 132 | 117 | |
| Chen, Tin Tin | TUCSON | 81.6% | 244 | 199 | |
| Johnson, Larry E | TUCSON | 81.5% | 303 | 247 | |
| Fletcher, Guy E | PHOENIX DOWNTOWN | 74.7% | 324 | 242 | |
| Armbruster, Ted W | PHOENIX NORTH | 74.5% | 318 | 237 | |
| Davis, Charles | TUCSON | 74.4% | 355 | 264 | |
| Duann, Tom | NORWALK | 73.8% | 294 | 217 | |
| Gaffney, John | PHOENIX DOWNTOWN | 73.3% | 390 | 286 | |
| Baum, Peter J | TUCSON | 70.0% | 277 | 194 | |
| Elias, Yasmin | TUCSON | 68.6% | 86 | 59 | |
| Kirby, Marti | MORENO VALLEY | 60.8% | 199 | 121 | |
| Businger, Thomas D | PHOENIX NORTH | 51.5% | 272 | 140 | |
| Havens, Laura S | TUCSON | 49.1% | 318 | 156 | |
| Paternoster, Sasha | PHOENIX DOWNTOWN | 49.0% | 153 | 75 | |
| Waters, Carla L | PHOENIX DOWNTOWN | 48.7% | 339 | 165 | |
| Walls, Kelly | PHOENIX NORTH | 44.2% | 292 | 129 | |
| Bucci, Patricia A | PHOENIX NORTH | 35.2% | 71 | 25 | |
| Alegre, Dante M | PHOENIX DOWNTOWN | 35.0% | 369 | 129 | |
| Isherwood, Paul | PHOENIX DOWNTOWN | 27.8% | 194 | 54 | |
| Schum, Randolph E | PHOENIX NORTH | 27.5% | 40 | 11 |
For SSDI firms
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