PHOENIX - State legislators agree something needs to be done to improve Arizona's inner-city neighborhoods, but they disagree on who should receive credit for this bipartisan issue.

Two bills, similar in content, are making their way through the Legislature that would allow communities to penalize slumlords who refuse to maintain their properties.

Senate Bill 1035, known as the Neighborhood Revitalization Act, was introduced by Democratic Sen. Chris Cummiskey in November. He said the bill, which was written following a September Neighborhood Summit in Phoenix, reflects the needs of citizens, not le gislators.

The bill calls for increased notification in the issuance of liquor licenses. It would require local governments to notify neighborhood residents of State Liquor Board hearings. Currently, a liquor license can be rejected locally, then go to the state, wh ich is under no obligation to inform residents of hearings.

The bill would also give neighbors a tool to combat slumlords who "knew or should have known" criminal activity was occurring on their property. An order could be filed in Superior Court charging the owner with the cost of alleviating the problem. This wo uld be done by placing a lien against the property until the problem is resolved.

A $300 penalty could also be directed toward a landlord who allows filth, such as mattresses, garbage, hypodermic needles and condoms, to remain on the premises.

Additionally, property owners in Pima and Maricopa Counties who operate commercial or multi-family units would be required to provide lighting that "safely and securely" maintains the premises.

Cummiskey's bill does not call for state funding because, he said, he felt the bill could accomplish its goal of helping neighborhoods without any appropriation, and adding it to the bill, he said, would make it "impossible to get out of the Senate."

Members of the multi-housing and realtors association expressed concern with the Neighborhood Revitalization Act during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing Jan. 16.

Daniel R. Miller, a lobbyist for the Arizona Association of Realtors, said lighting regulations can be complicated due to Arizona's abundance of space observatories, and many issues surround a landlord's ability to evict tenants as well.

The director of the Arizona Multi-Housing Association, Suzanne B. Gilstrap, said the organization prefers to take a pro-active role in combating crime by getting to the root of it, not by attacking the location where the crime occurs.

Sen. John Wettaw, R-Flagstaff, commended Gilstrap on the association's effort to curb crime through its training and education programs, but said the small number of landlords that contributes to these problems does not belong to the voluntary organizatio n.

The Neighborhood Revitalization Act was held over for one week following the hearing. Committee Chairperson Patricia Noland, R-Tucson, instructed Cummiskey to address the concerns discussed at the hearing and to work with Sen. John Kaites, R-Glendale, wh o proposed a "friendly" amendment synonymous to House Bill 2222, the Neighborhood Preservation Act.

Kaites said his amendment "does more and goes further" by offering $2 million for neighborhood revitalization programs.

In addition to the funding, the House bill establishes a task force to study tax-free zones, increases the fine assessed against slumlords to $500 and further clarifies what constitutes the operation of a non-profit business or organization.

If an existing organization is found to be non-profit, under the bill's criteria it would be eligible for a refund of its property taxes for the past two years.

Representative Robert Blendu, R-Phoenix, introduced the bill, which he said he has been working on for years. He said Cummiskey's bill is a "bunch of words" that would not have the same impact as his bill, which provides $1 million for summer youth progra ms and another $1 million for non-profit organizations active in neighborhood revitalization programs.

An amendment to the bill was approved at a Jan. 17 hearing of the House Committee on Economic Development, International Trade and Tourism. It will go before the House Ways and Means Committee and Appropriations prior to being heard on the House floor.

In December, Gov. Fife Symington announced the Reclaiming Arizona's Neighborhood Act as part of his 1996 legislative package. House Bill 2222 stems from that action.