Felag Bill, Highway Surveillance & More: This Week at the State House

Saturday, April 01, 2017

GoLocalProv Political Team

 

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The Senate okayed the Felag Bill that adds alcohol to Good Samaritan act, and chairs were named for Senate finance, judiciary, rules/oversight committees. This week at the State House. 

Chairs named for Senate Finance, Judiciary, Rules/Oversight committees

Senate President Dominick J. Ruggerio (D-Dist.4, North Providence, Providence) has named Sen. Erin Lynch Prata (D-Dist. 31, Warwick, Cranston) to serve as chairwoman of the Committee on Judiciary. He has also named Sen. William J. Conley Jr. (D-Dist. 18, East Providence, Pawtucket) to serve as chairman of the Committee on Finance. He has also appointed Sen. Frank S. Lombardi (D-Dist. 26, Cranston) chairman of the newly created Committee on Rules, Government Ethics and Oversight.

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Click here to see Lynch Prata release.

Click here to see Conley release.

Click here to see Lombardi release.

 

Senate OKs Felag bill that adds alcohol to Good Samaritan Act

Sen. Walter S. Felag Jr.’s (D-Dist. 10, Warren, Bristol, Tiverton) legislation that amends the Good Samaritan Act of 2016 by adding alcohol and alcohol-related overdoses, possession, or transportation of alcohol by an underage person passed the Rhode Island Senate. Rep. Kenneth A. Marshall (D-Dist. 68, Bristol, Warren) has sponsored companion legislation in the House. Senator Felag’s legislation now heads to the House of Representatives for consideration.

Click here to see news release.

 

House approves Rep. Corvese bill to combat fentanyl

The House unanimously approved legislation sponsored by Rep. Arthur J. Corvese (D-Dist. 55, North Providence) on behalf of Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin to crack down on fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid that is now involved in most overdose deaths in Rhode Island, through significantly stronger penalties for its possession. The bill will bring the penalties for possession, manufacturing or selling fentanyl in line with those for heroin and cocaine.

Click here to see news release.

House OKs support for children who witness violent crime

The House approved legislation sponsored by House Majority Leader K. Joseph Shekarchi (D-Dist. 23, Warwick) to expand Rhode Island’s Crime Victim Compensation Program to include reimbursement for expenses related to psychiatric care and mental health counseling for underage witnesses of homicides or domestic violence. Sen. Hanna M. Gallo (D-Dist. 27, Cranston, West Warwick) is sponsoring companion legislation in the Senate.

Click here to see news release.

Whip Edwards bill would limit highway surveillance to statute, court order

House Majority Whip John G. Edwards (D-Dist. 70, Portsmouth, Tiverton) has introduced legislation that would prohibit surveillance on Rhode Island’s roadways unless specifically authorized by statute or court order. The bill would not only prohibit unauthorized use of automated license plate readers, but also provide for the confidentiality of information collected or stored.

Click here to see news release.

 

Actor Peter Falk’s daughter testifies on Kennedy bill on adult guardianship

The House Judiciary Committee heard testimony on legislation introduced by Rep. Brian Patrick Kennedy (D-Dist. 38, Hopkinton, Westerly) that would secure the rights of adults who are under a limited guardianship. Catherine Falk, the daughter of the late Peter Falk, best known for portraying Lieutenant Columbo on television, is a national activist for guardianship reform and elder abuse awareness. She appeared before the committee to testify on behalf of the legislation.

Click here to see news release.

 

House committee hears Rep. McNamara’s Right to Try Act

The House Committee on Health, Education and Welfare heard testimony on legislation submitted by Rep. Joseph M. McNamara (D-Dist. 19, Warwick, Cranston) that would allow terminally ill patients to obtain experimental drugs that have not yet been federally approved but that may be in the final stages of FDA testing. The legislation would create the Rhode Island Terminally Ill Patients Right to Try Act of 2017, which would establish the conditions for the use of experimental treatments.

Click here to see news release.

Rep. Ruggiero bill would create Coastal Adaptation Fund

Rep. Deborah Ruggiero (D-Dist. 74, Jamestown, Middletown) has introduced legislation to establish the Rhode Island Coastal Adaptation Trust Fund through a 5-cent-per-barrel surcharge on petroleum products, and use the money for grants to cities and towns for the design, planning and construction of climate change adaptation projects for public infrastructure, and for coastal and estuarine habitat restoration. Identical legislation has been introduced in the Senate by Sen. Erin Lynch Prata (D-Dist. 31, Warwick, Cranston).


Click here to see news release.
 

Senate committees hold joint meeting on fatalities of children in state care

The Senate Committee on Finance and the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services held a joint meeting to hear a presentation and hold a discussion relating to a March 23 report from the Child Fatality Review Panel about four child fatalities and two near-fatalities of children in state care. Rhode Island Child Advocate Jennifer Griffith made the presentation to the committees.

 

Senate Finance hears testimony on governor’s free college tuition budget article

The Senate Committee on Finance heard testimony on Article 3 of the FY 2018 state budget, which relates to Governor Raimondo’s proposed Rhode Island Promise Scholarship.  The proposal would provide two years of free tuition to Rhode Island residents to the state’s public colleges and university. 

 

Related Slideshow: Winners and Losers in Raimondo’s FY18 Budget Proposal

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Winner

Criminal Justice Reform

Per recommendations from the Justice Reinvestment Working Group, the Governor is proposing nearly $1 million in investments such as the public defender mental health program ($185,000), improved mental health services at the ACI ($410,000), recovery housing ($200,000) and domestic violence intervention, in her FY18 budget. 

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Winner

English Language Learners

Under the heading of “promoting 3rd grade reading,” Raimondo proposed adding $2.5 million to make English Language Learning (ELL) K-12 funding permanent.  The Governor’s office points out that RI is one of four states that doesn’t have permanent funding.

The suggestion was one made by the Funding Formula Working Group in January 2016, who said that “in the event that Rhode Island chooses to make an additional investment in ELLs, the funding should be calculated to be responsive to the number of ELLs in the system and based on reliable data, and include reasonable restrictions to ensure that the money is used to benefit ELLs — and promote the appropriate exiting of ELL students from services.”

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Winner

Car Owners - and Drivers

Governor Raimondo wants to reduce assessed motor vehicle values by 30% - a change that would reduce total car tax bills by about $58 million in calendar year 2018. Speaker of the House Nicholas Mattiello, however, has indicated that he might want to go further in its repeal.  

In her budget proposal, Raimondo also put forth adding 8 staffers to the the Department of Motor Vehicles to "address wait times."

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Winner

T.F. Green

The “Air Services Development Fund” would get an influx of $500,000 to “provide incentives to airlines interested in launching new routes or increasing service to T.F. Green Airport.” The Commerce Corporation set the criteria at the end of 2016 for how to grant money through the new (at the time $1.5 million fund).

Also getting a shot in the arm is the I-195 development fund, which would receive $10.1 million from debt-service savings to “resupply” the Fund to “catalyze development & attract anchor employers.”

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Tie

Minimum Wage Increase

An increase in the state minimum wage is part of Raimondo’s proposal, which would see it go from $9.60 an hour to $10.50 an hour.  Raimondo was unsuccessful in her effort in 2016 to bring it up to $10.10 — it was June 2015 that she signed legislation into law that last raised Rhode Island’s minimum wage, from $9 to 9.60.  

The state's minimum hourly wage has gone up from $6.75 in January 2004 to $7.75 in 2013, $8 in 2014, and $9 on Jan. 1, 2015.  Business groups such as the National Federation of Independent Business however have historically been against such measures, citing a hamper on job creation.  

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Tie

Cigarette Tax

Like the minimum wage, Raimondo is looking for an increase - in this instance, the cigarette tax, and revenue to state coffers.  Raimondo was unsuccessful in her effort to go from a tax of $3.75 to $4 last year. Now she is looking for an increase to $4.25 per pack, which the administration says would equate to $8.7 million in general revenue — and go in part towards outdoor recreation and smoking cessation programs.  

The National Federation of Independent Business and other trade groups have historically been against such an increase, saying it will hurt small businesses - i.e. convenience stores. And clearly, if you’re a smoker, you’re likely to place this squarely in the loser category instead. 

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Loser

Hospitals

As often happens in the state budget, winner one year, loser the next. As GoLocal reported in 2016, “the Rhode Island Hospital Association immediately lauded the budget following its introduction, and addressed that while it is facing some reductions, that it "applauds" this years budget after landing on the "loser" list last year.”

This year, it falls back on the loser list, with a Medicaid rate freeze to hospitals, nursing homes, providers, and payers — at FY 2017 levels, with a 1% rate cut come January 1, 2018. 

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Loser

Online Shoppers

The taxman cometh — maybe.  Raimondo proposed an “Internet Sales Tax Initiative” — which would purportedly equate to $34.7 million in revenues.

"Online sales and the fact that online sellers do not collect sales tax has created a structural problem for Rhode Island's budget — our sales taxes have been flat," said Director of Administration Michael DiBiase, of the tax that Amazon collects in 33 states, but not Rhode Island. "We think mostly due to online sales, we’re able to capture the growth. The revenue number is $35 million dollars — it improves our structural deficit problem. It’s an important fiscal development."

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Loser

Long Term Care Funding

The Governor’s proposal recommends “redesigning the nature” of the State’s Integrated Care Initiative, by transferring long-term stay nursing home members from Neighborhood Health to Medicaid Fee-for-Service and repurposing a portion of the anticipated savings (from reduced administrative payments to Neighborhood Health) for “enhanced services in the community.” “The investments in home- and community-based care will help achieve the goal of rebalancing the long-term care system," states the Administration. 

Cutting that program is tagged at saving $12.2 million; cuts and “restructuring” at Health and Human Services is slated to save $46.3 million. 

 

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