New Speaker Blazejewski Pushes $1 Billion Bigger Budget, More State Employees, and New Taxes

New Speaker Blazejewski Pushes $1 Billion Bigger Budget, More State Employees, and New Taxes

While Rhode Islanders are concerned about affordability, the House Leadership passed a new budget in House Finance on Friday night that increases the size of the state government, the number of state employees, and imposes higher taxes.

 

The proposed Rhode Island state budget will balloon to $15.2 billion — a $1 billion increase in spending over this year.

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As part of the higher spending, the number of state employees is increasing. In the FY 27 budget, there will be 15,995.2 FTEs. That is 70.4 more than the current budget.

 

Friday night, the House Finance Committee voted 11-2 to approve the budget.

 

• It varies significantly from Governor Dan McKee’s budget.

 

• It does not include the Governor’s proposed gas tax cut.

 

• The budget spends $300 million more than the McKee proposal and, as stated, $1 billion more than the present year’s budget.

 

“This budget is an effort to address the concerns and struggles of everyday Rhode Islanders, who need good schools, who need access to health care, who need to be able to pay their bills and who need to know that their government is honest and effective. This budget is the result of months of listening, prioritizing and identifying ways to fix what isn’t working. It provides relief today while being fiscally responsible and putting our state in a better position in the years to come,” said Blazejewski (D-Dist. 2, Providence). “I’m very grateful to our Finance Committee and staff as well as the many leaders, advocates and members of the public who contributed to shaping this budget, to make it a real reflection of our state’s priorities.”

 

The budget also strips out the line-item veto provision proposed by McKee.

 

Governors in 44 states currently have line-item veto authority, which allows them to strike or veto individual components or spending items in a legislative bill without rejecting the entire measure. Blazejewski, in a briefing before the House Finance Committee vote, made it clear he was not surrendering any budget power.

 

The Blazejewski budget includes the Inspector General’s office but exempts the legislature from oversight and review.

 

The budget, as passed by House Finance, also did not include McKee’s proposal to roll back energy efficiency programs or other measures that support the state’s efforts to reduce reliance on carbon-emitting fossil fuels. "The state’s 2033 goal of fully utilizing renewable energy for electricity generation remains intact by expanding the state’s renewable energy standard to include nuclear and hydropower generation, which will lower rates for consumers," said the House Leadership in a statement. Rhode Island neither has nuclear nor significant hydro production.

 

The major new tax is the revised millionaire tax, which spreads the 3% tax on income over $1 million over three years. “This will also allow the state to collect information on its impacts,” said Blazejewski’s office in a press release.

 

It is also bad news for seniors who were hoping for the McKee cut to the tax on social security benefits. That proposal was cut back.

 

The proposed green bond was expanded to a total of $55 million, adding funds for open space and increasing support for climate resiliency measures. 

 

And the proposed $50 million bond for a new career and technical education program was cut. The total proposed bond spending is $600 million.