The Senate passed the Nathan Bruno and Jason Flatt Act (
2021-S 0031) sponsored by Sen. James A. Seveney (D-Dist. 11, Portsmouth, Bristol, Tiverton) that would require all public school districts to adopt suicide prevention policies and train all personnel in suicide awareness and prevention annually. The measure now moves to the House of Representatives, where similar legislation (
2021-H 5353) has been introduced by Rep. Terri Cortvriend (D-Dist. 72, Portsmouth, Middletown).
Senate, House OK bills to make construction tax exemptions permanent
The Senate and House passed separate bills to make tax exemptions for properties under construction permanent. The Senate bill (
2021-S 0288) was sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Michael J. McCaffrey (D-Dist. 29, Warwick). The House bill (
RI Senate votes to exit marriage business
PROVIDENCE Rhode Island Senators voted Tuesday to exit the marriage solemnization business.
State law allows a long list of people to perform marriages from clergy members and state judges to town wardens on Block Island, but a special law must be passed to allow anyone else to perform a wedding.
A favorite uncle. A friend. An out-of-state judge. The occasional legislator. Among the special officiants requested this year: Senate Majority Whip Maryellen Goodwin and former Warwick Mayor Scott Avedisian.
Senate Majority Leader Michael McCaffrey and House Majority Whip Katherine Kazarian both introduced bills to get lawmakers out of the decision-making, and not for the first time. But this year, the drive appears to be picking up steam.
The RI AFL-CIO. SEIU. The R.I. Federation of Teachers. NEARI.
All are part of the coalition that held an online rally Tuesday for a hike in Rhode Island s top income tax rate from 5.99% to 8.99% on estimated earnings above $475,000 to raise an estimated $128.2 million in new revenue for a long wish-list of spending items.
The advocates make this case: This proposal will have no effect on Rhode Islanders outside of the top 1%.This proposal impacts approximately 5,000 tax filers.
They also contend: the poorest taxpaying Rhode Islanders pay a larger share of their income, 12.1%, in sales, income, property and excise taxes than the wealthiest, 7.9%. By their calculations: the tax bill for someone with a taxable income of $500,000 would go up $750 and a $5 million taxable income, by $137,750.
In the end, the vote was 7 to 4 to raise the state s minimum wage to $12.25 by Oct. 1, 2021; $13 by Oct. 1, 2022; $14 by Oct. 1, 2023 and $15 by Oct. 1, 2024. The bill now goes to the full Senate for a vote.
The legislature s progressive Democrats, organized labor and Gov. Gina Raimondo in her farewell State of the State address before her anticipated departure to Washington have pushed for another round of minimum-wage hikes.
In her speech Wednesday night, Raimondo said: We’ve raised the minimum wage four times. Let’s keep going. Now, more than ever, hardworking people need a raise.
But the Senate Labor Committee vote on the minimum wage package was headed toward a 4-to-4 defeat with nay votes from Republican Jessica de la Cruz and Democrats Frank Lombardi, Frank Lombardo and Roger PIcard until Senate President Dominick Ruggerio and his top two lieutenants jumped in. (The Senate initially posted a vote tally that mistakenly attributed one of the nays to Sen. Sus