Rhode Island

All but one of this year’s climate bills ‘disappeared’ in R.I. Assembly’s grossly undemocratic process – The Boston Globe

Published

3 months ago

June 27, 2025

All but one of this year’s climate bills ‘disappeared’ in R.I. Assembly’s grossly undemocratic process – The Boston Globe

On Sunday, there will be a funeral on the State House steps for all the climate bills that died a silent death because of our state Legislature’s grossly undemocratic process. But the funeral isn’t just for the environment: The legislative dysfunction applies to all issues.

This year, 19 of the 20 bills endorsed by Climate Action Rhode Island simply disappeared. No vote was ever taken on them because the leaders of the House and Senate did not want one. That’s how our Legislature works. Nothing comes to a vote without the specific approval of the Senate president or the House speaker.

Rank-and-file legislators — the people we elect to represent our interests — never get to cast a vote on our behalf unless leadership decides the bill should pass. If leadership decides to allow a vote, you can bet the bill will be approved.

Here’s how democracy is subverted in Rhode Island: When a bill is filed, it’s assigned to a committee, which automatically votes to refer it for “further study.” This is true for every bill, regardless of its merits or popularity. The vast majority of bills are never heard from again because “further study” is where bills are sent to “disappear” Rhode Island style.

No bill is allowed to return to committee without the blessing of leadership. Even the committee chairperson cannot call a bill forth from purgatory without leadership approval.

This makes committee hearings into a charade and public testimony meaningless because the committee members have no power to act on a bill unless leadership gives them a green light. This is not democracy. Two people run the whole show. The rest is stagecraft.

So let’s use those environmental bills as a case study.

Of the 20 bills, 17 went to “further study” and disappeared. No debate, no vote, no nothing. Just silence. (In case you’re curious, this included bills that would have funded public transit, purchased clean energy from offshore wind, and required the fossil fuel companies that are causing climate change help clean up the mess they’ve made).

Of the three remaining bills, two passed in one chamber, but were never released from in “further study” in the other, thus bringing the death toll to 19 of 20.

One bill passed — a minor improvement that removes the limits on how many solar panels homeowners can put on their house.

The environmental community’s top-priority bill is particularly instructive.

Half of all carbon emissions in Rhode Island come from buildings. The Building Decarbonization bill would have created a multi-year program to gradually decrease building emissions. It applied only to the state’s largest buildings and would have had no impact on homeowners.

The bill was introduced in both the House and Senate and both were referred to “further study.” The original bill was never voted on in either chamber. Instead, after several months of silence, a substitute bill suddenly appeared that gutted the original bill so severely that it no longer required any reduction in carbon emissions. It was pretty close to useless, but would have allowed leadership to claim they had passed environmental legislation.

The gutted bill moved swiftly through committee and was approved by the full House with no public testimony allowed. But even this gutted bill failed to become law because the Senate leadership never called a vote. I would say it was dead on arrival, except it never arrived at all.

The public should be outraged, as should the many dedicated legislators who have been disempowered by this undemocratic process. Both should demand change. It’s time for legislators to act like leaders instead of vassals.

Are Speaker Joseph Shekarchi and Senate President Valarie Lawson despotic leaders or benign dictators? Who knows. But well-intentioned or not, they are dictators. And that isn’t healthy for the state.

Providence-based writer Bill Ibelle is a member of Climate Action Rhode Island and the Rhode Island chapter of the Citizens Climate Lobby.

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Rhode Island

Rhode Island, Massachusetts officials respond to shooting death of Charlie Kirk | ABC6

Published

24 hours ago

September 10, 2025

Press Room

Rhode Island, Massachusetts officials respond to shooting death of Charlie Kirk | ABC6

Tess Crowley – The Deseret News

Charlie Kirk hands out hats before speaking at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — Rhode Island and Massachusetts officials have responded to the shooting death of Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University on Wednesday.

Governor Dan McKee (D-RI) shared the following statement:

“Political violence is unacceptable. The attack on Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University underscores that all voices deserve safety. Our thoughts are with him, his family and everyone affected.”

Governor Maura Healey (D-MA) released the following statement:

“Violence has no place in our politics – ever. What happened to Charlie Kirk is horrific and we condemn it in the strongest possible terms. The growth of political violence in our country must be stopped.”

Providence Mayor Brett Smiley (D) released the following statement:

“My thoughts are with Charlie Kirk and his family following today’s horrific attack. Acts of political violence should have no place in America. As a country, we need to do more. We cannot continue to allow senseless acts of gun violence to impact our communities.”

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Rhode Island

Dates set for special election on Providence’s East Side – The Boston Globe

Published

2 days ago

September 9, 2025

Press Room

Dates set for special election on Providence’s East Side – The Boston Globe

PROVIDENCE — The special election to fill the vacant Ward 2 City Council seat on Providence’s East Side will be held on Dec. 2, the Rhode Island Board of Elections confirmed Tuesday, with a primary election on Nov. 4.

In a decidedly blue ward (86 percent voted for Kamala Harris last year), the Democratic primary is expected to be the main event, drawing a competitive field for an open seat.

The special election was prompted by the resignation of Helen Anthony, who stepped down for health reasons as she continues to recover from being hit by an ATV in California two years ago.

The winner of the special election will serve out the rest of her term, which goes through the end of 2026, and would be eligible to run for three more four-year terms. The seat is up for a regular election next year.

Ward 2 is in the wealthiest part of the city, including the Blackstone, College Hill, and Wayland neighborhoods, and contains part of Brown University’s campus.

The East Side typically has the highest voter turnout in the city and is highly influential in both state and city politics. In a non-election year with little else on the ballot in Rhode Island, the race could drum up outsized attention.

Candidates have to declare their intent to run with the Providence Board of Canvassers on Sept. 25 and 26. Four Democrats are running so far.

David Caldwell, owner of Caldwell & Johnson Custom Builders, and Jeff Levy, an attorney at Levy & Blackman, both announced their campaigns in the last two weeks. (Levy is married to former state Senator Gayle Goldin.)

Jill Davidson, the director of development and communications at the Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council, told the Globe Tuesday she is definitely throwing her hat in the ring. And Matt McDermott, a veteran Democratic strategist who works as senior vice president Whitman Insight Strategies, said he is announcing his campaign on Wednesday.

The all-Democratic City Council has 15 seats, and its current leadership leans more progressive than Mayor Brett Smiley, also a Democrat. A progressive win in Ward 2 could help council leaders have a veto-proof majority when they clash with Smiley, while a more moderate Democrat could align more closely with the mayor.

Smiley won every polling place in Ward 2 in the three-way 2022 Democratic primary for mayor.

Anthony’s departure also left open a seat on the Finance Committee, of which she was the chair. The powerful committee vets and approves the city’s budget and tax rates, contracts, and other spending.

Council President Rachel Miller appointed Councilwoman Jo-Ann Ryan to the empty seat on the committee, and the panel elected Ryan as chair Tuesday night. Ryan was previously the chair under former Council President John Igliozzi, but had not previously been part of Miller’s leadership team.

Steph Machado can be reached at steph.machado@globe.com. Follow her @StephMachado.

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Rhode Island

You Won’t Believe Which SouthCoast Town Has the Cleanest Air

Published

3 days ago

September 8, 2025

Press Room

You Won’t Believe Which SouthCoast Town Has the Cleanest Air

Air is one of those things you almost never think about, until it starts to feel harder to breathe.

For those with allergies or asthma, getting a breath of fresh air is extremely important, which means so is the air quality where they live.

A new study from HouseFresh.com recently crunched the numbers from IQAir to figure out which cities had the best air quality in America, and a tiny SouthCoast town ranked pretty high.

As someone who feels the effects of seasonal allergies every year, especially the fall allergy season, finding fresh air always seems like a must when the weather starts to turn.

Massachusetts Air Quality Alert Days 2025

Air quality alerts days rose into the double digits for summer 2025, warning residents of poor or hazardous air throughout the state. With wildfire season still underway, that number could increase again.

HouseFresh.com looked at every city with populations over 10,000 and ranked them from best air quality to worst. Then they created a chart showing which city had the best air quality in each state.

Massachusetts and Rhode Island Cities With Best Air Quality

While overall Waimea, Hawaii had the best air quality in the country, North Kingstown helped Rhode Island ranked #5 overall and Acushnet landed Massachusetts #9.

Courtesy Frank C. Grace

Yes, of all the cities and towns in Massachusetts, it’s Acushnet where residents are breathing a little easier.

Rhode Island Ranks Among Best In U.S. For Air Quality

Perhaps more impressive was that Rhode Island in its entirety, ranked as the state with the third best air quality behind Hawaii and Alaska.

So it seems that when you step outside this fall in Southern New England, you can feel free to breathe in deeply.

A Look at King Richard’s Faire in Its New Home at Edaville

King Richard’s Faire has moved its realm of Carvershire from its original home of over four decades to its new site, the former Edaville Family Theme Park.

Gallery Credit: Tim Weisberg

Best Leaf Peeping Drives on the SouthCoast and Beyond

Ready for scenic fall leaf peeping drives?

We are too. So we’ve put together a list of some of our favorite tree-lined routes that allow you to enjoy the season’s changing colors from the waterfront to the woodlands.

No matter where you live on the SouthCoast and what type of leaf peeping you’re looking to do, we’ve got a drive for that.

Gallery Credit: Nancy Hall

Explore Land and Sea at Bristol’s Audubon Nature Center and Aquarium

Need a day of hiking, biking and seeing a 33-foot North Atlantic Right Whale replica? Then you need to head to the Rhode Island Audubon Nature Center and Aquarium in Bristol.

You can hike through various habitats, enjoy a peaceful pondside picnic and even enjoy an interactive aquarium full of native fish and sea creatures.

Fun for the whole family can be found at this hidden gem of Rhode Island.

Gallery Credit: Nancy Hall

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