Rhode Island

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

Published

5 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.

Source link

Click to comment

Rhode Island

Police ID man hit, killed by car in Cranston

Published

1 day ago

November 15, 2025

Press Room

Police ID man hit, killed by car in Cranston

CRANSTON, R.I. (WPRI) — Cranston police have identified the man who was hit and killed by a car on Atwood Avenue Friday evening.

Major Todd Patalano said the man was 80-year-old Richard Viti, of Cranston.

Police were called Friday evening to the area of 700 Atwood Avenue for reports of a pedestrian who was hit by a car. Investigators say Viti was crossing the street to get to the San Bernardo Society.

The driver, who has not yet been identified, faces charges of operating on a suspended license and operating an unregistered vehicle, according to Patalano.

There may be more charges the driver is facing as the investigation is still in its early stages, Patalano explained.

Viti was taken to Rhode Island Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Patalano said the driver is cooperating with authorities.

Download the WPRI 12 and Pinpoint Weather 12 apps to get breaking news and weather alerts.

Watch 12 News Now on WPRI.com or with the free WPRI 12+ TV app.

Follow us on social media:

Source link

Rhode Island

RI Lottery Mega Millions, Lucky For Life winning numbers for Nov. 14, 2025

Published

2 days ago

November 15, 2025

Press Room

The Rhode Island Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Nov. 14, 2025, results for each game:

Winning Mega Millions numbers from Nov. 14 drawing

01-08-11-12-57, Mega Ball: 07

Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Lucky For Life numbers from Nov. 14 drawing

14-19-34-42-43, Lucky Ball: 13

Check Lucky For Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Numbers numbers from Nov. 14 drawing

Midday: 2-1-0-8

Evening: 2-6-8-7

Check Numbers payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Wild Money numbers from Nov. 14 drawing

04-05-12-14-23, Extra: 31

Check Wild Money payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize

Prizes less than $600 can be claimed at any Rhode Island Lottery Retailer. Prizes of $600 and above must be claimed at Lottery Headquarters, 1425 Pontiac Ave., Cranston, Rhode Island 02920.
Mega Millions and Powerball jackpot winners can decide on cash or annuity payment within 60 days after becoming entitled to the prize. The annuitized prize shall be paid in 30 graduated annual installments.
Winners of the Lucky for Life top prize of $1,000 a day for life and second prize of $25,000 a year for life can decide to collect the prize for a minimum of 20 years or take a lump sum cash payment.

When are the Rhode Island Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 10:59 p.m. ET on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 11:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday and Friday.
Lucky for Life: 10:30 p.m. ET daily.
Numbers (Midday): 1:30 p.m. ET daily.
Numbers (Evening): 7:29 p.m. ET daily.
Wild Money: 7:29 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Rhode Island editor. You can send feedback using this form.

Source link

Rhode Island

Newport Hospital earns top ranking – What’s Up Newp

Published

3 days ago

November 14, 2025

Press Room

Newport Hospital earns top ranking – What’s Up Newp

Newport Hospital was among several hospitals in Rhode Island that achieved an A rating from the hospital watchdog group Leapfrog in its fall ratings. Three hospitals – Roger Williams Medical Center, Kent, and South County were awarded C or below, a pattern of declining ratings over the last few years.

Additionally, Women and Infants Hospital declined to participate in Leapfrog’s survey, according to Leapfrog. The group surveys more than 2,000 hospitals nationwide twice a year.

Both Fatima and Roger Williams are owned by California-based Prospect Medical Holdings, which filed for bankruptcy several months ago. There have been efforts to sell the hospitals while maintaining both of them open.

Women and Infants is part of the Care New England Group, which also includes Kent Hospital, whose safety rating has steadily declined over the last few years.

Leapfrog, which conducted the survey, is a well-respected hospital watchdog group that describes itself as “the nation’s gold standard in evaluating hospital performance on national measures of safety, quality, and efficiency in both inpatient and outpatient areas.”

Hospital safety is critical, with surveys suggesting that as many as 440,000 patients die annually because of hospital safety errors. Studies suggest that preventable medical errors are the third leading cause of death in America.

Leapfrog assigns rankings, A to F, based on issues involving infections, surgical problems, safety concerns, and practices to prevent errors. Within each of these areas are also several measures.

Earning A ratings for the fall of 2025 were Newport, Miriam, Rhode Island, and Westerly Hospitals. Newport, Miria,m and Rhode Island are part of Brown University Health (formerly Lifespan), while Westerly is part of the Yale/New Haven group. Landmark Hospital in Woonsocket received a B rating; Kent, Fatima and South received C ratings; and Roger Williams Medical Center received a D rating.

Several trends were also evident. Newport and Miriam Hospitals have been trending up, scoring B in the spring and fall of 2022, but in 2023 reaching an A rating, and remaining there. Rhode Island fell to a C in the fall of 2023, rising to B in both surveys in 2024, and in the two reports in 2025 have achieved an A rating.

Landmark has been consistently A-rated since 2022, with the only exception being a B in one of the reports in 2024. Westerly has been rising, from a C in the spring of 2022 to an A in 2025. Fatima has been C-rated with only one exception, a B in the fall of 2022. Roger Williams also consistently received a C until this fall, when its ranking dropped to D.

South County had ranged between A and B, falling to C this fall.

For those hospitals that trended lower, a significant problem appears to be effective leadership to help prevent errors. “Effective leadership to prevent errors: Errors are much more common if hospital leaders don’t make patient safety a priority. Leaders must make sure that all hospital staff know what they need to work on and that they are held accountable for improvements.”

South County, which is Rhode Island’s only independent hospital, experienced a disruption among physicians several months ago, in a rift with the administration that apparently has yet to heal.

Leadership, or lack of leadership, was also noted for other hospitals not performing well.

Meanwhile, other issues remain: healthcare – the lack of primary care physicians (nationwide); the study to determine whether to build a second medical school at the University of Rhode Island; and the threatened closure of Roger Williams and Fatima Hospitals.

Source link