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Rhode Island secures millions for new energy rebate program – The Boston Globe

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Rhode Island secures millions for new energy rebate program – The Boston Globe


PROVIDENCE — Rhode Island has received nearly $32 million from the federal government to help residents make their homes more energy efficient and reduce the cost of their utilities, the first program of its kind in New England, Governor Dan McKee’s office said Tuesday.

The Home Electrification and Appliance Rebates (HEAR) program run by the state’s Office of Energy Resources secured the money from the Department of Energy to fund the rebate-based initiative.

“The state is using its federal Home Energy Rebates funding to help its residents update their electrical panels and wiring, and upgrade to electric stoves and heat pump clothes dryers,” US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said in a news release.

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The new program is geared toward low- and moderate-income residents. Rhode Islanders can learn if they qualify for the rebates through what Governor McKee’s office said was a free energy audit that can be conducted through a local Community Action Agency, entities that work on issues affecting economically disadvantaged communities.

If a resident qualifies for the funds, they can receive $2,500 for updated electric wiring, $4,000 for electric load service centers (the panels that distribute power in a home), and a little over $1,800 for energy-efficient appliances. Moderate-income households can secure $1,250 for electric wiring, $2,000 for electric load service centers, and $420 for energy-efficient appliances, McKee’s office said in a statement.

“This initiative is another positive step in reducing our state’s carbon emissions,” McKee said in the statement. “We are looking forward to the next phase of the program, when moderate-income households will have access to these rebates.”

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The funds granted to Rhode Island are part of billions of dollars from the Inflation Reduction Act that President Joe Biden signed into law two years ago.

“I was very glad to help secure federal funding in Democrats’ historic Inflation Reduction Act to jumpstart Rhode Island’s Home Electrification and Appliance Rebates program, which was designed to help working families who are getting squeezed by high utility bills,” Rhode Island Senator Sheldon Whitehouse said in a news release.

US Senator Jack Reed said “these rebates will lower household energy costs and fight climate change.”


Omar Mohammed can be reached at omar.mohammed@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter (X) @shurufu.

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2 dead, 1 seriously hurt after crash on I-95 South in Warwick

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2 dead, 1 seriously hurt after crash on I-95 South in Warwick


WARWICK, R.I. (WPRI) — Two people are dead and another person seriously hurt after a crash involving two vehicles on the highway in Warwick Saturday.

Rhode Island State Police said the crash happened around 1:34 p.m. on the ramp from Route 113 West to I-95 South.

According to police, a Hyundai SUV that was driving in the middle lane of the highway started to drift to the right, crossed the first lane, and then crossed onto the on-ramp lane. The car struck the guardrail twice before driving through the grass median.

The Hyundai then struck the driver’s side of a Mercedes SUV that was on the ramp, causing the Mercedes to roll over and come to a rest. The impact sent the Hyundai over the guardrail and down an embankment.

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The driver of the Hyundai, a 73-year-old man, and his passenger, a 69-year-old woman, were both pronounced dead at the hospital.

A woman who was in the Mercedes was rushed to Rhode Island Hospital in critical condition.

State police said all lanes of traffic were reopened by 4:30 p.m.

The investigation remains ongoing.

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Judge rejects DOJ push for Rhode Island voter information

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Judge rejects DOJ push for Rhode Island voter information


A federal judge on Friday tossed the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) lawsuit aiming to force Rhode Island to hand over its voter information as part of the Trump administration’s push to acquire voter data from several states.

Rhode Island U.S. District Court Judge Mary McElroy wrote that federal law does not allow the DOJ “to conduct the kind of fishing expedition it seeks here,” siding with Rhode Island election officials. She added that the DOJ did not provide evidence to suggest that Rhode Island violated election law.

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McElroy, a Trump appointee, wrote that she sided with the similar decision in Oregon. That decision ruled that the DOJ was not entitled to unredacted voter registration lists.

“Absent from the demand are any factual allegations suggesting that Rhode Island may be violating the list maintenance requirements,” she said in her ruling.

Rhode Island Secretary of State Gregg Amore (D) praised McElroy’s decision. He said in a statement that the Trump administration “seems to have no problem taking actions that are clear Constitutional overreaches, regularly meddling in responsibilities that are the rights of the states.”

“Today’s decision affirms our position: the United States Department of Justice has no legal right to – or need for – the personally-identifiable information in our voter file,” he said. “Voter list maintenance is a responsibility entrusted to the states, and I remain confident in the steps we take here in Rhode Island to keep our list as accurate as possible.”

The Hill reached out to the DOJ for comment.

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The DOJ called for the voter lists as it investigated Rhode Island’s compliance with the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, which allowed Americans to register to vote when they apply for a driver’s license.

The DOJ sued at least 30 states, as well as Washington, D.C., in December demanding their respective voter data. This data includes birth dates, names and partial Social Security numbers.

At least 12 states have given or said they will give the DOJ their voter registration lists, according to a tracker operated by the Brennan Center for Justice.

The department stated after it lost a similar suit against Massachusetts earlier this month that it had “sweeping powers” to access the voter data and that, if states fail to comply, courts have a “limited, albeit vital, role” in directing election officers on behalf of the administration to produce the records. The DOJ cited the Civil Rights Act as being intended to unearth alleged election law violations.

Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Single Dad Says Grandparents’ Rights Trial Has Cost Him More Than $500K, but He'll Do ‘Whatever It Takes’ to Keep Daughter Safe

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Single Dad Says Grandparents’ Rights Trial Has Cost Him More Than 0K, but He'll Do ‘Whatever It Takes’ to Keep Daughter Safe


As the two-year anniversary of his wife’s death approaches, widowed single father Scott Naso is sounding an alarm to fellow parents across the country — and especially in Rhode Island, where he lives with his now 4-year-old daughter, Laila.



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