Rhode Island
Rhode Island Senate Approves Raising Casino Credit Limits
![Rhode Island Senate Approves Raising Casino Credit Limits Rhode Island Senate Approves Raising Casino Credit Limits](https://www.casino.org/news/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/ballys-lincoln-casino-expansion.jpg)
Posted on: June 9, 2024, 11:35h.
Last updated on: June 9, 2024, 11:35h.
The Rhode Island Senate last week approved legislation to allow the state’s two commercial casinos to lend higher amounts of cash to high rollers.
Senate Bill 3040 seeks to amend the state’s gaming regulations to permit Bally’s Twin River Lincoln and Bally’s Tiverton to double the credit they can lend to VIPs and other gamblers wishing to bet big.
Under Rhode Island’s present rules, the two brick-and-mortar casinos can lend up to $50,000 per player in cash. SB3040 would take the cap to $100,000.
The state Senate on Thursday voted 28-5 in favor of the measure. It now moves to the state House of Representatives where it’s been directed to the chamber’s Finance Committee for initial review.
Bally’s asked state Sen. President Dominick Ruggerio (D-North Providence) for the higher lending line. The Rhode Island-based gaming corporation said the amendment is needed to allow its casinos to compete with gaming resorts in neighboring Connecticut and Massachusetts where there are no limits.
Opponents Raise Problem Gambling Concerns
State Sen. Sam Bell (D-Providence) was among the “no” votes for SB3040. He pondered why a casino should need to allow a gambler to lose more than $50,000 in a single day.
This is bad,” Bell declared. “Going into debt from gambling is dangerous. We should not maximize profit when it comes to an addictive product.”
Bally’s says many high rollers have the financial ability to weather such losses. Extending credit isn’t to provide gamblers with money they don’t have but to provide them with an easier, safer means of obtaining large sums of cash than carrying tens of thousands of dollars in bills into the business.
Credit, or “markers,” must be repaid by the player within a certain timeframe, typically 15 to 45 days. Casinos also don’t lend markers to players without doing a credit check.
The Bally’s Lincoln and Tiverton credit applications require players to provide two banking accounts that are verified by a third-party service. Applicants who falsely complete a credit application are subject to criminal liability for perjury under Rhode Island’s General Laws.
The Rhode Island House has until June 30 to pass the casino credit bill to Gov. Daniel McKee’s (D) desk.
Casino Smoking Remains
Legislation introduced in February to overhaul the state’s clean indoor air law that provides indoor smoking exceptions for Rhode Island’s casinos and pari-mutuel wagering facilities won’t reach McKee’s desk this year.
In May, House Bill 7500 was tabled by the House Finance Committee to allow a “further study” to be completed on the economic implications of forcing gaming venues to go smoke-free. Rhode Island’s Public Health and Workplace Safety Act passed in 2024 allows for indoor casino smoking.
Bally’s in 2022 announced that tobacco smoking would no longer be permitted at table games.
A grassroots coalition of Bally’s casino workers continues to lobby state lawmakers in Providence to pass legislation to free their workplaces of secondhand smoke. Ruggerio, however, one of the most powerful lawmakers in the heavily Democrat-controlled General Assembly, is opposed to such a change.
The Senate president last year said gamblers who don’t want to be around tobacco smoke should “stay home” and gamble online. Ruggerio is a smoker himself and has battled cancer in the past.
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Rhode Island
EG's RIM Best of Rhode Island Winners
![EG's RIM Best of Rhode Island Winners EG's RIM Best of Rhode Island Winners](https://eastgreenwichnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/The-EG-News-team-e1722027431778.jpeg)
Rhode Island
How to watch/stream: Rhode Island at the Little League Softball regional championship
![How to watch/stream: Rhode Island at the Little League Softball regional championship How to watch/stream: Rhode Island at the Little League Softball regional championship](https://www.gannett-cdn.com/authoring/authoring-images/2024/07/25/NPRJ/74545332007-dsc-01738-gigapixelstandardscale-2-00-x.jpeg?auto=webp&crop=9278,5220,x0,y722&format=pjpg&width=1200)
Cranston Western Little League Softball is on the doorstep of reaching the national tournament.
The Rhode Island state champions reached the New England regional finals with a 6-5 comeback win vs. Massachusetts on Wednesday. And now the Ocean State team plays in the winner-take-all championship in Bristol, Connecticut at noon.
If you can’t make the drive to see Rhode Island’s best, you can still watch from afar.
Stream links and television information for the championship vs. Connecticut is below.
How they got there: RI is off to the Little League Softball regional title game
How to watch the New England Little League Softball championship
Date: Friday, July 26
Time: Noon
Location: A. Bartlett Giamatti Little League Leadership Training Center in Bristol, Connecticut
Stream: ESPN
Previous matchup: Rhode Island topped Connecticut, 13-3, in the opening game of the New England tournament. The Ocean State tacked on eight runs in the bottom of the fourth that broke open a 5-3 game. RI piled up eight hits and 11 RBIs in the big win.
jrousseau@providencejournal.com
On X: @ByJacobRousseau
Rhode Island
NOAA, Biden-Harris Administration announce nearly $2 million for Rhode Island project as part of Investing in America Agenda
![NOAA, Biden-Harris Administration announce nearly million for Rhode Island project as part of Investing in America Agenda NOAA, Biden-Harris Administration announce nearly million for Rhode Island project as part of Investing in America Agenda](https://www.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/styles/landscape_width_1275/public/2023-03/PHOTO-Climate-Collage-HEXAGON-Design-BIL-With-NEW-Logo-2022_0.jpg)
Today, Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo announced that the Department of Commerce and NOAA have recommended nearly $2 million for a project in Rhode Island to make the state’s coast more resilient to climate change and other coastal hazards. The awards are being made under the Biden Administration’s Climate Resilience Regional Challenge, a competitive, $575 million program funded through the nearly $6 billion total investment under the Biden-Harris Administration’s Inflation Reduction Act.
“As part of President Biden’s commitment to combating the climate crisis, we are investing $575 million to help make sure America’s coastal communities are more resilient to the effects of climate change,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “As part of this historic investment in our nation’s climate resilience the Biden-Harris Administration is investing $2 million to help underserved communities in Rhode Island develop and implement new strategies to protect themselves from increased flooding, storm surge, and extreme weather events.”
Administered by the Department of Commerce and NOAA, the Climate-Ready Coasts initiative is focused on investing in high-impact projects that create climate solutions by storing carbon; building resilience to coastal hazards such as extreme weather events, pollution and marine debris; restoring coastal habitats that help wildlife and humans thrive; building the capacity of underserved communities and support community-driven restoration; and providing employment opportunities.
“This historic funding is vital for helping Rhode Island communities confront the unique coastal challenges posed by a changing climate,” said NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad, Ph.D. “The recommended project will empower Rhode Islanders to better prepare for climate change, fostering a more resilient, equitable future for these coastal communities.”
The recommended project in Rhode Island includes $1,999,777 for work with the Aquidneck Land Trust in partnership with the municipalities of Newport, Middletown, Portsmouth and Naval Station Newport. The project, Growing Regional Resilience Coordination on Aquidneck Island, capitalizes on the momentum of resilience initiatives already underway on the island. Committed to conserving the island’s open spaces and building on prior successful projects (including the conservation of over 2,800 acres), the land trust will use this opportunity to grow their island-wide approach to resilience, offering technical assistance, capacity building, and actionable strategies for responding to climate change. Implemented projects will include nature-based solutions to address threats from flooding, increasing storms, extreme temperatures, drought, sea level rise and water pollution.
“Coastal communities are on the front lines of climate change and face unique climate challenges – from flooding to water pollution to sea level rise. This federal funding will help the Aquidneck Land Trust and its partners work collaboratively to strengthen their collective resiliency to the impacts of climate change. I applaud their cooperative approach to mitigating the impacts of climate change for future generations and look forward to seeing the results of their work in these Rhode Island communities,” said Senator Jack Reed.
“Thanks to our Inflation Reduction Act, we’re accelerating climate resiliency across the Ocean State,” said Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, who helped shape major climate provisions included in the Inflation Reduction Act. “This federal funding will provide a big boost to resiliency and conservation projects on Aquidneck Island and help strengthen our defenses against climate change.”
“As the Ocean State, coastal management is essential to protecting our communities and our way of life from the existential threat of climate change,” said Congressman Gabe Amo (RI-01). “That is why I am proud to have joined my colleagues in supporting the Aquidneck Land Trust in their quest to receive more than $2 million in federal funding. This federal investment will help expand their island-wide approach to resilience and leverage nature-based solutions to fight the climate crisis.”
Additional information is available on the Climate Resilience Regional Challenge website.
Climate, weather, and water affect all life on our ocean planet. NOAA’s mission is to understand and predict our changing environment, from the deep sea to outer space, and to manage and conserve America’s coastal and marine resources.
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