A program designed to bring jobs and advance Rhode Island’s economy broke ground Monday morning.
Gov. Dan McKee said the first phase of the South Quay Marine Terminal will create good-paying jobs and advance the state’s Blue Economy. The project, when finished, will serve as a staging area for the state’s wind turbine plan and will be a central hub for the region’s offshore wind economy.
Federal funding to help Rhode Island fix bridges and roads is on the way. U.S. Sen. Jack Reed, D-RI, has announced the state will receive an additional $48.5 million to repair highway infrastructure through the Federal Highway Administration’s redistribution of funds for the month of August.
Gov. Dan McKee survived four Democratic challengers to secure a chance at a full term as Rhode Island’s governor. McKee, who took office in March 2021 when then-Gov. Gina Raimondo accepted a position in President Joe Biden’s administration, squeezed past top challenger Helene Buonanno Folkes in Tuesday’s primary by a mere 2.7% of the vote, in unofficial results.
A new one-stop website has been created to help Rhode Islanders navigate the 2022 Child Tax Rebate. The Rhode Island Division of Taxation has set up an online portal to give guidance to families in the state to take advantage of the rebate of $250 for up to three children, Gov. Dan McKee said.
A plan to provide relief to low-income Rhode Island residents for electricity bills this winter is in the works. A $3.8 million proposal from the Office of Energy Resources, Gov. Dan McKee said, would use funding from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative in an effort to support 39,000 at-risk, low-income families in affording electricity bills from October through March.
A new electric bus fleet will be available to public transit riders in Rhode Island. Fourteen New Flyer Xcelsior CHARGE NG buses will be delivered over the next couple of months and replace diesel-fueled buses that are in use on the R-Line, the route with the highest ridership. The buses are battery-electric powered, Gov. Dan McKee said. The R-Line connects Providence and Pawtucket.
Rhode Island residents seeking employment in offshore wind will benefit from a new training program. Gov. Dan McKee, along with labor and higher education officials and officials from Orsted and Eversource, announced Wednesday a new partnership that brings together higher education, workforce development, and labor organizations that is designed to provide state residents with the education and training necessary to work in the energy sector.
Classified state employees are now eligible to run for state elected offices in Rhode Island. The change permits a classified employee to run for the nomination or be a candidate for state office if that position of not fully funded by a federal loan or grant money.
Rhode Island taxpayers earning less than $100,000, or joint filers up to $200,000, are eligible for the Rhode Island Child Tax Rebate. According to a state release, the rebates of $250 for up to three children are supportive of an estimated 115,000 families across the state. The law was part of the budget package signed by Democratic Gov. Dan McKee in June.
A coalition of 20 state attorneys general, all Democrats, are backing a federal gun rule in court. The Final Rule, as the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives named it, would enable law enforcement officials to trace any homemade guns used in crimes. In addition, the rule limits trafficking the weaponry.
New offshore wind energy production in Rhode Island is getting a jolt. Democratic Gov. Dan McKee signed legislation Wednesday morning that increases the capacity of market-competitive offshore wind procurement by expanding the parameters to between 600 to 1,000 megawatts.
A pair of bills that will aid Rhode Island residents in more easily finding affordable housing have been signed, Democratic Gov. Dan McKee said. The governor announced Tuesday that he signed House Bill 7944A, sponsored by Rep. Arthur Corvese, D-North Providence, and Senate Bill 3051, sponsored by Senate President Dominick J. Ruggerio, D-Providence, on June 30.
The governor announced Monday that $115,667 in grants have been awarded through the state’s Department of Environmental Management and Office of Energy Resources that will be used to support solar projects at six farms.
A trio of Rhode Island gun control bills are headed to Gov. Dan McKee’s desk. The General Assembly passed the bills that would raise the age limits for purchasing guns and ammunition to age 21, ban carrying rifles and shotguns in public, and outlaw high-capacity magazines.
The governor announced late Monday that The Arctic Mill will be redeveloped into housing and commercial space. The plan is to use the two separate historical textile mill facilities as a mixed-use complex featuring rental apartments and commercial space, including media rooms, a boxing gym, and more.
Marijuana is now legal to be consumed by Rhode Island residents age 21 and over. Gov. Dan McKee signed Senate Bill 2430, which makes it the 19th state to legalize marijuana, and sets regulation, taxation, and the market of the drug. The legislation provides for expungement of civil and criminal marijuana possession charges that is to be completed by June 1, 2024.
WalletHub has ranked Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island as the three best states for supporting working mothers in its 2022’s Best & Worst States for Working Moms. Vermont ranked seventh in the report, which indicates that 68% of women with children under the age of 18 are in the work force since 2021.
Repealing a law that permits employers to pay disabled workers less than minimum wage is making its way to the Rhode Island Senate.
Marijuana legalization is the focus of a pair of identical bills that will be heard in the Rhode Island General Assembly this week.
On Wednesday, the Senate Judiciary Committee will vote on Senate Bill 2430, sponsored by Sen. Joshua Miller, D-Cranston, at 3:30 p.m., while the House Finance Committee will host a vote on House Bill 7593, sponsored by Rep. Scott A. Slater, D-Providence, at 5 p.m.