Handy Bill would Let Voters Revoke Corporate Personhood in RI

The hearing is tonight at the State House.

Former Presidential candidate Mitt Romney famously told a man at a campaign stop that "corporations are people, my friend." According to the law, he's right, but in Rhode Island, corporations could see their personhood status revoked if a bill by Cranston Rep. Arthur Handy goes through. Rhode Island will be the first state in the country to consider legislation that would give voters the right to revoke corporate personhood. “Everyone knows that a corporation is not a person. How could unlimited corporate money in politics benefit real human people? Rhode Islanders have a powerful desire for independence and we have overwhelming popular support for overturning Citizens United. It’s time to take a stand for common sense and democracy,” …

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Joe Richer

9:04 am on Friday, May 10, 2013

That would also be fine with me. I just don't want a situation where either unions or corporations can flood the elections with focused money. So long as there is some kind of balance, we should be okay.   more ›

RI Senate Approves Same-Sex Marriage, 26-12

With the Senate's approval, the bill now goes back to the House for approval, then to Gov. Lincoln Chafee for his signature.

In a 26-12 vote, the Rhode Island Senate on Wednesday approved a bill that would allow same-sex marriage in the state, the last in New England to approve such a measure. The House of Representatives voted 51-19 on Jan. 25 to approve that chamber's version of the bill. Should the House pass the Senate version, the legislation would go to Gov. Lincoln Chafee, who has pledged his support. Johnston Sen. Frank Lombardo III voted in favor of the bill. [In two ceremonial measures, the Senate also approved the House bill, 26-12, and sent its bill to the House for approval.] With Senate President Teresa Paiva-Weed's announcement of the vote count at 5:45 p.m., Rhode Island moved one step closer to allowing gay couples to marry. Sen. Donna …

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Lombardi Bill Would Increase Vandalism Penalties

Frank S. Lombardi (D-Dist. 26, Cranston) has submitted legislation that would make acts of vandalism causing damage more than $1,500 a felony.

An attack by vandals on a Newport cemetery a few years ago could have resulted in about $125,000 worth of cleanup and repairs, had it not been for a group of volunteers who worked to replace headstones and restore order in the graveyard. "Most people think that vandalism is a stupid, childish act, which it certainly is, or a petty, victimless crime, which it most certainly is not,” said Sen. Frank S. Lombardi (D-Dist. 26, Cranston). “Some vandals, whether using a can of spray paint or doing damage to a monument in a park, leave pretty costly repairs in their wake." “I think it’s time to stop thinking of vandalism as a minor crime. Someone doing an excessive amount of damage to another person’s property should be punished in a manner that …

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Last Week at the General Assembly. . .

Recent goings on at the Rhode Island State House.

Here are the highlights from news and events that took place in the General Assembly this week. For more information on any of these items visit http://www.rilin.state.ri.us/News/ Senate unveils 'Moving the Needle' legislative package  President of the Senate M. Teresa Paiva Weed (D-Dist. 13, Newport, Jamestown), Senate Majority Leader Dominick J. Ruggerio (D-Dist. 4, North Providence, Providence), Senate Minority Leader Dennis L. Algiere (D-Dist. 38, Westerly, Charlestown, South Kingstown) and other senators unveiled a legislative package designed to improve Rhode Island’s business climate and its position on national business-friendliness surveys. The legislation was developed from the recommendations of a joint report by the Senate and …

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Local Rep Proposes 'Back to Work RI' Program

The bill is being proposed by Rep. Joseph M. McNamara (D-Dist. 19, Warwick, Cranston)

Modeled on successful programs in place in other states, legislation introduced by Rep. Joseph M. McNamara (D-Dist. 19, Warwick, Cranston) calls for creation of a “Back to Work Rhode Island Program” to assist unemployed Rhode Islanders to get jobs and job training. Like the programs in such states as Georgia and New Hampshire, the Rhode Island program proposed in the McNamara legislation seeks to address the concerns of both the unemployed and employers by allowing individuals to continue to collect unemployment benefits while they take part in an approved, unpaid training program with a qualified Rhode Island employer. The legislation, 2013-H 5033, acknowledges certain facts – that Rhode Island’s unemployment rate remains the highest in …

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This Week in the General Assembly

Gov. Lincoln Chafee signed several bills into law, the General Assembly Press Bureau announced.

For more information on any of these items visit http://www.rilin.state.ri.us/News/ Governor signs bill for disclosure in political spending: Legislation signed by Gov. Lincoln Chafee on June 28 and sponsored by Rep. Christopher R. Blazejewski and Sen. Juan A. Pichardo is intended to help provide information to voters about who is behind political messages, a move that is aimed at requiring disclosure by “super-PACs.” The Transparency in Political Spending Act (TIPS) requires individuals and organizations that engage in “independent expenditures” and “electioneering communications” to report donors and expenditures to the Rhode Island State Board of Elections and to include disclaimers on media and Internet advertising. The legislation (…

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Poll: Should Teens Need Permission to Go Tanning?

A new law requires parental or medical permission for every other tanning visit by people under 18 years old — what do you think?

  Starting Jan. 1, 2013, anyone younger than 18 will need a parent's written permission to use indoor tanning booths, after a new law went into effect this week. Legislators had originally considered an all-out ban on indoor tanning by teens, but approved a compromise in the waning days of the 2011-12 session that requires a medical prescription, or a parent's note and signature every second time a teen uses an indoor tanning bed. Supporters argued that the restrictions would prevent exposure to UV radiation, which is classified as a Class 1 carcinogen by the World Health Organization. In an article recently published on the Providence Journal website, one salon owner said the new law will be difficult to enforce, since some tanning …

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The Great Debate

Should Auto Body Shops Be Able to Sue Insurance Companies?

Johnston Rep. Stephen R. Ucci sponsored the bill, which passed the House on June 11 and the Senate in the early morning hours Wednesday.

  In the now-traditional flurry of activity to end the 2011-12 General Assembly session, a bill was passed by both chambers of the legislature that allows auto body shops to sue insurance companies over the cost of repairs. The bill, sponsored in the House by Rep. Stephen R. Ucci (D-Johnston), now goes to Gov. Lincoln Chafee for his signature. According to the Providence Journal, the parents of Johnston Rep. Peter Petrarca spoke in favor of the legislation at a House hearing a few days previous to its approval. Ucci told the House on June 11 that the bill would "level the playing field" in allowing local shops a legal recourse for disputing repair estimates, the Journal reported. Other legislators, including Rep. Robert Watson (R-East …

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Johnston Rep's Bill on Motorcycle Parking Becomes Law

Rep. Peter J. Petrarca (D-Dist. 44) sponsored the House version of legislation that creates new parking spaces for motorcycles at public buildings.

  Gov. Lincoln Chafee recently signed a new law, proposed by Rep. Peter J. Petrarca (D-Johnston, Lincoln, Smithfield) in the state House of Representatives, which creates new motorcycle parking spaces at public buildings. Sponsored in the Senate by Sen. John Tassoni (D-Smithfield, North Smithfield), the law requires the state to create a motorcycle parking plan by this November and put it in place bt Apr. 1, 2013. According to a release from the General Assembly press bureau, the new spaces must be "adjacent to or within sight of the building" and have proper signage, and the parking plan must be reviewed at least once every five years. The law also carries an $85 fine for unauthorized use of motorcycle parking spaces.

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This Week in the General Assembly

Here's a look at the highlights from the Rhode Island State House for the week ending June 8, 2012.

For more information on any of these items visit http://www.rilin.state.ri.us/News/ ‘Good time’ changes signed into law Gov. Lincoln D. Chafee on June 5 signed into law legislation passed by the General Assembly to prevent those serving time for particularly serious crimes from earning time off their sentences for good behavior. The legislation, sponsored by Sen. V. Susan Sosnowski and Rep. Teresa Tanzi on behalf of Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin, was introduced in response to the potential release last year of Michael Woodmansee, convicted of killing 5-year-old Jason Foreman in 1975 in South Kingstown. Woodmansee, who later agreed to remain in state custody through voluntary institutional commitment, was allowed to earn 12 years off …

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