Rhode Island Current is an independent, nonprofit news outlet focused on state government and public policy.
The Rhode Island Current is an independent, nonprofit news outlet focused on state government and the impact of public policy decisions in the Ocean State. Readers can expect relentless reporting with the context needed to understand key issues affecting the lives of Rhode Islanders.
Outreach efforts credited with keeping health coverage for majority of Rhode Island Medicaid recipients after state completes renewal process.
Most Rhode Island Medicaid recipients kept their health insurance coverage through the program after the annual renewal process resumed following a pandemic pause, the latest data shows.
Nearly 40 labor and civil liberties groups Wednesday launched a campaign to persuade voters to say no to a ballot question asking if Rhode Island should hold what ultimately would be its first constitutional convention in 40 years.
Hours before a commission started work Wednesday to lay the groundwork for a once-in-a-decade ballot question in November asking voters if Rhode Island should hold a constitutional convention, nearly 40 labor and civil liberties groups launched a preemptive attack to persuade voters to say no.
Some state legislatures have considered "Second Look" laws, which would allow people serving long prison terms to have their sentences revised by courts or parole boards. Via Stateline
Some state legislatures have considered "Second Look" laws, which would allow people serving long prison terms to have their sentences revised by courts or parole boards. Supporters note research suggests lengthy sentences do not have a significant deterrent effect on crime and divert resources from...
Second gentleman Douglas Emhoff visited Maine’s most populated city Wednesday to participate in a discussion about the threats to reproductive health care he foresees under another Donald Trump presidency. By Maine Morning Star
At his first official campaign stop for Kamala Harris’ presidential bid, second gentleman Douglas Emhoff visited Portland, Maine, Wednesday to participate in a discussion about the threats to reproductive health care he foresees under another Donald Trump presidency.
New study led by Brown University School of Public Health finds HIV home testing can get people to clinics or counselors — but maybe not take preventative drugs.
A new study led by Brown University researchers found that, at least among one demographic, routine HIV testing at home led to more regular testing overall and might help identify HIV cases earlier.
Quidnessett Country Club hopes to reclassify the waters off its North Kingstown property to save its rock wall built without permits. But its proposal fails to address that the country club built the seawall first, then sought permission.
A public hearing before the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council pitted Quidnessett Country Club members against environmentalists over an illegal seawall built along the club's property line.
New England is banking big on offshore wind to decarbonize its electric grid, which is heavily reliant on natural gas power. But given the struggles the industry has faced — from supply chain problems and spiking costs driven by inflation to part of a blade broke off of a Vineyard Wind 1 turbine that littered Nantucket beaches with fiberglass and foam debris — can it scale up in time?
https://rhodeislandcurrent.com/2024/07/24/to-decarbonize-new-england-is-betting-big-on-offshore-wind-can-it-deliver/
Trump says he’s not worried about campaigning against Vice President Kamala Harris because “she’s the same as Biden” in her policies and committed to a debate with her.
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump during a Tuesday call with reporters committed to a debate with Vice President Kamala Harris, the likely Democratic presidential candidate.
Statement from Cranston Mayor Kenneth J. Hopkins: “While I am pleased that this matter has been favorably resolved before the Ethics Commission, I am troubled by the undeserved attack.”
The Rhode Island Ethics Commission on Tuesday dismissed a complaint against Cranston Mayor Kenneth Hopkins accusing him of nepotism in the hiring and promotion of his son-in-law at the city’s fire department.
Another state lawmaker is now unopposed for both the September primary and November general election.
The Rhode Island Board of Elections Monday rejected four signatures on the nomination forms of a Republican challenger seeking to unseat Democratic Rep. Mia Ackerman, leaving him three short of the minimum needed to qualify for the ballot.
States appear to be more closely scrutinizing corporate landlords in an effort to prohibit algorithmic price fixing, a practice is creating a housing affordability crisis. The companies that develop algorithm services say they use data responsibly and that apartment owners make their own decisions about rental rates. By Stateline
https://rhodeislandcurrent.com/2024/07/23/state-ags-ramp-up-scrutiny-of-alleged-price-fixing-in-rental-housing/
Rhode Island Commerce Corporation’s board of directors voted Monday to allow the state to borrow $140 million to pay for the emergency work and demolition of the westbound Washington Bridge.
Rhode Island Commerce Corporation gave Gov. Dan McKee’s administration the green light Monday to borrow $140 million to cover the emergency repair and demolition costs of the westbound Washington Bridge — all at the cost of future federal highway funding over the next 15 years.
Administration of Governor Dan McKee calls for extra scrutiny on new hires and purchases over $5,000 amid deficit in the forecast.
A July 18 memo by the Rhode Island Office of Management and Budget seeks to curtail state spending and hiring amid a forecasted budget deficit.
June Rose is one of 36 uncommitted delegates nationwide — and the only one in Rhode Island — headed to Chicago for the four-day Democratic National Convention next month. Their task? Convince the other 3,900 delegates pledging to support President Joe Biden to select a nominee who agrees to leverage U.S. influence and aid to end the Israel-Hamas war.
June Rose, Rhode Island's only uncommitted delegate headed to the DNC next month, is determined to pressure the party's nominee to commit to peace in Palestine.
A legal saga over the now-shuttered 360 High School in Providence has reached a settlement in the U.S. District Court of Rhode Island.
360 High School in Providence will close and merge with the Juanita Sanchez Educational Complex, but students will have a say in what to call the new unified school thanks to a settlement finalized Thursday by a U.S. District Court judge.
“I think this is really dangerous — it creates confusion. It prevents the public from understanding that abortion is a necessary life-saving procedure.”
— Atlanta-based OB-GYN and complex family planning specialist Dr. Nisha Verma.
A small number of influential anti-abortion doctors have spent the last two years trying to change the reproductive health care standards in state and federal health policy, in a way that experts say contradict national standards of care.
Trump adviser: “It’s not over until he puts his hand on the Bible and takes the oath. It’s not over until then."
A top Trump campaign official said Thursday that the 2024 presidential race will not be over until Inauguration Day, rather than after Election Day on Nov. 5 — when voters across the nation go to the polls to cast their ballots and a result normally is projected.
J.D. Vance in acceptance speech says his grandmother died with 19 loaded guns in the house.
“We wondered what was going on. And it occurred to us that towards the end of her life (she) couldn’t get around so well. And so this frail old woman made sure that no matter where she was, she was within arm’s length of whatever she needed to protect her family. That’s who we fight for. That’s the American spirit.”
J.D. Vance — the freshman Ohio senator who used to rebuke Donald Trump’s character and policies before becoming one of his most ardent supporters in Congress — formally accepted the nomination as Trump’s running mate Wednesday at the Republican National Convention.
Only 5% of applicants to the RI State Police Training Academy became troopers this year. Recruitment ads for next year's class include a focus on women and people of color to help diversify their elite ranks.
Only 5% of applicants were accepted and made it through the 23-week Rhode Island State Police Training Academy class that graduated in June. Recruitment efforts now under way for next year's class aim to interest more women and people of color to become state troopers.
A $1 million National Science Foundation (NSF) grant to Salve Regina University will help STEM scholarships for students.
Salve Regina University announced it has received a $1 million grant from the National Science Foundation for a program intended to facilitate high-achieving, low-income STEM students’ involvement in the state’s “blue economy.”
Dental therapists, who can fill basic cavities, place temporary crowns and other basic preventive care, are expanding the dental health care workforce in 14 states that allow some form of licensure for them. Some say they can help close oral health disparities while critics say state and federal policy should instead focus on supporting dentists. By Stateline
https://rhodeislandcurrent.com/2024/07/18/dental-therapists-who-can-fill-cavities-and-check-teeth-get-the-ok-in-more-states/
Gov. McKee names Daniel Connors, chief of staff for the Rhode Island Executive Office of Health and Human Services, as interim housing secretary.
https://rhodeislandcurrent.com/briefs/gov-mckee-names-interim-housing-secretary/
Two leading women in Rhode Island’s housing sector have signaled their interest in succeeding the state’s housing czar after he steps down this week from his cabinet-level job that pays more than the governor.
Two leading women in Rhode Island’s housing sector have signaled their interest in succeeding the state’s housing czar after he steps down this week from his cabinet-level job that pays more than the governor.
Neighborhood Health Plan of Rhode Island and UnitedHealthcare of New England Inc. will share a coveted contract to run Rhode Island’s more than $3 billion Medicaid program for the next five years, the Rhode Island Executive Office of Health and Human Services announced on Tuesday.
Two of four companies competing for a piece of Rhode Island's coveted $3 billion Medicaid contract won the award; the other two were disqualified.
States are trying to curb spiraling prescription drug costs by assembling special public boards to investigate and regulate pricing. But consumers have seen little savings yet as these new boards struggle to get rolling. By Stateline
Spurred by fed-up consumers, states are trying to curb spiraling prescription drug costs by assembling special public boards to investigate and regulate pricing.
Challengers raising money have a lot of catching up to do with R.I.'s three congressional delegates seeking reelection this year, federal campaign finance reports show.
Rhode Island's three sitting congressional representatives facing reelection this fall have substantially more sizable campaign war chests than their challengers, according to new FEC filings.
Two dozen public and private sector leaders who make up the the Governor’s Artificial Intelligence Task Force, which held its first meeting Monday, have a year to explore how to leverage AI as a tool for government and business.
Meeting for the first time Monday, Rhode Island’s Artificial Intelligence Task Force outlined priorities as it embarks on a yearlong exploration of ways to integrate AI into state government, including making sure state applications of AI are ethical and unbiased.
The presidential swing states Georgia, Nevada and Pennsylvania were among the fastest-changing states, according to a new analysis of census data. As growth in Black, Hispanic and Asian communities transformed cities and suburban counties in red states, the white population share grew in only three states — Montana, South Carolina and Tennessee — and the District of Columbia. By Stateline
https://rhodeislandcurrent.com/2024/07/16/red-state-cities-and-suburbs-are-becoming-more-diverse/
“The dismissal of the case deviates from the uniform conclusion of all previous courts to have considered the issue that the Attorney General is statutorily authorized to appoint a Special Counsel. The Justice Department has authorized the Special Counsel to appeal the court’s order,” DOJ spokesman Peter Carr said.
The federal classified documents case against former President Donald Trump was dismissed Monday by a Florida judge on the grounds that the Department of Justice unlawfully appointed special counsel Jack Smith.
Providence, RI
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Here is drone video released by the office of Governor Dan McKee on Friday showing a problem with the dome base upon which the Independent Man stands atop the Rhode Island State House. https://rhodeislandcurrent.com/2023/09/15/rhode-islands-independent-man-is-coming-down-for-restoration/
The Independent Man hasn't taken a break from his perch atop the Rhode Island State House in almost 50 years. That will change soon now that drone footage captured a problem in the dome on which the statue stands. https://rhodeislandcurrent.com/2023/09/15/rhode-islands-independent-man-is-coming-down-for-restoration/
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