City & Government

Newport City Councilors adopted an FY2024 Budget during their Regular Council Meeting on Wednesday, June 14. The roughly $110 million spending plan, which goes into effect at the start of the City’s fiscal year on July 1st, includes several changes to both revenue and expenditures. TAX RATE FY2024 will be the first year of the […]

A special legislative commission will study the economic and social effects of the short-term rental industry under legislation sponsored by Rep. Lauren H. Carson and approved by the House today. “Like many of the tech-enabled industries that have grown exponentially within just a few short years of being introduced, short-term rentals have downstream effects that […]

The General Assembly today passed a bill sponsored by Sen. Dawn Euer and House Majority Whip Katherine Kazarian that would protect domestic violence victims from abusive litigation filed by abusers. “Once a domestic violence survivor ends an abusive relationship and tries to move on, abusers will often file frivolous lawsuits just to get in the […]

Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank has closed on a $77,260,000 Green Bond to support clean water projects for the Narragansett Bay Commission and the communities of East Greenwich, East Providence, Middletown, Woonsocket, and Warwick, and for drinking water projects in the City of Providence. “Thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Rhode Island’s Clean and Drinking Water […]

STATE HOUSE – Newport’s new tax structure to encourage owner-occupied housing has cleared its final hurdle with today’s Rhode Island General Assembly passage of legislation sponsored by Rep. Lauren H. Carson and Sen. Dawn Euer. The bill now goes to Governor Dan McKee for consideration. According to a press release from the Rhode Island General […]

WASHINGTON, DC – As Rhode Island’s air quality continues to be impacted by significant wildfires in Canada, the Ocean State is getting another $178,046 in federal funding this week to help detect bad air quality from events like wildfires and industrial pollution and keep the public informed. U.S. Senator Jack Reed today announced that the Rhode […]

Newport City Council will host their next Regular City Council Meeting on Wednesday, June 14 in the Council Chambers at Newport City Hall. The meeting is open to the public, here’s a look at what’s on the agenda; The following items of business, filed with the City Clerk under the Rules of the Council, will […]

Acting Police Chief Ryan Duffy, a 23-year veteran of the Newport Police Department, has been named the City’s next Police Chief, the City of Newport announced on Tuesday in a press release. He replaces former Police Chief Gary Silva, who retired earlier this year after more than 35 years with the City, including his last […]

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — At least five children have developed lead poisoning since 2019 while living in apartments owned by a major Rhode Island landlord, the state attorney general said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday. Pioneer Investments LLC, and its president, Anurag Sureka, have failed to comply with state rental, lead hazard, and consumer protection […]

The Westerly Town Council last night rejected, after more than three hours of public comment, an effort to have it endorse a bill that would have expanded an anti-obscenity bill that could have resulted in banning books in school libraries. The bill was introduced in the state House of Representatives in late April and is […]

Governor Dan McKee today issued a proclamation designating June as LGBTQ+ Pride Month. “Rhode Island stands with the LGBTQ+ community this month and every month. In June, we take the time to celebrate and honor the contributions that the LGBTQ+ community has made to the Ocean State,” said Governor McKee in a statement. “Diversity is what […]