Little lawmaking, thus far
9:21 AM Mon, Apr 02, 2007 | Permalink
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Projo Politics Blog |
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Projo Politics Blog |
A bit of mid-session trivia for those weighing whether Rhode Island needs a full-time legislature: Last Friday marked the three-month midpoint in what is usually a six-month session. As of Friday, lawmakers had introduced 2,144 pieces of legislation and passed a raft of nonbinding resolutions on this and that. Many bore condolences; others, congratulations. After three months, the part-time lawmakers had passed a total of nine bills. Five of the nine gave the legislative imprimatur to bond issues and charter amendments in North Kingstown and South Kingstown. Two more extended reporting dates for commissions. Only two had broader significance, and they were identical House and Senate bills to remove the threat that a charitable contribution in Rhode Island might be used as evidence of residency here for tax purposes and thus cost someone their residency status in a more tax-friendly state, such as Florida. Stay tuned. We’re at the halfway mark and lawmakers have not yet unveiled their proposals for some of the thorniest and most controversial issues of the year, such as a rewrite of the state’s criminal sentencing guidelines aimed at sharply reducing the population in the state’s overcrowded prison. 
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