Function Government

The brief claims the court disregarded compliance with various critical environmental regulations and standards, including those requiring public involvement.

ACCESS/RI, a coalition of groups working for open government in Rhode Island, sent a letter to Governor Daniel McKee urging him to issue an executive order that would allow public bodies to once again hold online meetings and require public bodies to provide remote access for members of the public. The coalition made the request in light of the current wave of infections caused by the Delta variant of Covid-19.

Common Cause Rhode Island is sponsoring two free, online events to gather Rhode Islanders’ perspectives on changes to: how government bodies hold public meetings; and how the state holds its elections.

The ACLU of Rhode Island, Common Cause Rhode Island, and the League of Women Voters of Rhode Island have asked General Assembly leaders to repeal an Executive Order, (EO 20-72), issued last week by Governor Raimondo that undercuts transparency in government.

Few interest groups have been more generous to Rhode Island lawmakers than the firefighters’ lobby, which is pushing controversial overtime legislation up for a House vote on Tuesday, in a state that regularly tops the national charts on the cost of fire protection.

An extemporaneous speech Tuesday afternoon about Black History Month devolved into a tense shouting match on the Rhode Island House floor involving the deputy speaker and multiple lawmakers of color.