Each year, Rhode Island citizens mount a brave fight to get a line-item veto on the ballot. The annual ritual brings out the worst in House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello.
R.I. House committee urged to put line-item veto on ballot
Two-time candidate for governor Ken Block made his annual pilgrimage to the State House on Tuesday to urge reluctant lawmakers to give the governor a “line-item veto″ over the final General Assembly-passed budget.
Chronic Criticism of CRMC Board as Calls for Reform Intensify
Since its founding, Rhode Island’s Coastal Resources Management Council has been criticized by both environmentalists and developers. The state agency has several charges, but much of the animosity stems from how the agency issues permits for coastal development.
One of the few environmental bills passed by the General Assembly in 2018 gives the governor greater authority to make appointments to the Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC). The changes may seem minor, but the fix to the committee overseeing waterfront development and coastal regulations makes it the last state entity to abide by Rhode Island's separation-of-powers rules.
Bill stipulating appointees to R.I. coastal management agency advances
The legislation, introduced in response to a lawsuit that Save The Bay filed in Superior Court, aims to finally bring the membership of the state Coastal Resources Management Council into compliance with the 2004 separation-of-powers amendment to the state Constitution.
