By WPRO News and the Associated Press
Hull vs. Mattiello
A state representative admonished by Rhode Island House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello for a rule violation accused the speaker of violating a rule himself.
Representative Ray Hull argues Mattiello violated a rule by not holding hearings and an investigation on the matter after Hull made votes for an absent colleague. Hull says Mattiello did not refer the matter to the House Rules Committee in an “apparent rush to admonish me,” and says he won’t challenge – but rejects – Mattiello’s action.
Hull did not address the matter that resulted in the letter of admonishment, which was his admission last week that he marked Representative John Lombardi present and voted for him on three bills.
Mattiello said in a statement that House leadership is disappointed with Hull’s letter. He later discussed the issue with WPRO’s Tara Granahan.
“For some reason he can arrogantly sit there and say ‘I’m above everybody else and you know, I’m just going to pick on the Speaker and throw names out there and be insulting rather than try and work together,’” Mattiello said. “We sent him a letter and wanted to call it a day, and he responded in a negative way. I think he owes the citizens of the state, his colleagues, and his constituents in his district an apology for doing something wrong.”
Listen to “Speaker Nick Mattiello” on Spreaker.
Speaker opposes gun and ammo tax
In the same conversation with Tara, Mattiello said he won’t tax a constitutional right and there will not be a new tax on guns or ammunition. He says it would be inappropriate.
Democrat Gov. Gina Raimondo is seeking a 10% surcharge on the purchase of guns and ammunition as part of her budget proposal.
The surcharge, in addition to the current 7% sales tax, is projected to generate about $800,000 in revenue.
A recent hearing on the proposal drew hundreds of opponents to the state house. Raimondo also wants to extend the state’s sales tax to shooting ranges for archery and firearms and memberships to shooting clubs.
Republicans to elect a new party chair
The Rhode Island Republican Party will elect new leadership this weekend as it faces a fractious time in the current political landscape.
Currently, candidates for party chair include lab director Michael Veri, former town council president Suzanne Cienki, former state Rep. Robert Lancia (who lost his re-election bid in 2018), and real estate investor Rebecca Schiff.
Republicans make up only 12 percent of the electorate in Rhode Island. It currently holds no seats in Congress, no statewide offices, and holds only 14 of the state legislature’s 113 total seats.
Veri, Cienki, and Lancia joined WPRO’s Dan Yorke to discuss the race.
State nixes plans to hike beach fees
State environmental officials are no longer considering raising beach parking fees in Rhode Island.
Department of Environmental Management Director Janet Coit said Monday that the controversy about the parking rates detracted from the larger goals of celebrating and supporting state parks and beaches.
Democrat Gov. Gina Raimondo proposed the higher fees at state beaches and campsites in an effort to add staffing in the parks system.
State lawmakers quickly moved to thwart the proposal to raise beach parking rates. A bill was introduced with the support of the House speaker to maintain current rates for the next three summers.
The environmental management department said it’s now proceeding with just the proposed fee increases for campgrounds and other park rentals, such as equestrian areas and picnic tables. Doing so would shift the burden for maintaining these sites from state taxpayers to the users and bring the fee structure more in line with other public and private campgrounds.
Two-thirds of campers are from out of state and fees haven’t risen since 2002, according to the department.
Raimondo has said that long-term investments are needed in the state parks system due to budget and staffing cuts at the department in recent years, combined with increasing visitor use, longer seasons, aging facilities and expanded responsibilities. She wants to add $1.5 million to the department’s parks division for eight new employees.
The department filed a regulation to raise the camping fees. A public hearing is scheduled for April 2. If approved through the rulemaking process, the new fee structure would be applicable to new reservations.
Bill on online sales taxes passes
Lawmakers approved a bill Tuesday to collect the sales tax from online retailers, sending it to the governor for consideration. A June U.S. Supreme Court ruling paved the way for states to require collecting taxes on online purchases.
The legislation was introduced in Rhode Island by the chairmen of the House and Senate Finance Committees. Democratic Sen. William Conley and Democratic Rep. Marvin Abney say it removes the unfair advantage that out-of-state, online retailers have in competing against Rhode Island brick-and-mortar businesses.
The bill now heads to the governor’s desk.
The governor also joined WPRO’s Gene Valicenti this week.
